WASHAM, Ben

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Birth/Death

Born: 17 March 1915
Died: 28 March 1984

Occupation/Title

Animator


Bio Summary

Early Life/Family

Born in Arkansas Ozarks


Education/Training

Career Outline

More often than not Chuck had him animate the last scene in a Bugs cartoon. Where Bugs says something to the audience ("Mud, spelled backwards is Dum!") before the iris closed in. Washam is credited with inventing Daffy Duck's phrase, "Thanks for the sour persimmons, cousin!"

Designed the Bob's Big Boy restaurant chain’s original mascot on a napkin, basing it on a young boy who worked there.

Ben Washam was also President of the Screen Animators Guild in 1948-49. He once said: Any animators union meeting that didn't end with at least one fistfight in the parking lot was a dud!

Comments On Style

Influences

Personality

Anecdotes

"He became a truly great animator, one of the most sensitive, one of the most subtle- able to extract laughter by the quirk of a ducky eyebrow, the flick of a rabbit’s eye. He was kind and gentle as well as talented beyond belief." -Chuck Jones, Chuck Amuck

"Benny was a wonderful teacher. On hot summer nights he would invite a couple of animation kids into his garage and teach us vintage Warner Bros timing. All for free. We called it Benny's Class. I once asked him why he never charged for it. He said animation had been good to him so this was his way of paying it back. So now when people ask me why I teach, I say I'm paying back Benny." -Tom Sito

Miscellaneous

Letter from Ben Washam to Chuck Jones (September 14, 1981)

Dear Chuck,

On my tenth birthday my father gave me a mule. It was truly love at first sight. I named him Spencer after a rifle I saw advertised in a sears, Roebuck catalog. The spring and summer that followed were the most wonderful in my memory. We rode over and through every hill and swamp in northeast Arkansas.

In the fall after the crops were in, everybody went to the county fair, especially Spencer and me. Aside from judging cows, pigs, chickens, cakes, pies and the like, stump pulling was a community favorite. The stumps were dynamited out of the ground (a few days before the fair started), then a mule was hitched to the stump. The mule that pulled the stump the greatest distance won- Spencer and me won. First prize was a Rhode Island Red Rooster and a blue ribbon with Robert E. Lee’s face painted on it with gold paint. I was so proud I kissed Spencer. Everybody laughed and my mother made me wash my face.

At this time I learned about evil. I learned evil lurks in unsuspected places and, like a spider, attacks without warning. An aunt, who later turned out to be unsavory, invited me to have a soda pop with her. Leaving Spencer eating hay and my rooster tied to a wagon wheel, we went off to the refreshment tent. Everything was fine. I even got a piece of cake. The soda pop was great- I saved half of if for Spencer.

When I returned to the wagon, Spencer was gone. I grabbed a pitchfork and went looking for the thief. After looking all over the fairgrounds they finally told me that some Yankee from Chicago gave my father fifty dollars for Spencer. My devastation was completed that evening- my mother cooked my rooster for supper.

I spent the next day planning revenge. The thought of putting a water moccasin in my father’s bed was pleasant. Then it occurred to me that anybody that mean wouldn’t be troubled by a water moccasin. By the end of the day I had concluded that I couldn’t fight them, but I could make sure that I never became one of them- so I made a vow never to become an adult, or care for an adult.

To make sure that I would never break the vow, I ate a green persimmon- eating a green persimmon was a sure way to test a person’s sincerity. Anyone who would eat a green persimmon to back up their word had to be honest. That was especially true in courtships- however, I don’t remember ever hearing of any girl eating a green persimmon.

From that time I walked into the hills and valleys of life, secure in the knowledge that I was free from adults, Yankees and unsavory aunts in particular. (It was my aunt who lured me away from Spencer with the promise of a soda pop. Deep in my heart I know that old harridan dwells in the north side of hell with all the Yankees.)

I have mellowed over the years. My vow has not been broken, only bent a little. So it is that I can tell you that you are one of the few adults I have come to love and respect.

My reason for telling you this is because I want to wish you a happy birthday and impress upon you that such a wish coming from me is no small effort.

