Pat Sullivan (film producer)
Encyclopedia
Patrick Sullivan was an Australian cartoonist, pioneer animator and film producer
, best known for producing the first Felix the Cat
silent
cartoons. Sullivan arrived in the United States
around 1910, after spending several months in London. He worked as assistant to newspaper cartoonist William Marriner, and drew a couple of strips of his own. When Marriner died in 1914 Sullivan joined the new animated cartoon studio set up by Raoul Barre. In 1916 William Randolph Hearst, the newspaper magnate, set up a studio to produce animated cartoons based on his paper's strips and hired Barre's best animators. Sullivan decided to start his own studio and made a series called ‘Sammy Johnsin’, based on a Marriner strip on which he had worked.
It is a matter of some dispute whether Felix was created by Sullivan or his top animator Otto Messmer
. American animation historians have accepted Messmer's claim without question, as he was the principal animator on the Felix series. However, it is not proven that Messmer invented the cat and was not working to Sullivan's brief. After the airing of the Australian Broadcasting Commission's Rewind episode on the dispute in 2004, supporters of Pat Sullivan have suggested that his 1917 film called The Tail of Thomas the Kat (3Mar17 MP866) might be a prototype Felix, and have attempted to demonstrate that the handwriting in Feline Follies, the 1919 film that triggered the Felix series, was Sullivan's rather than Messmer's.
As Mickey Mouse was gaining popularity among theatre audiences through sound cartoons by late 1928, Sullivan, after years of refusing to convert Felix to sound, finally agreed to use sound in Felix's cartoons. Unfortunately, Sullivan did not carefully prepare to convert Felix to sound, and put sound in cartoons that the studio had already completed. By 1930, Felix had faded from the screen. Sullivan relented in 1933, and announced that Felix would return in sound, but died that year before production began.
. He is buried in Cathedral cemetery in Scranton, Pennsylvania.
Film producer
A film producer oversees and delivers a film project to all relevant parties while preserving the integrity, voice and vision of the film. They will also often take on some financial risk by using their own money, especially during the pre-production period, before a film is fully financed.The...
, best known for producing the first Felix the Cat
Felix the Cat
Felix the Cat is a cartoon character created in the silent film era. His black body, white eyes, and giant grin, coupled with the surrealism of the situations in which his cartoons place him, combine to make Felix one of the most recognized cartoon characters in film history...
silent
Silent film
A silent film is a film with no synchronized recorded sound, especially with no spoken dialogue. In silent films for entertainment the dialogue is transmitted through muted gestures, pantomime and title cards...
cartoons. Sullivan arrived in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
around 1910, after spending several months in London. He worked as assistant to newspaper cartoonist William Marriner, and drew a couple of strips of his own. When Marriner died in 1914 Sullivan joined the new animated cartoon studio set up by Raoul Barre. In 1916 William Randolph Hearst, the newspaper magnate, set up a studio to produce animated cartoons based on his paper's strips and hired Barre's best animators. Sullivan decided to start his own studio and made a series called ‘Sammy Johnsin’, based on a Marriner strip on which he had worked.
It is a matter of some dispute whether Felix was created by Sullivan or his top animator Otto Messmer
Otto Messmer
Otto James Messmer was an American animator, best known for his work on the Felix the Cat cartoons and comic strip produced by the Pat Sullivan studio....
. American animation historians have accepted Messmer's claim without question, as he was the principal animator on the Felix series. However, it is not proven that Messmer invented the cat and was not working to Sullivan's brief. After the airing of the Australian Broadcasting Commission's Rewind episode on the dispute in 2004, supporters of Pat Sullivan have suggested that his 1917 film called The Tail of Thomas the Kat (3Mar17 MP866) might be a prototype Felix, and have attempted to demonstrate that the handwriting in Feline Follies, the 1919 film that triggered the Felix series, was Sullivan's rather than Messmer's.
As Mickey Mouse was gaining popularity among theatre audiences through sound cartoons by late 1928, Sullivan, after years of refusing to convert Felix to sound, finally agreed to use sound in Felix's cartoons. Unfortunately, Sullivan did not carefully prepare to convert Felix to sound, and put sound in cartoons that the studio had already completed. By 1930, Felix had faded from the screen. Sullivan relented in 1933, and announced that Felix would return in sound, but died that year before production began.
Rape conviction
In 1917, Sullivan was convicted of the rape of a 14 year old girl. He spent 9 months in prison, during which time his studio went on hiatus.Achievements
Although it is disputed that Felix the Cat, the first cartoon super star, was Sullivan's creation, as studio head he was responsible for naming him Felix, and for producing and promoting the series.Creations
Felix The Cat (Under dispute) Willing Waldo- He wants to Work Old Pop Perkins and the delightful Obliging Oliver.Death
At the age of only 46, Sullivan died on 15 February 1933 from health problems brought on by drinkingAlcoholism
Alcoholism is a broad term for problems with alcohol, and is generally used to mean compulsive and uncontrolled consumption of alcoholic beverages, usually to the detriment of the drinker's health, personal relationships, and social standing...
. He is buried in Cathedral cemetery in Scranton, Pennsylvania.