Joe Murray's Journal

Happy New Year. First post of the new decade. I finally put together a short travel log of my trip up to San Jose to meet with students of my old high school and catch up with my former art teacher Mark Briggs.

Sketch pad page from a vocal record for the Lazlo pilot. I was trying to nab Tom Kenny’s body language when he did Lumpus. ( Thats supposed to be Lumpus jutting his hips and stomach out, not an  overly excited Lumpus.) I was also inspired by Jeff Bennetts read of Raj for this scene where he’s climbing into the boat.

Sometimes perceived failures are just stepping stones on a fruitful journey.

While I was giving one of my talks on Monday to the animation classes, I was describing my repeated attempts in my late teens and early twenties to get a comic strip syndicated. I must have come up with 5 or 6 different features that all met with rejection. Back then you were expected to submit about a months worth of dailies and Sundays to show where you can go with the idea. Each submission I feel got better, and I was usually sent a personal letter of encouragement from the editor of the syndicate along with their rejection. The last one suggested I try animation instead, but at the time I wasn’t ready to listen.

All I could see was the big “L” for loser on my forehead.

It was shortly after that I decided to stop chasing something and do whatever I loved doing. And that’s how I found animation.

But the big “A Ha” moment came when I was talking to one of the classes about it, is that those rejected comic strips I produced gave me so much practice and insight into what makes a character work, how they interact with each other and such, that it helped me attain skills for animation and doing my shows in television.

And if I had gotten syndicated, I maybe would have never found animation, which has been my true calling and the perfect place for me to combine all the things I love: Story, character, movement, music and sound!

I think if you look deeply you can find the light in the darkest places. And sometimes it hits you at the oddest times.

Just returned from a trip to my old high school in San Jose ( Leland High School) to speak to their animation classes. My former Art teacher Mark Briggs came along with me. It was great to hang with Mr. Briggs, but the rest was a bit too nostalgic for me. The school has some great state of the art equipment and I was often met with blank stares that when I was learning animation we used film, and reel to reel tape recorder, and mag tape.

I tried to record the trip for an attempt at a video blog post. We will see if I can make that happen.

Ode to the Friet!

I’ve got my time zones back now. My suitcase unpacked. My girls have recieved their vinyl pencil cases that look like an oversized pencil, with all of the landmarks of Belgium on them. And what do I start thinking about? The Belgian culinary treasure;  Frites!

Belgian? You say? I thought they were French?

Ahhh yes, but the French do enjoy them. There is a “frittery” on every corner, every tourist stop, every place where the French gather. But did you know they originated in Belgium? Although eaten by the Belgians since the 1700′s, they were introduced to the English and American soldiers during their time in Belgium in the first World War. Since the official language of the Belgian Army was French at the time, the Americans called them “french fries”. 

And, oh do the Belgians love them. Mostly with a big heaping pot of mussels! And with all different types of sauces, curry ketchup ( which I’m still trying to clean out of my shirt) and mayonnaise. Houses are usually equipped with a deep fat fryer to whip up a batch of the coronary cuisine the instant a friend pops by for an ale. There is even a Friet-museum in Antwerp Belgium.

And I though it was the chocolates that added to my waistline after this trip. My arteries will always remember my trip to Belgium!

Trip to Belgium and France Photo Album

There is nothing like a trip abroad  to revitalize the creative juices, and shake the American cob webs out of your head. It’s good to be home, but I had a really great time.

Although we didn’t make it to Amsterdam, my girlfriend and I made a car trip down the Normandy Coast, first staying in a funky little hotel in the little town of Wissant France, where you could see the white cliffs of England across the English Channel. We meandered through Dieppe france and landed on Omaha Beach where I have to say, felt some American pride for the sacrifices made by both the Americans and all of the Allied forces. Sacrifices that we are all still benifiting from today. 

