William C. (Bill) Nolan
Filed under: People, Early Sound, Felix the Cat, Inkwell / Fleischer Studios, Metro Goldwyn Mayer Studios, Oswald, Popeye, U.S.A.,
William (Bill) C. Nolan
Date of birth:10/06/1894
Date of death:06/12/1956
Birthplace:Connecticut, USA
Biography
Nolan was a innovative film animator and director during the early days of sound animation, working mostly with Walter Lantz and J.R. Bray, inking and directing several successful animations.
Career outline
In the mid 1910’s, Nolan flourished as a director in New York, working for media maverick William Hearst at his International Film Services to animate Krazy Kat. Getting a job at Bray Studios for John Randolph, Nolan inked the animated series Happy Hooligan until 1921.
From 1923-1925, Nolan worked on the incredibly popular Felix the Cat series, joining forces at the end of 1925 with Charles Mintz to direct a new Krazy Kat series until 1927. In 1927, Nolan launched his own independent series, a cartoon called Newslaffs which was a humorous news program which was shown in theatres. He worked with Lantz on the Oswald the Lucky Rabbit series, as well as The Merry Old Soul in 1933.
After leaving in 1935 to work with other studios than Walter Lantz, Nolan found himself at Harman-Ising where he worked for MGM working on The Captain and the Kit. Later on, he went to Fleischer studios in Miami to work on Popeyes, Stone Age and Guilliver’s Travels which was released in 1939.
Nolan’s last job was on the United Pictures International’s Francis the Talking Mule feature series, working as a technical advisor. He died in surgery at the age of 60 in Veterans Hospital in Sawtelle, California.
References:
- Lenburg, Jeff. Who’s Who in Animated Cartoons: An International Guide to Film & Television’s Award-Winning and Legendary Animators. New York: Applause Theatre & Cinema Books, 2006. Print.