Walter Benjamin Lantz (April 27, 1899 – March 22, 1994) was an American cartoonist and animator, best known for founding Walter Lantz Productions and creating Woody Woodpecker.
Walter Lantz was born on April 27, 1899 (some sources incorrectly list his birth year as 1900) in New Rochelle, New York to Italian immigrant his parents, Francesco Paolo Lantz (formerly Lanza) and Maria Gervasi. According to Joe Adamson's biography, The Walter Lantz Story...
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Walter Benjamin Lantz (April 27, 1899 – March 22, 1994) was an American cartoonist and animator, best known for founding Walter Lantz Productions and creating Woody Woodpecker.
Walter Lantz was born on April 27, 1899 (some sources incorrectly list his birth year as 1900) in New Rochelle, New York to Italian immigrant his parents, Francesco Paolo Lantz (formerly Lanza) and Maria Gervasi. According to Joe Adamson's biography, The Walter Lantz Story, Lantz's father was given the surname Lantz by an immigration official upon his arrival in the United States. Walter Lantz was interested in art at an early age, completing a mail order drawing class at age twelve. He got his first taste of animation when he watched Winsor McCay’s cartoon short, Gertie the Dinosaur.
While working as an auto mechanic, Lantz got his first break in the art world. A well-to-do customer, Fred Kafka, liked his drawings on the garage's bulletin board. He bankrolled his studies at New York City's Art Students League....
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