Wednesday, January 26, 2022

Van Beuren Studios: Powerful Animated Studio For A Short Time 1928-1936

   Amadee Van Beuren (pronounced Van Burr-en) bought Fables Studio and renamed it Van Beuren studios in 1928. During the Golden Age Of Animation his studio was the least known, yet it packed a serious punch. Van Beuren was a business grad and a great businessman which this post is about.  If asked what Van Beuren Studios was famous for, most people today would probably look at you with a blank stare, not knowing that the little-known production company also helped lead the pack when it came to classic cartoons of their time. Van Beuren Studios was located across the street from Fleischer Studios, one of his biggest competitors of that time.   Like many non-Disney/Warner Bros. cartoon studios, critics and historians generally tend to give Van Beuren the footnote treatment, writing off the cartoons as cheaply produced drivel—but this isn't quite true. He put together some great shorts (Cartoons) that made great headway during the time. He also hired a few animators from competitors that also made a difference at the studio, giving them some free will. The studio produced cartoons featuring Felix the Cat as part of its Rainbow Parade series: The Goose That Laid the Golden Egg, Neptune Nonsense, and Bold King Cole, all released in 1936. Van Beuren released his films through RKO Pictures. In 1932, Van Beuren purchased Charlie Chaplin's 12 Mutual Film Company comedies for $10,000 each and re-released them through RKO Radio Pictures. Chaplin, not owning the rights to his Mutual Films, had no legal recourse against Van Beuren or RKO. Here is a list of production work that Van Beuren Studios produced during their brief 1928 - 1936 history.

 Animation:

Live-action:

   
    Amadee Van Beuren became ill in 1936 and business contract falling through forced Van Bueren to close the studio.





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