Brenda Banks (animator)

Brenda Lee Banks (July 19, 1948 – December 30, 2020) was an American animator, who was one of the first African American women to work as a professional animator.[1]

Brenda Lee Banks

History

Early life and education

Banks was born in Los Angeles on July 19, 1948. She graduated from Fremont High School in 1967 and then went on to attend the California Institute of the Arts. She continued her education up through 1977 even while being involved in concurrent animation work projects.[1]

Career

The earliest known works that Banks was involved in include those starring Clerow Wilson in the early 1970s and the 1973 animated television special B.C.: The First Thanksgiving.[2]

According to Ralph Bakshi, Banks arrived at his studio in 1973 asking for a job, despite telling him that she had no background in animation.[1] She was given some small work in the 1974 feature Coonskin.[1] After proving herself, Bakshi then assigned her to work on several of the background "goon" characters in the film Wizards whose animation quality was not high priority for the film as compared to the main characters. Her work was a complete success and Bakshi described her as the "star of the goons at the studio". From there, she went on to work on a number of Bakshi's subsequent features, including The Lord of the Rings in 1978 and Fire and Ice in 1983. After the latter film, Banks left the studio to instead begin work at Warner Brothers on their Looney Tunes television specials. She went on to work at other studios, including Hanna-Barbera for The Pirates of Dark Water and several episodes and games for Fox's Simpsons property. From 1997 to 2005, she was a dedicated layout animator for the King of the Hill television show, before disappearing from the animating field altogether.[3]

Accolades and awards

Banks was given a WIA Diversity Award in 2018 by the Women in Animation non-profit due to her decades of work in the field of animation.[4][5]

Personal life

Frequently described by her colleagues as a private and shy person who did not offer much information about herself or her background, animator Lee Crowe remembered that she had no interest or desire to be remembered as one of the first black women in animation. The only personal detail recalled about her, as stated by Nancy Beiman, is that Banks had a physical disability in the form of requiring leg braces before surgery.[1]

Filmography

References
  1. Hurler, Jen (February 24, 2021). "Brenda Banks, One Of The First Black Women Animators In America, Dies At 72". Cartoon Brew. Retrieved February 27, 2021.
  2. Milligan, Mercedes (February 23, 2021). "Pioneering, 'Immensely Private' Animator Brenda Banks Has Died". Animation Magazine. Retrieved February 27, 2021.
  3. Korkis, Jim (January 16, 2015). "Animation Anecdotes #195: Who Was Brenda Banks". Cartoon Research. Retrieved February 27, 2021.
  4. Flores, Terry (October 25, 2018). "Women in Animation Honors NFB's Michael Fukushima, Animated Short 'Music & Clowns' With Diversity Awards". Variety. Retrieved February 27, 2021.
  5. Wolfe, Jennifer (October 25, 2018). "Women in Animation Announces WIA Diversity Award Honorees at Spark ANIMATION 2018". Animation World Network. Retrieved February 27, 2021.
  6. Crowther, Linnea (February 25, 2021). "Brenda Banks (2020), pioneering animator who worked on 'Wizards,' 'King of the Hill'". Legacy.com. Retrieved February 27, 2021.
  7. "Cartoon Characters, Cast and Crew for B. C.: The First Thanksgiving (1972)". The Big Cartoon Database. Dave Koch. 2018. Retrieved March 2, 2021.
  8. "Dr. Seuss' The Hoober-Bloob Highway". Paley Center For Media. 2021. Retrieved March 2, 2021.
  9. Quinlan, Thomas (June 1, 2004). "Wizards: Ralph Bakshi". Exclaim!. Retrieved March 2, 2021.
  10. Beck, Jerry (October 28, 2005). The Animated Movie Guide. Chicago Review Press. ISBN 9781569762226.
  11. "Dr. Seuss' Pontoffel Pock, Where Are You?". Paley Center For Media. 2021. Retrieved March 2, 2021.
  12. Canby, Vincent (February 13, 1981). "'American Pop' Grown-Up Animation". The New York Times. Retrieved March 2, 2021.
  13. Hallenbeck, Bruce G. (August 11, 2009). Comedy-Horror Films: A Chronological History, 1914-2008. McFarland & Company. p. 234. ISBN 9780786453788.
  14. "Cartoon Characters, Cast and Crew for Bugs Vs. Daffy: Battle Of The Music Video Stars (1988)". The Big Cartoon Database. Dave Koch. 2018. Retrieved March 2, 2021.
  15. "Bugs Bunny's Wild World of Sports (1989) Animated Cartoon Special". The Big Cartoon Database. Dave Koch. 2018. Retrieved March 2, 2021.
  16. "Night of the Bedbugs (1990) Season 1, Episode 1". The Big Cartoon Database. Dave Koch. 2018. Retrieved March 2, 2021.
  17. Tupper, Carrie (June 4, 2014). "A History of Women in Animation: Mothers of a Medium". The Mary Sue. Retrieved March 2, 2021.
  18. "The Simpsons: Virtual Springfield Credits". Metacritic. 2021. Retrieved March 2, 2021.
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