Jules Feiffer, the screenwriter behind Robert Altman’s unconventional live-action *Popeye* (1980) starring Robin Williams, passed away on Friday, January 17, at his home in Richfield Springs, New York, at the age of 95.
Feiffer, known for his versatile work across various creative fields, is perhaps best remembered as a cartoonist. In 1956, he began a remarkable 40-year run drawing the satirical *Sick, Sick, Sick* for *The Village Voice*, which later became known simply as *Feiffer*. His comic strip was eventually syndicated to over 100 newspapers and magazines.
In the early days, when *The Village Voice* didn’t compensate him, Feiffer took a job at Terrytoons in New Rochelle, New York, under Gene Deitch’s short-lived Modernist regime. Feiffer had previously applied to work at UPA-NY, where Deitch had been creative director, but his distinctive style didn’t align with the company’s direction at the time. However, Deitch was eager to hire Feiffer at Terrytoons, seeing his talent as crucial to revitalizing the studio:
“Among my first acts was to hire Jules Feiffer! He was just the man to help me instill new life in that moribund studio,” Deitch recalled. Feiffer contributed to the story department, including sharp ideas for *Tom Terrific*, and worked alongside notable talents like Al Kouzel, Eli Bauer, and Larz Bourne, while also collaborating with other creative figures like R.O. Blechman and Ernie Pintoff. Feiffer himself noted that working at Terrytoons was one of the first times he felt truly in sync with his peers:
“I met people I really liked, and whose talents I respected,” he shared. “For the first time, I felt that I was among constituents, that there were peers around.”
In addition to his work on *Tom Terrific*, Feiffer contributed to theatrical shorts at Terrytoons, such as *The Tale of a Dog*, and helped develop the unproduced series *Easy Winners*.
In 1960, Feiffer’s illustrated story *Munro* was adapted into a short film by Deitch and Rembrandt Films. The animated film, which Feiffer also storyboarded, tells the story of a four-year-old boy accidentally drafted into the U.S. military. *Munro* went on to win the Academy Award for Animated Short, becoming the first foreign film ever to take home the honor.
Feiffer’s influence across animation, comics, and film has left an enduring legacy, marked by a career that spanned multiple artistic realms.
After his early work in animation, Feiffer’s career took countless turns as he expanded into novels, stage plays, non-fiction, and children’s books, all while continuing his work as a cartoonist. His cartoons appeared in high-profile magazines such as *The New Yorker* and *Playboy*, in addition to his own long-running comic strip.
While some of his later children’s books, such as *Bark, George* and *I Lost My Bear*, were adapted into animated works, Feiffer moved away from direct involvement in animation after the 1950s. However, he remained connected to animation-themed projects throughout his life. One of the most notable of these was his script for Robert Altman’s notorious *Popeye* (1980), a musical take on E.C. Segar’s classic character. Though the film initially baffled audiences, it has since gained a cult following. Feiffer expressed pride in the project but also acknowledged its imperfections in an interview with *The Comics Journal*:
“My struggle with [Altman] was to keep his film in the background while my film and Segar’s was in the forefront,” Feiffer explained. “Sometimes I won, sometimes I lost. I think I didn’t do too badly, because about 60% of what I wrote got on the screen, but I think if the other 40% had made it, it would have been better. As it was, I don’t think the film turned out badly. The worst part is the last half-hour or so, after I had been worn out and left Malta. Then Altman was free to do his art in peace—and he certainly did.”
Another animated piece influenced by Feiffer’s work was the short *Boomtown* (1985), which marked the debut professional short by indie animation legend Bill Plympton. Originally written as a song by Feiffer for National Public Radio about the absurdities of military spending, Plympton adapted it into the animated short, bringing Feiffer’s biting commentary to the screen in a new form.
For an extended obituary that looks at Feiffer’s other accomplishments, see this piece on The Comics Journal website.
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