Al Hubbard

Al Hubbard (May 26, 1913 – May 30, 1984) was an American comics artist and animator who had worked with Walt Disney Pictures, MGM Studios (Tom and Jerry), Warner Bros. (Sylvester the Cat), and Walter Lantz. He was one of the most prominent artists for the comic books with animation studio-licensed characters published by Western Publishing. 

Life and career

Al Hubbard was born Allan Hubbard on May 26, 1913, in Chicago, Illinois. 

Like his peers, Ken Hultrgen, Jack Bradbury, and Tony Strobl, Hubbard in his early twenties also tried to enter the world of animation. He started his animation career as an inbetweener at the Walt Disney Studios in 1937, but left after the film workers' strike in 1941, turning his attention to comic book art. He did funny animal art for Better Publications, Rural Home, and ACG, and was also an artist for ACG's "Spencer Spook" and "Bungle of the Jungle" stories.

Hubbard brought to his new vocation all the experience accumulated in animation: an edgy and fast stroke, versatile and adaptable to different characters and contexts, often difficult to contain within the narrow limits of the cartoons. 

In 1942, Hubbard moved to Glendale near Los Angeles, where for nearly ten years he worked at the studio directed by Jim Davis.

Between 1948 and 1951, he shared a commercial art studio with Hubie Karp, Jim Davis, and Jack Bradbury. In 1948, he produced funny animal art and features like "Tito and his Burrito" for National, in which a nice and lively Mexican boy appears with his donkey.

By 1950, Hubbard joined Dell Publishing and remained with it throughout the 1960s and 1970s. He drew stories with licensed characters from MGM (Hanna-Barbera's "Tom & Jerry", "Spike & Tyke", "Andy Hardy") and Walter Lantz ("Andy Panda"). He was the main artist of the Warner Bros. feature "Mary Jane and Sniffles" (characters created by Chuck Jones). He also produced "The Adventures of Peter Wheat" with Del Connell, which he took over from Walt Kelly.

He also worked on Andy Hardy, a fictional film character brought to success from 1937 onwards by the actor Mickey Rooney.

Hubbard illustrated numerous stories starring "Chip 'n' Dale", "Bambi", and "Scamp". In the 1950s, he was one of the first artists who often used the character of Jiminy Cricket (from the "Pinocchio" movie in 1940) in his Disney work. He illustrated several comic adaptations of Disney films, such as "Jungle Book", "The Lady and the Tramp", "The Aristocats", and "Peter Pan". He was the main artist for the "Aristocats" related comic book "O'Malley and the Alley Cats" in the 1970s.

In 1963, Hubbard and writer Dick Kinney introduced Donald's beatnik cousin "Fethry Duck" to the Duck universe. He also did the art for Disney coloring books and children's books, as well as stories for international Disney publications through the Disney Studios between 1963 and 1977. 

In 1965, Hubbard collaborated with Disney comics artist Al Taliaferro, producing Donald Duck's daily strips for King Features Syndicate.

In 1966, he and Dick Kinney created "01 Paperbond," a parodic reinterpretation of secret agent James Bond.

Death

Hubbard died on May 30, 1984, in Fallbrook, California, at the age of 71.