February
Duck Amuck (ss), Charles M. Jones /Warner Bros.
(drawn animation)

Peter Pan (f), Hamilton Luske, Clyde Geronimi, and Wilfred Jackson /Disney.
(drawn animation)



March
Johann Mouse (ss), William Hanna and Joseph Barbera /MGM.
(drawn animation)
Academy Award: Best Short Subjects, Cartoons



April
Little Johnny Jet (ss), Tex Avery /MGM.
(drawn animation)

Ron Clements (Ronald Francis Clements) (April 25, 1953- ) (director, animator, writer) born in Sioux City, Iowa.



May
Danny Elfman (May 29, 1953- ) (composer, voice actor, producer) born in Amarillo, Texas.
May
La Bergere et le Ramoneur ("The Shephredess and the Chimneysweep"; "The Curious Adventures of Mr. Wonderbird") (f), Paul Grimault /Les Gemaux. (France)
(drawn animation)

June
Christopher Crumpet (ss), Robert Cannon /UPA.
(drawn animation)



July
Jack Warner closes his studio for six months when he becomes convinced that 3-D movies would make animation too expensive to be continued.
July
The Owl and the Pussycat (ss), John Halas and Brian Borthwick /Halas-Batchelor. (Great Britain)
(drawn animation)
Contains experimental use of 3D optical techniques.

 July
Tohru Furuya (Furuya Tohru) (voice actor) born in Yokohama, Kanagawa.
August
A Is For Atom (ss)/(edu), Carl Urbano /Sutherland.
(drawn animation)

Cat-Tails for Two (ss), Robert McKimson /Warner Bros.
(drawn animation)
first Speedy Gonzales series (1953-1967), later episodes from DePatie-Freleng

Maw and Paw (ss), Paul J. Smith /Lantz.
(drawn animation)
first Maw and Paw series (1953-1955)

 August
Sinfonia amazonica ("Amazon Symphony") (f), Anelio Latini Filho. (Brazil)
(drawn animation)
first Brazilian feature animation


September
A Unicorn in the Garden (ss), Bill Hurtz /UPA.
(drawn animation)
first UPA Cartoon Special (1953-1956)
September
Stare povesti ceske ("Old Czech Legends") (f), Jiri Trnka /Prague Puppet Animation Studio. (Czechoslovakia [Czech Republic])
(puppet animation)

October
Rugged Bear (ss), Jack Hannah /Disney.
(drawn animation)

Winky Dink and You (tv)/(tvss), Ariel.
(drawn animation)
This show is an early example of interactive television. Its viewers were urged to draw items that complemented the action of the show on clear plastic sheets that covered the screen.
October
Bonjour Paris ("La Tour Prends Garde") (f), Jean Image /Image. (France)
(drawn animation)

November
Ben and Me (ss), Hamilton Luske /Disney.
(drawn animation)

Toot, Whistle, Plunk, and Boom (ss), Ward Kimball and Charles Nichols /Disney.
(drawn animation)
Academy Award: Best Short Subjects, Cartoons

Chilly Willy (ss), Paul J. Smith /Lantz.
(drawn animation)
first Chilly Willy series (1953-1972)
November
Peter Lord (Peter Duncan Fraser Lord) (November 4, 1953- ) (producer, director, animator, art director, writer) born in Bristol. (Great Britain)

December
The Tell-Tale Heart (ss), Ted Parmelee /UPA.
(drawn animation)



no date
Gumbasia (ss), Art Clokey.
(clay animation)

Jim and Judy in Teleland ("Bob and Betty in Adventureland") (tvss), Film Flash Productions.
(drawn animation)

 no date
Poison Ivy Picnic (ss)/(edu), Laurence Hyde /NFB. (Canada)
(drawn animation)

 no date
Coastal Navigation and Pilotage (edu)/(sf), Louis Dahl /Halas-Batchelor. (Great Britain)
(drawn animation, puppet animation)

Martin et Gaston (ss), Henri Gruel. (France)
(drawn animation)

Polyot na Lunu [Полёт На Луну] ("Flight to the Moon") (sf), Valentina Brumberg and Zinaida Brumberg /Soyuzmultifilm. (Soviet Union [Russia])
(drawn animation)

O sklenicku víc ("One Glass Too Many"; "A Drop Too Much") (ss), Bretislav Pojar /Prague Puppet Animation Studio. (Czechoslovakia [Czech Republic])
(puppet animation)

La Piccola fiammiferaia ("The Little Match Girl") (ss), Romano Scarpa. (Italy)
(drawn animation)

Enzo d'Aló (director, writer, producer) born in Naples. (Italy)

Micheline Charest (producer) born in London. (Great Britain)

Michael Dudok de Wit (director, animator, producer, writer) born in Abcoude. (Netherlands)

 no date
Mori no Ongakukai ("The Forest Concert") (ss), Roda Iwao.
(drawn animation)

Ruben Aquino (animator) born on Okinawa.

 no date
"The Little Heroes" (ss), Wan Chaochen /Shanghai Animation.
(puppet animation)

Note: Unfortunately I lack the time or resources to help people find copies of animated films and television programs. I have put together a web List of Online Video and Book Stores that will be useful to find copies in the United States. There are other similar stores on the Internet around the world that might be able to supply the DVDs, LDs, or video tapes that are desired. Check my Animation on the World Wide Web pages for links to animation studios and other Internet resources that may have further information. I am not involved in trading materials from my own collection. I am still waiting to see most of the programs in this Chronology and would be happy to find sources for many of them.

Because of these circumstances I will not respond to requests for help to find these types of materials.
Continue to 1954 Last update: January 26, 2008
Comments to: Richard Llewellyn
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