claymation

[Mullins, Bill]

>
> What were the Rudolph and Little Drummer Boy movies from the
> 1960s?  Were they the same thing as claymation? IF so, what
> were they called tehn? I remember having some sort of
> descriptive term for them, but don't really remember whether
> it was 'claymation.'  WHen I started hearing that term, it
> just seemed so familiar.
> Fritz

Claymation is a particular kind of "stop motion" animation.  Rudolph
(like King Kong 1933) used models built around articulated metal
armatures.  Rudolph and the Little Drummer Boy were from Rankin Bass
studios, which did a lot of stop motion stuff (Mad, Mad Monster Party,
among others).

The original Gumby and Pokey used a similar process to claymation, but
didn't call it that.  The producer of Gumby, Art Clokey, also did the
Davey and Goliath.

Wallace & Gromit are my current favorite claymation films.

> Proquest has it from 1979, the year that the trademark was
> first filed:
>
> http://tarr.uspto.gov/servlet/tarr?regser=serial&entry=73218588
>
> The trademark was registered to Will Vinton Studios, which
> created the California Raisins commercials.

> Ben Zimmer

The trademark page show its "First Use in Commerce" from 1978.

The ProQuest cite:
"Saturday Evening" Los Angeles Times (1886-Current File); Apr 24, 1979;
pg. G11
"Academy Award winners "Special Delivery" and "Claymation" will be among
the short subjects shown."

Note:  I cannot find any record of an Academy Award winning short called
"Claymation".  Any ideas what they are talking about?