Leon Schlesinger facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Leon Schlesinger
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Schlesinger in 1917
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| Born | May 20, 1884 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
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| Died | December 25, 1949 (aged 65) Los Angeles, California, U.S.
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| Resting place | Hollywood Forever Cemetery, Los Angeles, California, United States |
| Occupation | Film producer |
| Years active | 1919–1944 |
| Spouse(s) |
Berenice K. Schlesinger
(m. 1909) |
Leon Schlesinger (born May 20, 1884 – died December 25, 1949) was an American film producer. He started a company called Leon Schlesinger Productions. This company later became the famous Warner Bros. Cartoons studio. He was a big part of the Golden Age of American animation.
Schlesinger was a distant relative of the Warner Brothers who founded the Warner Bros. film studio. From 1930 to 1944, he produced the popular Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies cartoons for Warner Bros.
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Leon Schlesinger's Early Life and Career
Leon Schlesinger was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on May 20, 1884. His family was Jewish. In 1909, he married Bernice K. Schlesinger.
Before becoming a producer, Schlesinger worked in theaters. He was an usher, helped sell songbooks, acted, and managed theaters. In 1919, he started his own company called Pacific Title & Art Studio. This company mainly made title cards for silent films. These were the text screens that appeared in movies before actors spoke.
When "talkies" (movies with sound) became popular around 1929 and 1930, Schlesinger needed new ideas. He wanted to use the new sound technology to keep his business going. Some film historians believe he helped pay for the Warner Brothers' first talkie, The Jazz Singer (1927).
After that, he got a deal with Warner Bros. to make their new Looney Tunes cartoon series. He hired talented animators Hugh Harman and Rudy Ising to create these cartoons. Their character, Bosko, was the first star of the series.
Producing Western Movies
In 1932 and 1933, Leon Schlesinger also produced six low-budget Westerns for Warner Bros. These movies starred the famous actor John Wayne.
- Haunted Gold (1932)
- Ride Him Cowboy (1932)
- The Big Stampede (1932)
- The Telegraph Trail (1933)
- Somewhere in Sonora (1933)
- The Man from Monterey (1933)
Schlesinger spent less than $30,000 on each movie. He saved money by using old silent film footage of cowboy star Ken Maynard and his horse Tarzan for action scenes.
John Wayne later said, "I later thought Leon’s cartoons were better than the horse operas he put me in." He explained that many big scenes, like cattle herds or Indian attacks, were taken from older Ken Maynard films. This meant he had to dress up to look like Ken Maynard in some shots.
Schlesinger as a Smart Businessman
Schlesinger was known as a very smart businessman. He was good at finding talented people. When Harman and Ising left Warner Bros. in 1933, Schlesinger started his own animation studio. It was located on the Warner Bros. lot.
He convinced animators from other studios to come work for him. Many of them had worked for Harman and Ising before. One of these was Friz Freleng. Schlesinger made Freleng the head of production for Looney Tunes. Freleng also helped create the sister series, Merrie Melodies.
Other talented animators like Bob Clampett, Robert McKimson, Tex Avery, Chuck Jones, and Frank Tashlin also joined his team. Later, he hired Carl Stalling for music and Mel Blanc for voices. Together, these creative people made famous characters like Porky Pig, Daffy Duck, and Bugs Bunny.
Schlesinger mostly let his animation directors work freely. He allowed them to create what they wanted, as long as the cartoons were successful. In 1935, he sold his first company, Pacific Title & Art Studio, to focus completely on his animation studio.
His Business Style
Schlesinger was known for being tough in business. His animators worked in an old studio. At one point, he even closed the studio briefly in 1941. This happened when employees asked for more pay.
He also once boycotted the Academy Awards. He felt that the Walt Disney Cartoon Studio was getting special treatment. Sometimes, he would have his brother-in-law, Ray Katz, produce some Looney Tunes cartoons. This helped him get tax breaks.
Schlesinger was also known for his lisp. Many people believed that Mel Blanc based the voices of Daffy Duck and Sylvester the Cat on Schlesinger's lisp. However, Mel Blanc wrote in his autobiography that Daffy's lisp developed over time. He said it sounded like Daffy had trouble with "s" sounds because of his mouth shape.
Appearances in Cartoons
Leon Schlesinger appeared as himself in a cartoon called You Ought to Be in Pictures (1940). This short film mixed live action with animation. In the cartoon, Mel Blanc voiced all the characters except Schlesinger. Schlesinger recorded his own voice for the film. In the cartoon, Porky Pig, who stutters, can't say "Mr. Schlesinger." So, he just calls him "Leon."
Schlesinger also appeared as a cartoon character in other shorts. These included Hollywood Steps Out, Russian Rhapsody, and Nutty News.
Later Life and Career
Schlesinger stayed in charge of the animation studio until 1944. Then, he sold his company to Warner Bros. Eddie Selzer took over his role as producer. Schlesinger continued to market the cartoon characters. He also led Warner Bros.'s Theater Services unit.
Leon Schlesinger loved horse racing. He was a director of the Western Harness Racing Association.
Schlesinger passed away from a viral infection on Christmas Day, 1949. He is buried in the Beth Olam Mausoleum at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery in Hollywood, California.