Belgium is a very beautiful country. Yes, they have mouthwatering chocolates, and the smell of Beer hops are always in the air. I was able to roam through Bruges, Antwerp, Ghent and Leuven, but I think the funniest notable tidbit I found, was that Brussels was famous for a little statue called “Manneken Pis” which is Dutch for “Little Man Urinating”. Apparently, in 1142, a little boy who peed on a fuse that was connected to enough dynamite to blow up Brussels, and successfully dousing it. ( No doubt after consuming a large amount of Belgian Beer). They also like to dress up the little boy for special occasions. The tourists flock and snap photos.

Getting my brains sucked out at the Brussels Cartoon Museum. Lot’s of Tin Tin stuff there. Actually I think this is the machine to get your brain to forget about train problems in Belguim.

Well, I didn’t make to Amsterdam. Our train got cancelled and we were stuck in Antwerp. We will try again on another day. Did take the opportunity to check out the museum of Fine Arts, and I fell in love with some local modern painters ( modern is still 1800′s) such as Rik Wauters, James Ensor and Constant Permeke. Actually, I already knew Ensors work from a piece in LA. Rembrandt will have to wait.

Will try for Normandy tomorrow.

African Proverb:

Stormy Seas make for a skilled Sailor.

Belgium- On my way to Amsterdam today. Spent some time in Brig’s and Brussels this week. A really cool cartoon and comic museum in Brussels. I’ll upload photos as soon as I can. They love their cartoons here. ( aside from Smurfs, which, well, I tried to avoid.)

Going to check out some Rembrandt and Van Gogh museums today, then off to the Normandy coast.

Miss my daughters, but otherwise an extremely relaxing trip!

Had to take some time away from writing and find some trees. Took a few days up in Lake Tahoe and it was just the ticket. Lake Tahoe, on the border of California and Nevada, is an ancient crater that formed a pristine lake of beauty.

I forget how much my summers in Lake Tahoe meant to me as a child. And how much I based Camp Lazlo designs and stories on it. My Father and I fishing on it ( we never caught anything), swimming in it ( it was friggin cold all year round.) And the stories of the ancient Washoe indians who lived there, and how some of them died in the lake, but it’s so cold their bodies never decomposed, and their fingernails kept growing. As a child, I always thought I felt them touching me.

At any rate, the trees nourished me, and gave me fresh life for my book. Feels good.

Happy Birthday to my sister Dianne today!

Polar Bear Awareness Day!

My 11 year old daughter Daisy is on a quest to raise money and awareness for the plight of the polar bear. Due to global warming, the ice pack that the bears use for hunting is melting earlier and earlier, decreasing their feeding time, and leaving some stranded in the ocean. The polar bears are dying at a rapid pace.

Daisy has created a web page to make direct contributions to the World Wildlife Fund, who is at the forefront of climate change research and solutions, as well as protection to those animals threatened by these fragile ecosystems. Since summer is the most dangerous time for polar bears, Daisy has a goal to raise $1000. by the end of summer. Your contribution is tax deductible, and goes directly to the World Wildlife fund.

Go to Daisys page for the Polar Bears here.

Many many thanks from Daisy and I!

Page from my sketch book after a run in with creepy ( phantom?) elevator man.

Beach Week End

Spent the week end at the Hotel Del Coronado in San Diego taking a much needed break from hunching over the animation board. I’ve stayed there a few times. It’s 120 years old on a beautiful beach with a lot of history. One of which is that there is a ghost living there. I’ve never known where this ghost was,, it’s a big place. Last time I was there with my daughters, we had this really creepy elevator operator, who I had never seen before and never since. When we told him we were on the 4th floor, he said to us in a haunting voice, “Why would you get a room on the 4th floor. The 3rd floor is much nicer”. My daughters and I looked at each other and scurried off the lift, across the creaking floors to our room. 

This time, I was riding up the elevator, making small talk with a different elevator operator ( wearing the same nostalgic suit), and I asked him ” So where is this ghost anyway?”. He stared out through the wrought iron elevator cage and said sternly ” The 3rd Floor”.  Almost like “That’s the dead zone”.

I went to my sketch book where I drew that last creepy guy, and sure enough, he was promoting a stay on the 3rd floor.

Maybe the ghosts were looking for a little company. Or some new occupants. Hmmmm.