Wednesday, February 29, 2012

Kahl's Version of Captain Hook


This photo taken during production of "Peter Pan" is interesting to me.
You see Frank Thomas working on the scene with Captain Hook, when he is anxiously waiting for Tinker Bell to reveal the hiding place of Peter Pan. 
I don't know who the visitor is, but she seems to be admiring the Hook model sheet.
The drawings on that sheet are by fellow animator Milt Kahl, who had lobbied hard for the assignment to animate Hook. But Walt Disney wanted Milt to supervise the title character as well as Wendy, and it was Frank who ended up with the villain.
He remembered screening his first test scene for Walt and the crew. Milt was very displeased with the result, "That's a nothing scene" he touted. 
Frank was relieved when he heard Walt's comment, "No, there's something there, I want Frank to play with the character a bit more, he'll get it."

When you look at Milt's drawings below, you can detect his typical graphic abstractions. 
The jaw line is an almost inconsistent design, but it still works.
We'll never find out how Milt would have handled Hook in animation.

It doesn't matter, Frank Thomas did some of his best animation on Captain Hook.
The way he interacts with Smee or Tinker Bell feels to me like animated "acting fireworks".
A phenomenal character.







22 comments:

  1. I'd say Frank Thomas definitely got it right to say the least! Milt's drawings of Hook are beautiful as well:)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Milt's hook feels too 'graphic' for the look of the film. I guess Milt must have realised this, as is clear from his work in the film on Peter himself in the end, much more rounded drawing. This Hook feels similar to Dick Dastardly in places too.

    Mr Deja, is this story from Frank Thomas or Milt Kahl's point of view? I know Milt was a whirlwind guy to have around, but it sounds in this story like he was having a tantrum for not getting his own way, and in this case he in fact didn't know what was best for him. Not the sort of thing I'd have expected Mr Kahl to recount himself; this story doesn't paint him in the best light, so it'd be interesting to know who told it.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. A special quality is needed to make you love and hate a vilain at the same time.It goes beyond Draftsmanship and graphic design.Khal is simply amazing at drawing and that's why he's always called in to handle really difficult stuff such as the more straight humans.Thomas had a more emotional and sensitive approach I think.

      Delete
  3. Wow! Frank did a great job on Captain Hook, the exploration of ideas for the best one. I love the one he explains in his Documentary on the scene with Hook playing the piano: perrnnt prennt perrnet "ping!" with the tip of the hook and also the rattle back and forth of the hook, and the face he shows of devilish delight. Gets me all the time.
    So cool of Walt, a wise choice of sticking with Frank. Hearing that from Milt, most likely cranked up the notch ten times for Frank to make Milt take those words back.

    ReplyDelete
  4. I like Franks Hook better! Milts is too graphic for me.
    Also I gotta say thanks for doing this blog, Andreas!! It's amazing to read about your insights and the information you have to share.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Hi Andreas,

    ...........great post!!
    About one year ago I purchased this Captain Hook drawing that is the VERY same drawing that Frank Thomas has on his desk in the picture.You can see the drawing here:
    http://www.flickr.com/photos/fotofarley/6798572664/in/photostream

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. That's very cool, Wil.
      Do you suppose the lady in the photo just......when Frank wasn't looking..?
      And now her grandchildren sold the drawings to us. ;)

      Delete
    2. Whoa.. Will, you scored..so lucky

      Delete
  6. The design is so graphic! It's amazing how designed, yet elegant it is.

    Do you have any advice on graphic character design? I'd be really interested in hearing more about that, and your experience with it.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You can study those graphic designs, which started to enter the animation field in the 1950ies, by analyzing and re drawing them.
      Characters from Toot, Whistle, Plunk and Boom, Sleeping Beauty,
      101 Dalmatians and Sword in the Stone.
      Look for clear, definitive shapes and how straight and curved lines relate against each other.

      Delete
    2. Thanks! I've been having trouble with elements of design, and I feel like this will really help.

      Delete
  7. Wow! I love Milt's drawings, but I definitely think that Frank's Captain Hook totally defined the character. Milt's almost seems... cute compared to the crazy, evil, hilarious Hook we know and love. :D

    ReplyDelete
  8. Andreas: Were Milt's drawings over story sketches, Frank's ruffs, or Hans Conreid photostats, or none of the above?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. My guess is that Milt took inspiration from story sketches by
      Joe Rinaldi and Don DaGradi.

      Delete
  9. Milt Kahl's drawings look remarkable more like a caricature of Hans Conried. Beautiful drawings!

    ReplyDelete
  10. If I remember correctly, the Hook maquette in The Reluctant Dragon has the more traditional chin that we associate with Hook. I wonder If these go back before then, or if they were an attempt at a redesign later?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. http://www.flickr.com/photos/pomogalaxy/2795015116/

      Delete
  11. Hi Andreas, I have been admiring this blog and learning a lot from it! Thank you for sharing all this amazingness with us!!
    My name is Rebecca and I am a third year student at Sheridan College, I love animation very very much. Would you be so kind, to give me some advice on my work? That would be fantastic!! Here is my portfolio: http://animation.sheridanc.on.ca/portfolio/2013/liuzh/
    and my email is rlthetraveler@hotmail.com
    I know you are very busy and your time is greatly appreciated!

    ReplyDelete
  12. While I admire both men greatly for what they contributed to the world of animation, I can't help but feel that this character belonged to Frank. The way he drew Hook with a less graphic style really fits with the story. Milt was a master with just about everything, but I still like how Frank made the character of Captain Hook walk that thin line between "just enough" and "over-the-top." Plus, since Ollie Johnston did a lot of the work on Mr. Smee, it was fitting that Disney would get Frank to work on Hook. When Ollie and Frank got together, it was sublime. It goes the same with when Marc Davis and Milt got together(101 Dalmatians and Sleeping Beauty).Good matches in talent that can work in harmony create amazing scenes (like the scenes between Maleficent and Prince Philip).

    ReplyDelete
  13. As much as i'm a fan of Milts I have to admit Frank Thomas handled Captain hook brilliantly. One of my favorite characters from a Disney movie. Oozing with personality and had great mannerisms. Hook was the perfect mix of intimidating presence with comic incompetence.

    ReplyDelete
  14. Hey, Andreas, I loved your post of Kahl's Captain Hook for Disney's Peter Pan, but aren't you gonna find and post some Captain Hook sketches by famed Disney Animator, Vladimir "Bill" Tytla? I've found out somewhere that he was gonna animate that character, same as Fred Moore gonna do the title character (I've theorized it). I remember looking at some early story sketches of the film, that looked like Freddy's design of Peter, Wendy, Michael, John, and the Lost Boys.

    Thanks for the post.

    ReplyDelete