Art Clokey, creator of the stop-motion animation legend, Gumby, died at his Los Osos, California home this past Friday at age 88. Gumby, a simple clay figure whose trademark lopsided head was based on Clokey's father's cowlick hairdo, debuted on the Howdy Doody Show and became a TV staple. Though Gumby was off the air by the 1960s, toys and merchandising remained popular. In the 1980s, a series of Saturday Night Live skits, featuring Eddie "I'm Gumby, Dammit!" Murphy, revived interest in the character, resulting in a new TV show. Gumby, and his equine sidekick, Pokey, are now permanent fixtures of pop-culture and shows/exhibitions dedicated to both he and his creator have proven popular throughout the years.
Clokey also worked on Dave and Goliath, a cartoon produced by the Lutheran Church and used to communicate morality tales to kids. Art Clokey and his wife used the proceeds from Dave and Goliath to finance more Gumby shorts. Art's son, Joe Clokey, continued the Dave and Goliath project in 2004. Clokey was reticent to commercialize Gumby and waited seven years to start merchandising.
Our condolences go out to Art Clokey's family and loved ones.
© C Harris Lynn, 2010
A rambling melange of pop-culture.
No comments:
Post a Comment