Exclusive Bakshi Board Interview #9

Welcome to the new home of the Ralph Bakshi Message Board Exclusive Interview Sessions

These have been on the back burner for awhile, but it's time to bring you all the interviews I've been hording and get some new questions from everyone.

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Interview #9 Conducted 2/8/07 ~ 12:00 PM

BR:
What's the last thing you saw, read or heard that really inspired you?

Bakshi:
(laughter) Oh fuck. Trick question. We'll have to come back to that one.

(skip to sometime into the interview when I posed the first question again)
Animation on television is incredible. I went back and watched Steamboy again, after we talked about it last time. I don't believe some of the great scenes in there. What they're doing in animation today is amazing. I don't know if it's inspiring or awesome or just overdone. What the tech has allowed is quite extraordinary, beyond my wildest dreams.

My God. I mean Fantasia was the height of technology in my day. Look what's going on now.

Pretty much. There's nothing that turns me on to the degree when I was younger. Things seem messier.

Also, very much into what's happening to this country in the Iraq war. We're not taking care of any other business right now. War seems to have a strange effect on people that way.

BR:
Actually I sent out a bulletin on your MySpace page with the title "Something to think about," which was a video related to the damage that's occurring in Iraq, and highlighting many of the suicide bomber's victims. I received quite a few responses that were saying thanks for the message and that people had been thinking about the realities of war due to the bulletin.

I received one message however that said, "It makes me think about how the towel heads are getting what they deserve." It blew me away and was entirely unexpected. I guess I just assumed that people who like your films would understand the intent of the bulletin. I didn't respond, because I was speaking for you and the site, and I try to stay mostly away from politics, religion and personal opinion.

Bakshi:
Anytime you get into politics you get some interesting people commenting.

When I made Coonskin I had a bunch of southern racists that thought I was their friend. I picked up all these rightwing idiots who didn't understand the messages in the film. You never know what's coming over the wire. Expect everything.
(rewind to an earlier portion of the interview)

BR:
Any chance we'll see DVD's for New Adventures of Mighty Mouse or Tattertown?

Bakshi:
Tattertown should definitely have a DVD sometime. We've got Rizzoli publishing the Art of Ralph Bakshi going. The deal was set today and yesterday. I finally let'em know that I was part of the book. (laughs)

BR:
Question from dnvillalpando -
I've heard that you had a falling-out with Saul Zaentz. Is that true? If so, what happened? If not, do you keep in contact at all, being that you were both so instrumental to each other's early successes?

Bakshi:
Pass on that one.

BR:
Question from HunterRose -
Have you ever thought of doing a comic book/graphic novel series not connected to any of your movies?

Bakshi:
Yes. I've been drawing one. Maybe a couple pages on it so far. It's called Bayridge Blues. It's about the misfits that run around Brooklyn. It's in pure comic format. All the misfits. People who haven't a clue about what's real. Us looking in on them, we don’t believe what they're doing. I love a lot of them though. They're funny and peculiar. Michael's father was one of'em. Having a good time and not thinking of much else.

I also work on poems a lot. Just like the art book, I never know where new material is going to come from.

The realization that I've got to commit to a book has taken over the majority of my time. Finding all the pictures and drawings, deciding which to use. I like this picture and I don't think this one will work well. I want this to represent Hey Good Lookin'. But you're leaving so much out that can't fit and wondering if you made the right decision. Once you do a book it's there forever. It's not as easy to decide what to include as I expected. I have to have a commitment to what I like.

BR:
Question from Doc -
[C]an we see some stuff from Coney Island?

Bakshi:
Sure. I'll ask Tia. No reason not to put up Coney. Not really. With the book finally complete sometime, I'll get into a rotation of completing deals. Who knows what will come up with the book on the shelves? Meanwhile I keep drawing and painting and enjoying myself.

If I sound like I'm not doing anything that's not true. I'm drawing and painting all the time. At least it feels to me like I'm working. (laughs) It may not seem like it. I'm working very hard. I seem a little lackadaisical. Everyday I'm getting up and designing. Definitely staying busy, except for not throwing enough on the big screen. Maybe one day it'll happen.

BR:
Definitely hoping it's sooner than later.

Question from cbrubaker -
I was wondering if you knew Gene Deitch during your years at Terrytoons.

Bakshi:
Very well. In fact we've been emailing recently. He lives in the Czech Republic nowadays. He moved away from the country in the 60's. He's been animating overseas, I think in Czech. When I had my first job, Gene had taken over Terrytoons as creative director.

