Wild Minds
The Artists and Rivalries that Inspired the Golden Age of Animation
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Narrated by:
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Kevin R. Free
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By:
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Reid Mitenbuler
About this listen
In 1911, famed cartoonist Winsor McCay debuted one of the first animated cartoons, based on his sophisticated newspaper strip Little Nemo in Slumberland, itself inspired by Freud’s recent research on dreams. McCay is largely forgotten today, but he unleashed an art form and the creative energy of artists from Otto Messmer and Max Fleischer to Walt Disney and Warner Bros.’ Chuck Jones. Their origin stories, rivalries, and sheer genius, as Reid Mitenbuler skillfully relates, were as colorful and subversive as their creations - from Felix the Cat to Bugs Bunny to feature films such as Fantasia - which became an integral part and reflection of American culture over the next five decades.
Pre-television, animated cartoons were aimed squarely at adults; comic preludes to movies, they were often “little hand grenades of social and political satire”. Early Betty Boop cartoons included nudity; Popeye stories contained sly references to the injustices of unchecked capitalism. “During its first half-century”, Mitenbuler writes, “animation was an important part of the culture wars about free speech, censorship, the appropriate boundaries of humor, and the influence of art and media on society”. During WWII it also played a significant role in propaganda. The golden age of animation ended with the advent of television, when cartoons were sanitized to appeal to children and help advertisers sell sugary breakfast cereals.
Wild Minds is an ode to our colorful past and to the creative energy that later inspired The Simpsons, South Park, and BoJack Horseman.
PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.
©2020 Reid Mitenbuler (P)2020 Recorded BooksListeners also enjoyed...
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- Narrated by: Nicholas Meyer
- Length: 10 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
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When Nicholas Meyer was asked to direct the troubled second Star Trek film, he was something less than a true believer. A best-selling author and successful director, he had never been a fan of the TV series. But as he began to ponder the appeal of Kirk, Spock, et al., he realized that their story was a classical nautical adventure yarn transplanted into space and - armed with that insight - set out on his mission: to revitalize Trek.
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Mostly good
- By David W Braddock on 06-07-21
By: Nicholas Meyer
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Warhol
- By: Blake Gopnik
- Narrated by: Graham Halstead
- Length: 43 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
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To this day, mention the name “Andy Warhol” to almost anyone and you’ll hear about his famous images of soup cans and Marilyn Monroe. But though Pop Art became synonymous with Warhol’s name and dominated the public’s image of him, his life and work are infinitely more complex and multifaceted than that. In Warhol, esteemed art critic Blake Gopnik takes on Andy Warhol in all his depth and dimensions.
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Explaining an Enigma
- By Keith on 05-05-20
By: Blake Gopnik
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The Speed of Sound
- Hollywood and the Talkie Revolution 1926 - 1930
- By: Scott Eyman
- Narrated by: Adams Morgan
- Length: 13 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
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In this mixture of cultural and social history that is both scholarly and vastly entertaining, Eyman dispels the myths and gives us the missing chapter in the history of Hollywood, the ribbon of dreams by which America conquered the world.
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Better than nothing!
- By Colin Barton on 08-31-11
By: Scott Eyman
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The Simpsons
- An Uncensored, Unauthorized History
- By: John Ortved
- Narrated by: John Allen Nelson, Justine Eyre
- Length: 11 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
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John Ortved's oral history is the first-ever look behind the scenes at the creation and day-to-day running of the television phenomenon known as The Simpsons, as told by many of the people who produce it.
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Great Content, Awful Reading
- By JH Easton on 03-13-11
By: John Ortved
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The Comedians
- Drunks, Thieves, Scoundrels and the History of American Comedy
- By: Kliph Nesteroff
- Narrated by: Kliph Nesteroff
- Length: 15 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
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In The Comedians, comedy historian Kliph Nesteroff brings to life a century of American comedy with real-life characters, forgotten stars, mainstream heroes and counterculture iconoclasts. Based on over 200 original interviews and extensive archival research, Nesteroff's groundbreaking work is a narrative exploration of the way comedians have reflected, shaped, and changed American culture over the past 100 years.
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Performance issues
- By E. A. Smith on 09-02-19
By: Kliph Nesteroff
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Another Nice Mess
- The Laurel & Hardy Story
- By: Raymond Valinoti
- Narrated by: Jack de Golia
- Length: 2 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
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Arguably the greatest comedy duo in show business history, Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy delighted filmgoers and theatregoers for over 30 years. The public not only found Laurel's serene simpleton and Hardy's pompous buffoon hilarious, but they also thought of them as friends. Laurel and Hardy may have been nitwits, but they were loveable nitwits.
