The Fleischer Story [Paperback]

Leslie Cabarga (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 21, 1988

The Fleischer brothers, Max and Dave, were animation pioneers. Creators of Betty Boop, Koko the Clown, and the Bouncing Ball, they also brought Popeye the Sailor Man to the screen and produced the first feature-length animated cartoon—on the theory of relativity! Max invented the Rotoscope and for a while the brothers kept pace with Disney in performance and profit. But after 1942 the studio closed and their films vanished. What happened and how they developed are examined for the first time in this work—for many years out of print and a collector's item. It is here, updated and enlarged with hundreds of sketches and storyboard layouts where these classic cartoons can once again receive the attention and adulation they deserve.

Product Details

• Paperback: 216 pages
• Publisher: Da Capo Press; 2 Sub edition (March 21, 1988)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0306803135
• ISBN-13: 978-0306803130
• Product Dimensions: 10.9 x 8.6 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,494,935 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

For most of his life, Leslie Cabarga considered himself not so much a writer but as an illustrator and graphic designer. Yet his very first book, The Fleischer Story (a history of the Max Fleischer animation studio) was published when he was 19 years old, several years before he would become one of the most popular illustrators in New York. Leslie went on to write and/or edit over 40 books, ranging from clip art collections for Dover publications to the ever popular Logo, Font & Lettering Bible, the only manual showing how to create lettering from scratch in the digital age. But he also produced the channeled book, "Talks with Trees," which has been gaining popularity over the past 10 years. Leslie likes to take subjects (such as the Max Fleischer cartoons, and lettering and font creation) and produce the "last word" on each subject. As he says, "It's mostly just to get these topics out of my system so I can move on." And move on he has! As amazon reader reviews of his Lettering "Bible" attest, the humor throughout the instructional text is part of what makes this book so enjoyable. "So I decided to move away from design topics and go for the humor--along with a bit of forward-looking social commentary," Leslie says. The result is the recently-published "We Hold These Truths," the story of what happens when a Truth Bomb drops on the world and people everywhere are compelled to live their truths. The book is as profoundly compelling as it is amusing. Like the book "Trees," We Hold These Truths is a channeled book that Leslie first began "receiving" more than 15 years ago. The contrast between design and spirit channeling is not so far apart, for as Leslie says, "Artists are seekers of truth. We are always questioning ourselves--why should it be this way rather than that? Where is the truth in this statement? The best artists are often those who willingly subject themselves to the most unmerciful critiques of their own creations." And," he says, "my body of work in the graphics field shows that there's nothing airy-fairy about us channelers. Actually, I'm a very down-to-earth guy." Indeed, Leslie tells us he's got another dozen or so books in planning stages on subjects ranging from health and nutrition to human sexuality. Which brings up Leslie's latest book, "Topless Summer Love Girls; A Gentleman's Guide to Women, Relationships & Breasts." It is a book that looks seriously tat men's issues while at the same time satirizing men's obsessions.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent accountof the life and career of Max Fliescher, May 16, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The Fleischer Story (Paperback)

Leslie Carbaga is a big fan of Fliescher cartoons and this book shows it.I loved so many of them when i had the chance to see them on TV in my younger days.(Color Classics,Popeye,Sing-Alongs, and the movies Gulliver and Hoppity.)This tells the story of Max Fliescher,who made many worthy but largely unknown contributions to the art of animation.I recommend this to any fan of the vintage cartoons of the 20s/30s/40s

7 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Book Wrote With Love., May 31, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The Fleischer Story (Paperback)

Rarely I have seen a biography with so much interesting details.Not a single page is wasted.As a Fleischer cartoon fan,it's la creme de la creme for me.Congratulations Cabarga.You wrote a book with love and admiration.

5.0 out of 5 stars INFORMATIVE + ENTHUSIASTIC = FUN!, December 4, 2009

By 

Jon (NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Fleischer Story (Paperback)

I'm privileged to own both the 1970's first edition and this more recent (late 1980s) updated edition.

If you are a fan of Betty Boop and/or Popeye and would like to educate yourself with behind the scenes info then this is the book you want. It is LOADED with illustrations - if the book has one flaw it is that the illustrations distract the reader from the copy on every page!

There are family photos of the Fleischers, character model sheets, cel pics, assorted Fleischer-ana and a checklist of every film the brothers and studio produced.

And as fascinating as the books subject is, the story of how it came together is just as interesting and is related here by the author Mr. Leslie Cabarga who now produces many fine volumes on type fonts and graphics. He also provided the large cut-outs that form Leonard Maltin's backdrop in his Fleischer film biography "Cartoon Madness: The Fantastic Max Fleischer Cartoons".


It is truly a shame that this is no longer in print.