Gene set in motion all the modern new character designers at Terrytoons. Jules Pfeiffer and Ernie Pintoff were brought in. They were from a very big studio in the 50's, UPA (Mr. Magoo). Gene came out of that studio.

He was trying to change Terrytoons into a modern design studio like UPA. He and the older guys (Bill Wise, etc) got into a fight. They resented Gene. And there's Ralph, opaquing cells while a huge battle is going on. I had many conversations with Dietch. He had me freelancing for him.

He was very sincere with what he wanted to do. It was all very modern and no one at Terrytoons wanted to do that so they fired him. CBS that had bought Terrytoons had hired him. The older guys felt that the studio didn't care about them. I think it was wrongful resentment. I love the older guys but I don't think they were right about Gene.

He went to New York and opened up his own commercial studio. Then to Europe to make films. And he's been there ever since. He did some wonderful things.

He's got to be 80 years old or better. I'm shocked that he's still working. We just talk about the good old days. He remembers me quite clearly. Lots of nostalgia between two old men. (pauses as if in deep thought)

BR:
Question from cbrubaker -
I was wondering. Is it true that you got into an argument with one of the producers for "Heavy Traffic", and they wanted to fire you and get Chuck Jones to take over, only to stay anyway because Jones declined the offer?

Bakshi:
That's right. There was a huge fight with Steve. The fight was not my fault, quite extraordinarily. It was the same thing that happened on Fritz with Krantz, and Traffic. I had to put up with others in control until I went out on my own. I wasn't getting anything financially, so I sold Coonskin to Paramount on my own. Krantz resented that and fired me from Traffic, then offered it to Chuck Jones. I was in the middle of the picture by the way. And Jones turned it down, so the movie company put me back to work and I finished my picture.

BR:
Question from kurtamayaguy -
what would be the --biggest-- thing you'd like to revisit and change in [Cool World], IF you could do so?

Bakshi:
(Hoooo-Hoo-Ha-Ha)
Biggest thing? I'd recast it. Gabriel Byrne was good, but didn't quite fit the character. And Basinger wasn't who I pictured for Holli at all. I'd leave Brad Pitt.

I'd definitely get more of my original script. A lot of people love Cool World. I'm not surprised at that. I could keep my mouth shut and take credit. The work that was done was amazing, but the end result was not the film I had wanted to make. It's not what animation could do. Not that it's not a decent picture. But that question of what animation should do.

I would have made it Horror and R rated. That's what hurts me the most. I really wanted to do an animated horror film. Stephen King would be beautiful to animate. I thought when I sold the script I had my horror film.

BR:
Question from Sid Barnhoorn -
How was it working with [William] Kraft? (composer of Fire & Ice Soundtrack) Did you do a screening and talk about the film and after that he worked the whole thing out? How did you both get the idea for him to write such a serious orchestral work? Was it already in your thoughts?

Bakshi:
I don't remember how he showed up. I thought the music was fine. Whoever did it did a great job. Maybe next time you call I'll answer better.

BR:
Question from Cool World Fan -
Mr. Bakshi, What was the special effect that you purchased out of your own pocket for the movie Cool World?

Bakshi:
I forget. At the time special effects weren't that mind boggling. We didn't have a huge budget so I paid for some effects out of pocket.

BR:
Question from mystepho -
I recently bought the soundtrack to Lord of the Rings - Limited Collector's Edition Picture Discs and just have some questions about them:

How many was made? (not likely that there is knowledge about it, but I take the risk of asking it anyway Wink)
What is the estimated value?

Bakshi:
I don't even know. What is it? Have the person send you some info or images that will help me figure it out, then maybe I'll have an answer.

BR:
Now for the obligatory "Do you like/Have you seen?" question.

Do you like/Have you seen Mystery Science Theater?

Bakshi:
What is that?

BR:
Old, mostly black and white B-movies with three guys doing voices overdubbed? It was on TV for a long time, and now they have a different setup where you purchase an MP3 track and play it on your computer while watching a cop of the DVD. They have one for the live action Lord of the Rings film that you'd probly find humorous.

Bakshi:
Oh yes, very funny, hysterical program. I watched it a few times while it was on television.

Ok, go get some work done. (laughs) (this is his customary sign-off statement to me)

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 Interviewed by Brother Rabbit
 The RalphBakshi.com Crew

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