Ben

Filmography

"That's Warner Bros.!" (1995) TV Series (animator)
"Merrie Melodies: Starring Bugs Bunny and Friends" (1990) TV Series (animator) 

Daffy Duck's Quackbusters (1988) (animator)
"The Bugs Bunny and Tweety Show" (1986) TV Series (animator)
"The Bugs Bunny/Looney Tunes Comedy Hour" (1985) TV Series (animator)
Bugs Bunny's 3rd Movie: 1001 Rabbit Tales (1982) (animator) 
... aka Bugs Bunny's 1001 Rabbit Tales (USA: short title)
Duck Dodgers and the Return of the 24½th Century (1980) (TV) (master animator) 

Bugs Bunny's Looney Christmas Tales (1979) (TV) (animator) (as Benny Washman)
The Great American Chase (1979) (animator) 
... aka The Bugs Bunny/Road Runner Movie (USA: video title)
The Phantom Tollbooth (1970) (animation supervisor) 
... aka The Adventures of Milo in the Phantom Tollbooth
Horton Hears a Who! (1970) (TV) (co-director, animator) 

"The Bugs Bunny/Road Runner Hour" (1968) TV Series (animator)
Advance and Be Mechanized (1967) (director)
Purr-Chance to Dream (1967) (director)
The Bear That Wasn't (1967) (supervising animator)
Advance and Be Mechanized (1967) (animator)
Cannery Rodent (1967) (animator)
Cat and Dupli-cat (1967) (animator)
Guided Mouse-ille (1967) (animator) 
... aka Guided Mouse-ille or Science On a Wet Afternoon
The Mouse from H.U.N.G.E.R. (1967) (animator)
O-Solar-Meow (1967) (animator)
Rock 'n' Rodent (1967) (animator)
Surf-Bored Cat (1967) (animator)
"The Road Runner Show" (1966) TV Series (animator)
The A-Tom-inable Snowman (1966) (animator)
Catty-Cornered (1966) (animator)
Filet Meow (1966) (animator)
Jerry, Jerry, Quite Contrary (1966) (animator)
Love Me, Love My Mouse (1966) (animator)
Puss 'n' Boats (1966) (animator)
How the Grinch Stole Christmas! (1966) (TV) (co-director)
Love Me, Love My Mouse (1966) 
(director)
The Dot and the Line (1965) (animator) 
... aka The Dot and the Line: A Romance in Lower Mathematics
Ah, Sweet Mouse-Story of Life (1965) (animator)
Bad Day at Cat Rock (1965) (animator)
The Brothers Carry-Mouse-Off (1965) (animator)
The Cat's Me-Ouch (1965) (animator)
Duel Personality (1965) (animator)
Haunted Mouse (1965) (animator)
I'm Just Wild About Jerry (1965) (animator)
Jerry-Go-Round (1965) (animator)
Of Feline Bondage (1965) (animator)
Roadrunner a Go-Go (1965) (animator)
Tom-ic Energy (1965) (animator)
The Year of the Mouse (1965) (animator) 
... aka Tom Thump
Zip Zip Hooray! (1965) (animator)
The Cat Above and the Mouse Below (1964) (animator)
Is There a Doctor in the Mouse? (1964) (animator)
Much Ado About Mousing (1964) (animator)
Snowbody Loves Me (1964) (animator)
The Unshrinkable Jerry Mouse (1964) (animator)
Philbert (Three's a Crowd) (1963) (animator)
Pent-House Mouse (1963) (animator)
Adventures of the Road-Runner (1962) (animator)
Now Hear This (1962) (animator)
Nelly's Folly (1961) (animator)
"Calvin and the Colonel" (1961) TV Series (animator)
"King Leonardo and His Short Subjects" (1960) TV Series (animator) ... aka King Leonardo (USA) 
... aka The King and Odie (USA: syndication title)
"The Bugs Bunny Show" (1960) TV Series (animator)
Ready, Woolen and Able (1960) (animator)
Who Scent You? (1960) (animator)
Fastest with the Mostest (1960) (animator) 

Unnatural History (1959) (animator)
A Witch's Tangled Hare (1959) (animator)
Wild About Hurry (1959) (animator)
Really Scent (1959) (animator)
Hot-Rod and Reel! (1959) (animator)
Hare-Abian Nights (1959) (animator)
Baton Bunny (1959) (animator)
Cat Feud (1958) (animator)
Hip Hip-Hurry! (1958) (animator)
Hook, Line and Stinker (1958) (animator)
To Itch His Own (1958) (animator)
Ali Baba Bunny (1957) (animator)
Scrambled Aches (1957) (animator)
Drafty, Isn't It? (1957) (animator)
To Hare Is Human (1956) (animator)
There They Go-Go-Go! (1956) (animator)
Deduce, You Say (1956) (animator)
Rocket-bye Baby (1956) (animator)
Gee Whiz-z-z-z-z-z-z (1956) (animator)
Heaven Scent (1956) (animator)
Rocket Squad (1956) (animator)
Broom-Stick Bunny (1956) (animator)
Bugs' Bonnets (1956) (animator)
90 Day Wondering (1956) (animator)
One Froggy Evening (1955) (animator)
Guided Muscle (1955) (animator)
Two Scent's Worth (1955) (animator)
Knight-Mare Hare (1955) (animator)
Rabbit Rampage (1955) (animator)
Ready.. Set.. Zoom! (1955) (animator)
A Hitch in Time (1955) (animator)
Baby Buggy Bunny (1954) (animator)
My Little Duckaroo (1954) (animator)
Lumber Jack-Rabbit (1954) (animator)
By Word of Mouse (1954) (animator)
Bewitched Bunny (1954) (animator)
Claws for Alarm (1954) (animator)
The Cats Bah (1954) (animator)
Gone Batty (1954) (story)