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Two Hours + of Biography
- By Jim on 05-13-15
By: Raymond Valinoti
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Superman
- The High-Flying History of America's Most Enduring Hero
- By: Larry Tye
- Narrated by: Scott Brick
- Length: 13 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
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From two-fisted crimebuster to über-patriot, social crusader to spiritual savior, Superman—perhaps like no other mythical character before or since—has evolved in a way that offers a Rorschach test of his times and our aspirations. In this deftly realized appreciation, Larry Tye reveals a portrait of America over seventy years through the lens of that otherworldly hero who continues to embody our best selves.
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This Superman soars
- By tru britty on 07-13-15
By: Larry Tye
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The Last Lone Inventor
- A Tale of Genius, Deceit, and the Birth of Television
- By: Evan I. Schwartz
- Narrated by: Eric Jason Martin
- Length: 10 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
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In a story that is both of its time and timeless, Evan I. Schwartz tells a tale of genius versus greed, innocence versus deceit, and independent brilliance versus corporate arrogance. Many men have laid claim to the title "father of television," but Philo T. Farnsworth is the true genius behind what may be the most influential invention of our time. Driven by his obsession to demonstrate his idea, by the age of 20 Farnsworth was operating his own laboratory above a garage in San Francisco and filing for patents. The resulting publicity caught the attention of RCA tycoon David Sarnoff, who became determined to control television in the same way he monopolized radio.
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Thank you, Philo.
- By JPALJ on 03-29-20
By: Evan I. Schwartz
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Talking to Canadians
- A Memoir
- By: Rick Mercer
- Narrated by: Rick Mercer
- Length: 10 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
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What is Rick Mercer going to do now? That was the question on everyone's lips when the beloved comedian retired his hugely successful TV show after 15 seasons - and at the peak of its popularity. The answer came not long after, when he roared back in a new role as stand-up-comedian, playing to sold-out houses wherever he appeared. And then COVID-19 struck. And his legions of fans began asking again: What is Rick Mercer going to do now? Well, for one thing, he's been writing a comic masterpiece.
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Mercer Killed and He Will Kill Again
- By Quinn M on 11-28-22
By: Rick Mercer
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Best. Movie. Year. Ever.
- How 1999 Blew Up the Big Screen
- By: Brian Raftery
- Narrated by: George Newbern
- Length: 10 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
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From a veteran culture writer and modern movie expert, a celebration and analysis of the movies of 1999 - arguably the most groundbreaking year in American cinematic history.
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Like talking about movies with a friend
- By Shawn Inmon on 05-30-19
By: Brian Raftery
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Street Gang
- The Complete History of Sesame Street
- By: Michael Davis
- Narrated by: Caroll Spinney
- Length: 8 hrs and 21 mins
- Abridged
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When the first episode aired on Nov. 10, 1969, Sesame Street revolutionized the way education was presented to children on television. It has since become the longest-running children's show in history, and today reaches 8 million pre-schoolers on 350 PBS stations and airs in 120 countries. Street Gang is the compelling and often comical story of the creation and history of this media masterpiece and pop culture landmark.
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An important subject, but hardly gripping
- By Scott T. Hards on 09-24-10
By: Michael Davis
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Pictures at a Revolution
- Five Movies and the Birth of the New Hollywood
- By: Mark Harris
- Narrated by: Lloyd James
- Length: 17 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
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Here is the epic human drama behind the making of the five movies nominated for Best Picture in 1967 - Guess Who's Coming to Dinner, The Graduate, In the Heat of the Night, Doctor Dolittle, and Bonnie and Clyde - and through them, the larger story of the cultural revolution that transformed Hollywood and America forever.
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Would It Be Too Much To Ask?
- By Casey Keller on 12-31-08
By: Mark Harris
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Audience of One
- Television, Donald Trump, and the Politics of Illusion
- By: James Poniewozik
- Narrated by: Matthew Josdal
- Length: 11 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
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In the tradition of Neil Postman's masterpiece Amusing Ourselves to Death, Audience of One shows how American media have shaped American society and politics, by interweaving two crucial stories. The first story follows the evolution of television from the three-network era of the 20th century, which joined millions of Americans in a shared monoculture, into today's zillion-channel, internet-atomized universe, which sliced and diced them into fractious, alienated subcultures. The second story is a cultural critique of Donald Trump.
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Enlightening, insightful, terrifying.
- By L Watson on 09-22-19
By: James Poniewozik
What listeners say about Wild Minds
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Spencer Scott Holmes
- 06-13-23
Great fun history of Early Days Animation
This was a fantastic journey through the Golden Age of animation and going through the different creators and studios putting out the iconic cartoons of the era. The book does focus more on Disney than others, not a bad thing and there still is a good amount on the other studios like Fleischer, Warner Bros, Felix the Cat, early Hanna Barbera, and so on. And at least there is no biased side taking of favorites here in this book.
