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Photo of Ralph Bakshi

Ralph Bakshi

Director, Actor, Writer, Producer, Additional CreditsBorn October 29, 1938 (87 years)
Ralph Bakshi (born October 29, 1938) is an American director of animated and live-action films. In the 1970s, he established an alternative to mainstream animation through independent and adult-oriented productions. Between 1972 and 1992, he directed nine theatrically released feature films, five of which he wrote. He has been involved in numerous television projects as director, writer, producer and animator.

Beginning his career at the Terrytoons television cartoon studio as a cel polisher, Bakshi was eventually promoted to director. He moved to the animation division of Paramount Pictures in 1967 and started his own studio, Bakshi Productions, in 1968. Through producer Steve Krantz, Bakshi made his debut feature film, Fritz the Cat, released in 1972. It was the first animated film to receive an X rating from the Motion Picture Association of America, and the most successful independent animated feature of all time.

Over the next eleven years, Bakshi directed seven additional animated features. He is well known for his fantasy films, which include Wizards (1977), The Lord of the Rings (1978) and Fire and Ice (1983). In 1987, Bakshi returned to television work, producing the series Mighty Mouse: The New Adventures, which ran for two years before it was canceled due to complaints from a conservative political group over perceived drug references. After a nine-year hiatus from feature films, he directed Cool World (1992), which was largely rewritten during production and received poor reviews. Bakshi returned to television with the live-action film Cool and the Crazy (1994) and the anthology series Spicy City (1997).

He founded the Bakshi School of Animation and Cartooning in 2003. During the 2000s, he has focused largely on painting. He has received several awards for his work, including the 1980 Golden Gryphon for The Lord of the Rings at the Giffoni Film Festival, the 1988 Annie Award for Distinguished Contribution to the Art of Animation, and the 2003 Maverick Tribute Award at the Cinequest Film Festival.

Description above from the Wikipedia article Ralph Bakshi, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

Known For

  • The Lord of the Rings
  • Cool World
  • Fritz the Cat
  • Fire and Ice
  • Wizards
  • American Pop
  • Spider-Man
  • Coonskin
  • Heavy Traffic
  • Hey Good Lookin'
  • Spicy City
  • Cool and the Crazy
  • The New Adventures of Mighty Mouse
  • The Butter Battle Book
  • Last Days of Coney Island
  • Ren & Stimpy Adult Party Cartoon
  • Rocket Robin Hood
  • The Mighty Heroes
  • What a Cartoon

Ralph Bakshi Filmography

2003
Ren & Stimpy Adult Party Cartoon (TV Series) · as Fire Chief
1997
Spicy City (TV Series) · as Connelly / Goldblum (voice)
1997
Babe, He Calls Me · as Super Hero
1995
What a Cartoon (TV Series) · as Super Hero
1981
The Cigarette and the Weed · as Cigarette / Weed (voice)
1981
American Pop · as Piano Player (voice)
1977
Wizards · as Fritz (voice, Uncredited)
1974
Coonskin · as Cop With Megaphone (voice) (uncredited)
1973
Heavy Traffic · as Various Characters (voice) (uncredited)
1972
Fritz the Cat · as Narrator / Pig Cop #1 (voice)
1969
The Frog · as Additional Voices
1954
Camera Three (TV Series) · as Cast

2015
1997
1995
What a Cartoon (TV Series)
1994
1994
Rebel Highway (TV Series)
1982
1981
1980
American Playhouse (TV Series)
1977
1974
1973
Heavy Traffic · as Screenplay
1972
Fritz the Cat · as Screenplay
1967
Spider-Man (TV Series)
1966
Rocket Robin Hood (TV Series)

2011
2003
1973
Tomorrow with Tom Snyder (TV Series) · as Self

1997
Spicy City (TV Series) · as Character Designer
1997
Spicy City (TV Series) · as Created By
1997
Babe, He Calls Me · as Animation
1995
What a Cartoon (TV Series) · as Animation
1988
Christmas in Tattertown · as Characters
1987
The New Adventures of Mighty Mouse (TV Series) · as Creator
1984
Cannonball Run II · as Animation
1983
Fire and Ice · as Characters
1981
1970
The Ghost Monster · as Story
1967
Which Is Witch? · as Supervising Animation Director

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