Punch Trunk (1953) (animator)
Duck! Rabbit, Duck! (1953) (animator)
Zipping Along (1953) (animator)
Bully for Bugs (1953) (animator)
Duck Dodgers in the 24½th Century (1953) (animator)
Wild Over You (1953) (animator)
Much Ado About Nutting (1953) (animator)
Duck Amuck (1953) (animator)
Kiss Me Cat (1953) (animator)
Forward March Hare (1953) (animator)
Don't Give Up the Sheep (1953) (animator)
From A to Z-Z-Z-Z (1953) (animator)
Terrier-Stricken (1952) (animator)
Rabbit Seasoning (1952) (animator)
Mouse-Warming (1952) (animator)
Going! Going! Gosh! (1952) (animator)
The Hasty Hare (1952) (animator)
Beep, Beep (1952) (animator)
Water, Water Every Hare (1952) (animator)
Little Beau Pepé (1952) (animator)
Feed the Kitty (1952) (animator)
Operation: Rabbit (1952) (animator)
Drip-Along Daffy (1951) (animator)
A Bear for Punishment (1951) (animator)
Cheese Chasers (1951) (animator)
The Wearing of the Grin (1951) (animator)
Chow Hound (1951) (animator)
Rabbit Fire (1951) (animator)
A Hound for Trouble (1951) (animator)
Scent-imental Romeo (1951) (animator)
Bunny Hugged (1951) (animator)
Two's a Crowd (1950) (animator)
Rabbit of Seville (1950) (animator)
Caveman Inki (1950) (animator)
The Ducksters (1950) (animator)
Dog Gone South (1950) (animator)
8 Ball Bunny (1950) (animator)
The Hypo-Chondri-Cat (1950) (animator)
Homeless Hare (1950) (animator)
The Scarlet Pumpernickel (1950) (animator) 

Rabbit Hood (1949) (animator)
Bear Feat (1949) (animator)
For Scent-imental Reasons (1949) (animator)
Frigid Hare (1949) (animator)
Fast and Furry-ous (1949) (animator)
Often an Orphan (1949) (animator)
Long-Haired Hare (1949) (animator)
The Bee-Deviled Bruin (1949) (animator)
Mississippi Hare (1949) (animator)
Awful Orphan (1949) (animator)
So Much for So Little (1949) (animator)
Scaredy Cat (1948) (animator)
My Bunny Lies Over the Sea (1948) (animator)
Daffy Dilly (1948) (animator)
House Hunting Mice (1948) (animator)
You Were Never Duckier (1948) (animator)
Haredevil Hare (1948) (animator)
Rabbit Punch (1948) (animator)
What's Brewin', Bruin? (1948) (animator)
A Feather in His Hare (1948) (animator)
Mouse Wreckers (1948) (animator)
Little Orphan Airedale (1947) (animator)
A Pest in the House (1947) (animator)
Inki at the Circus (1947) (animator)
Scent-imental Over You (1947) (animator)
Roughly Squeaking (1946) (animator)
Fair and Worm-er (1946) (animator)
The Eager Beaver (1946) (animator)
Hair-Raising Hare (1946) (animator)
Hush My Mouse (1946) (animator)
Quentin Quail (1946) (animator)
Hare Tonic (1945) (animator)
Fresh Airedale (1945) (animator)
Hare Conditioned (1945) (animator)
Lost and Foundling (1944) (animator)
The Weakly Reporter (1944) (animator)
Fin n' Catty (1943) (animator) 
... aka Fin'n Catty (USA: reissue title)
Conrad the Sailor (1942) (animator) 



Honors

Annie Award: Winsor McCay Award 1985


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