Michael Ruocco

Was reminded of this amazing memory; We were all walking back from a group photo in front of the 'Looney Tunes Cartoons' billboard on the WB lot, saw a tour tram and I told the guys "You HAVE to do this, you're all here, when are you ever gonna get a chance like this?" and it made that tour's day!

Bob Bergen, being a tram tour guide for Universal early in his career, took the lead and of course aced it, and Fred & Bauza just followed suit and the three of them made every member of that tour group's jaws drop (I remember one guy in a Star Sars shirt being especially starstruck). It was amazing

My first professional voice gig, I got to share the booth with Bauza, him as Bugs and me as Beaky. I was so nervous, so scared... and then he came into the booth with me, reassured me, told me I'd do better than okay, and for that half hour I felt like I really could be good enough for him.

I met him the first week I moved to LA 15 years ago, and all these years just watching him just reach new heights, get more roles and bigger gigs and just keep the spirit of these characters alive... he was like the biggest champion of all of us, past, present and future. An immense, terrible loss.

My first professional voice gig, I got to share the booth with Bauza, him as Bugs and me as Beaky. I was so nervous, so scared... and then he came into the booth with me, reassured me, told me I'd do better than okay, and for that half hour I felt like I really could be good enough for him.

Since I moved to LA, it seemed like every career milestone I had, Bauza was there to cheer and celebrate alongside me. My first union job, my first professional record session where we shared the booth together, all the premieres and wrap parties and gatherings, he was like the MC of our lives...

I'll admit, maybe it's because I'm getting older and more wary of my own limits, or maybe it's just that LBX is getting more and more popular every year, but I get so overwhelmed easily in large crowds n con spaces that I don't know if I'd ever have the energy or ability to exhibit a whole weekend.

I’ll be there tomorrow walking the exhibitor hall floor, likely walking around with a backpack and wearing a big screen-printed Fleischer Studios shirt! If you see me, give a friendly hello, and if you'd like a "Hot Toady" sticker, just ask and I'll give you one!

Fun fact: about 9/10ths of the Mary Blair original paintings that you see listed thru various animation auctions are forgeries. Someone really needs to make a handy guide to help spot the real ones from the phoney ones.

I don't know if it's fair to say that somehow the forgeries have cemented her legacy even more, at the expense of people spending sometimes 5-digit sums (on the lower end) on a piece they only THINK is hers but is only a semi-passable copy. Admiring her bold lines while coveting an even bolder lie.

Fun fact: about 9/10ths of the Mary Blair original paintings that you see listed thru various animation auctions are forgeries. Someone really needs to make a handy guide to help spot the real ones from the phoney ones.

I'm far from being a Blair expert in any way, but anyone who has truly studied and curated knowledge of her history and work (or any artist's work really) can do the "pepsi challenge" of spotting authentic pieces, from the paper quality to the levels of paint and even specific brush strokes.

Fun fact: about 9/10ths of the Mary Blair original paintings that you see listed thru various animation auctions are forgeries. Someone really needs to make a handy guide to help spot the real ones from the phoney ones.

It’d be good for people to see how the legacy of one of the few documented and deservedly-celebrated women of the golden age of animation has been potentially tainted by shills (likely greedy talentless men) trying to copy her hard work, cash in on her name and invalidate her well-earned accolades.

Personal subjective tastes aside, you can hate a company and its practices all you want but don’t take your ire out on the crews of things you may not like. They’re not lazy or phoning it in, they work hard and try to enjoy what they do, regardless of whether or not you think a project is “bad”

- or pressures from above they can’t help but work under. It’s still their job, and to most of them it’s something they’re genuinely passionate about doing their best for, even if it’s not something that interests them completely. It’s a much different discussion if people are being mistreated.

Personal subjective tastes aside, you can hate a company and its practices all you want but don’t take your ire out on the crews of things you may not like. They’re not lazy or phoning it in, they work hard and try to enjoy what they do, regardless of whether or not you think a project is “bad”