I would personally love to hear a part 2 from the author, chronicling the next section of animation from the 60s onward of traditional 2d animation. This book just barely touches on Hanna Barbera and I would love to hear more about Jonny Quest , Space Ghost, Scooby Doo and the Flintstones to name a few. Then go through the 70s and 80s cartoon era to get to the second golden age of animation in the 90s. Along with the anime boom too. I just want this book to continue on. Good stuff.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Amazon Customer
- 02-05-21
what a ride!
this would make a kickass docuseries. worth a listen for anyone interested in the minds behind the evolution of animation .
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- TJ Schreiber
- 03-27-21
Wild minds indeed
If you ever wanted to learn about the history of animation (or at least is beginnings) this is the book for you. I don’t want to spoil anything but this book has the perfect ending I ever heard for a history book. I hope there will be more books like this that talk about the other parts of animation history.
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- DB
- 04-21-21
Fascinating Story...confusingly wrong narrator.
Loved hearing this unknown wonderful epic story of this art form. Fascinating (but sometimes skips whole chunks of history...could have been two volumes!) But absorbing nonetheless.
HOWEVER.....This narrator is not up to the task.
He emphasizes the wrong things, tries and fails embarrassingly at imitating cartoon voices, at other times says the wrong words from the text, ("..many GROWING reviews.." instead of Glowing) mispronounces names from Hollywood's past (Fritz LahNG??). When reading the name Jose--he says The "J" (which should be silent) making the name JOE-Say...I mean REALLY? It is completely unbelievable that RECORDED BOOKS allows these kind of mistakes.
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- Donald Roberts
- 06-25-23
Almost , Everything You Wanted To know About The Story Of Animation But Didn’t Know To Ask
There was a lot of information covered in this book.It was an enjoyable listen The animation Studios of Warner Brothers, ( You know, the wacky gang of Fritz, Freleng, Tex Avery Chuck Jones,among others is extensively covered. )The Fleischer animation, studio history is also well covered. However, I have some gripes regarding this book.Where for instance is Walter Lantz ? I don’t recall his name being mentioned anywhere in this book. For those who are not familiar with Lantz he was the creator of Woody Woodpecker.DePatie-Freleng Enterprises, in my opinion, is not covered extensively enough. It seems they barely received any coverage at all. . The two principal men behind the studio are definitely from Warner Bros., golden age, namely, Depatie, and Fritz Freleng. The character of the Pink Panther is only briefly covered. What about characters like the Inspector or the Ant and the Aardvark? You can forget it. Not a word is written about about the rest of that stable of characters. If you are.a Disney fan, however, this is the book for you! His early history, and right up to the end of his life is extensively covered. Hanna Barbera and their collaboration, creating Tom and Jerry at MGM studios, you would think that would be extensively covered, right? Forget about it, and not even a mention as to the creation of these great characters. Such a shame! There are some glaring omission’s in this book, but if you can overlook them, it is an enjoyable listen, if you are looking for an extensive history of MGM, studios animation for instance, forget about it . It just is not here . While I understand, you can’t cover everything. These omissions are just too much for me to ignore. In my opinion, the author should have covered more ground than he did. While the book was enjoyable, these omissions just are not right to be ignored.
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- Caleb
- 08-22-24
Subject
All good stuff. A fine overview of the history of animation from the beginning to the end of the golden age.
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- Michael Williams
- 12-13-21
Beautiful
A great bit of history with hilarious and heartfelt stories. I absolutely loved it and as an artist I find it inspiring.
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- M. Stoughton
- 01-03-24
Excellent History of Animation
I’ve read several histories of animation, and this one stands out by going into detail about the studios, animators and moguls inseat of a rehashing of films that inhabit most histories.
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- lee fortuna
- 04-22-24
The nostalgia of an art form dear to my memory and heart!
Being born in 1961, I can relate to less than half of this wonderful story. But still growing up watching the golden years of cartoons and animation on my family television and on movie screens of my favorite theater. The writer did an amazing job forcing my mind to picture every word and action during the entire book! The narrator was also outstanding, making me rise during the ups of the storyline and down when the story got subdued. I cannot recommend this book enough to those that not only enjoy animation and cartoon art, but for those who feel that they wished they could live during those times in our history as do I. This book is truly a masterpiece portraying the best times in art history!
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- Hector M. Rosario Rodriguez
- 05-31-21
a good history on the Fleischers
I love the emphasis given to the genius of Max Fleischer and his animated work.
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