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Fred Quimby. Frederick Clinton Quimby [1] (July 31, 1886 – September 16, 1965) was an American animation producer and journalist best known for producing the Tom and Jerry cartoon series, for which he won seven Academy Awards for Best Animated Short Films. He was the film sales executive in charge of the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer cartoon studio ...
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Frederick Clinton "Fred" Quimby was an American film producer, best known as a producer of Tom and Jerry cartoons, for which he won seven Academy Awards. He was the producer in charge of the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer cartoon studio, which included Tex Avery, Hugh Harman, Rudolf Ising, William Hanna and Joseph Barbera.
Quimby was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and started his career as a journalist. In 1907, he managed a film theater in Missoula, Montana. Later, he worked at Pathé, and became a member of the board of directors before leaving in 1921 to become an independent producer. He was hired by Fox in 1924, and moved to MGM in 1927 to head its short features department. In 1938, he was assigned to create MGM's animation department.
In 1939, William Hanna and Joseph Barbera presented Quimby with a proposal for a series of cartoons featuring a cat and a mouse. Although he had no interest in the idea, Quimby approved, and the result was Puss Gets the Boot, which was nominated for an Academy Award. Initially, he refused to pursue more Cat and Mouse cartoons after Puss Gets the Boot. However, following the critical and financial success of that cartoon, he agreed to continue producing Tom and Jerry cartoons. As producer, Quimby became a repeated recipient of the Academy Award for Animated Short Film for the Tom and Jerry films, though he never invited Hanna and Barbera onstage when he accepted the awards. His name became well known due to its prominence in the cartoon credits. Quimby was not involved in the creative process and had a difficult relationship with animators, including Hanna and Barbera, who believed that Quimby was not fit for a real animation leader:
"...unfortunately for a cartoon producer, [he had] no sense of humor to call upon... He knew nothing of animation and cartoons were a strange thing to him. Cast in the role of high school principal opposite the animators' boyish enthusiasms, he acted as liaisons between them and the front office, usually it seemed, turning down requests for bigger budgets, raises and special dispensations of funds."
After the production of the short film Good Will to Men, Quimby retired from MGM in May 1955, with Hanna and Barbera assuming his role as co-heads of the studio and taking over the production title for the Tom and Jerry shorts. Despite the success with Hanna and Barbera, MGM assumed that re-releasing old cartoons would be more profitable, and the MGM's cartoon division did not last long after; it was closed in 1958.
1."New Technique in Film Cartoons" - The Milwaukee Sentinel (5/18/1940)
Feb 21, 2020 · Tom and Jerry Old Original Episodes
Welcome to my Fred Quimby Tom and Jerry playlist! This includes videos about Fred Quimby films.
When producer Fred Quimby retired in the mid-1950s, Hanna and Barbera took over MGM's cartoon department just as budget cuts closed in. Studio bosses, threatened by the growing popularity of ...
Quimby was at first not interested in producing more Tom and Jerry films, but changed his mind due to the first film's critical and financial success. As a producer, he claimed sole responsibility for the success of the new series. In May 1955, Quimby retired at the age of 69. Barbera and Hanna replaced him as the new heads of the studio.
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Mar 26, 2021 · MGM cartoon boss Fred Quimby used to take all the credit for Joseph Barbera and William Hanna’s cat-and-mouse stories. As the new Tom and Jerry movie hits screens, Geoffrey Macnab looks at how ...
