Format Films Explained

Format Films
Former Name:	Format Productions
Industry:	Animation
Founder:	Herbert Klynn Jules Engel
Foundation:	1959
Defunct:	1970s
Key People:	Herbert Klynn Jules Engel Rudy Larriva

Format Films was an animation studio which was founded by Herbert Klynn in 1959 with Jules Engel as vice president,^[1] Bob McIntosh and Joseph Mugnaini, all of whom were animators.

History

It was most active during the 1960s, producing episodes of The Alvin Show and Popeye the Sailor. Klynn shut his studio in 1962 but reopened it by 1965 as Format Productions when Engels left for Europe. The studio made eleven sub-contracted shorts in Warner Bros.' theatrical Road Runner series as well as three Daffy Duck and Speedy Gonzales shorts, and produced The Lone Ranger animated series for CBS in 1966.

Format Productions also created title sequences for several TV series, including I Spy, Honey West, the animated characters on the television variety show Hee Haw, animated various TV commercials, and created film title designs for The Glory Guys and Clambake.

TV series

• Popeye the Sailor (King Features Syndicate, Jack Kinney Productions/1960)
• The Alvin Show (Bagdasarian Film Corporation/1961–1962)
• The Lone Ranger (Jack Wrather Corporation, Lone Ranger Productions/1966–1969) (as Format Productions)

TV Pilot

• The Shrimp (1961)^[2]

Theatrical shorts

• Tale of Old Wiff (1960)
• Icarus Montgolfier Wright (1962) (Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film nominee)^{[3] [4] [5]}
• Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies (Warner Bros., DePatie–Freleng Enterprises/1965–1967) (as Format Productions)
  • Run, Run, Sweet Road Runner (1965) (subcontracted-DFE)
  • Tired and Feathered (1965) (subcontracted-DFE)
  • Boulder Wham! (1965) (subcontracted-DFE)
  • Just Plane Beep (1965) (subcontracted-DFE)
  • Hairied and Hurried (1965) (subcontracted-DFE)
  • Highway Runnery (1965) (subcontracted-DFE)
  • Chaser on the Rocks (1965) (subcontracted-DFE)
  • Shot and Bothered (1966) (subcontracted-DFE)
  • Out and Out Rout (1966) (subcontracted-DFE)
  • The Solid Tin Coyote (1966) (subcontracted-DFE)
  • Clippety Clobbered (1966) (subcontracted-DFE)
  • Quacker Tracker (1967)(subcontracted-WB)
  • The Music Mice-Tro (1967)(subcontracted-WB)
  • The Spy Swatter (1967)(subcontracted-WB)

Film and television titles (as Format Productions unless otherwise noted)

• Outlaws (1960–1962) (TV) (as Format Films)
• I Spy (1965–1968) (TV)
• The Glory Guys (1965)
• Honey West (1965–1966) (TV)
• Clambake (1967)
• The Mothers-in-Law (1967–1969) (TV)
• Hee Haw (1969) (TV)
• Curiosity Shop (1971–1973) (TV)

Further reading

• Book: Arnold, Mark. Aaaaalllvvviiinnn!!!: The Story of Ross Bagdasarian, Sr., Liberty Records, Format Films and The Alvin Show . Mark Arnold (historian). 2019. 9781629334325. BearManor Media.

Notes and References

1. Web site: Format Films in TV Guide (1961). June 11, 2009. Cartoon Brew.
2. Web site: Format Films Unsold Pilot "The Shrimp" | .
3. Web site: Holland. Steve. 2003-09-17. Obituary: Jules Engel. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20201102140721/https://www.theguardian.com/news/2003/sep/17/guardianobituaries.artsobituaries. 2020-11-02. 2020-11-02. The Guardian. en.
4. https://www.oscars.org/oscars/ceremonies/1963 1963|Oscars.org
5. http://cartoonresearch.com/index.php/cartoons-considered-for-an-academy-award-1962/ "Cartoons Considered For An Academy Award – 1962 -"