Paul J. Smith (director)
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| Paul J. Smith | |
|---|---|
| Born | March 15, 1906 |
| Died | November 17, 1980 (aged 74) Van Nuys, California  |
| Other name(s) | Paul Smith |
Paul J. Smith (March 15, 1906 - November 17, 1980) was an American animator and director.
Smith worked for the Walter Lantz studio for much of his career, first starting as an animator, and then as a director.
By 1955, Smith had taken over as primary director of Woody's shorts, with periodic fill-in shorts directed by peers Alex Lovy and Jack Hannah, among others. With Smith in the director's chair, the Woody Woodpecker series maintained a healthy dose of frenetic energy, while the animation itself was simplified, due to budget constraints. However, by the 1960s, the quality of the shorts began to dip, due in part to the fact that the budget-minded Smith chose quantity over quality. Critics agree Smith's cartoons had started to give the Lantz studios a black eye.[1] He stayed with Lantz until the studios were closed in 1972.
Smith died in Van Nuys, California on November 17, 1980. He was the uncle of a actor Charles Martin Smith.[2]
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