Happy Valentine’s Day! How are you showing your friends and loved ones how much they mean to you? Gumby’s into handmade things, so he’s been hard at work, cutting and pasting. Meanwhile, Pokey has other ideas… he’s found that box of chocolates that were hidden in the closet. Hey, Pokey, please save some for the rest of us!

Rewind to January: Gumby and Pokey rang in 2013 with their friends, toasting with carrot juice, Gumby’s favorite beverage. Those blustery winter days were cold, but fun. Gumby, Pokey and the Blockheads braved the weather for a sledding adventure.

Gumby and Pokey just couldn’t sit still for the Superbowl. They suited up and helped out their favorite teams. Then, it was off to join in a couple of festive parades for Mardi Gras and Chinese New Year.

Stayed tuned for more of Gumby and Pokey’s excursions, celebrations and words of wisdom. Like Gumby Central on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to be the first to see what our favorite precocious clay friends have been doing.  See you there!

Gumby creator Art Clokey was a huge proponent of learning. Early in his career, he spent a few years as an art teacher in Santa Barbara, California. Art loved to read and wanted his Gumby episodes to encourage children to seek out information. He wished to spark their young imaginations and spur them to read into new adventures… just as Gumby and Pokey can walk into any book and find themselves in an historic or futuristic time and place.

Gumby’s fun adventures give us a glimpse into history or introduce us to other cultures and people. Gumby has helped George Washington, he whirled with the Dervishes, tamed dinosaurs and chanted with Kachinas. What a creative introduction to significant people, places and events of the past!

This image from the 1980’s Gumby episode, “Blocks in the Head,” reminds us of the significance of the name of the two mischievous trouble makers in Gumby’s world… the Blockheads. Art shaped their heads into blocks to represent square thinking! Gumby models being flexible, creative, using imagination and diving into books as the alternative to being a Blockhead.

Even today, Gumby continues to be an inspiration in our schools…

Musical Creativity

Last spring the Gumby Central gang had the privilege of attending an amazing musical performance inspired by Art Clokey’s works. Secondary school band director Ralph Martin, at the Vacaville Christian Schools in California, obtained permission from the Clokey family to use the musical scores from “Gumby on the Moon” and “Gumbasia” in his lessons and for a non-profit concert.

The sixth through twelfth grade students in the school’s jazz ensemble, Radio Jazz, practiced for months. They transposed and performed the actual music from “Gumbasia” at their concert in March 2012. View the “Gumbasia” performance.

After listening to the original music to “Gumby on the Moon” and watching the episode on video over and over, the students composed their own original music with several movements to correspond with the passages in the video. The episode was shown on the large screen behind the band as they soulfully blended the hip and mysterious melodies they had written to evoke Gumby’s extraterrestrial experience. See the “Gumby on the Moon” performance.

What talent and creativity! The professional performance quality earned the band gigs as an opening act at the world-famous Yoshi’s jazz club in San Francisco. Congratulations! We applaud Ralph Martin for his dedication and unique approach to teaching. We know the talented students in Radio Jazz will go far.

Stretch for Excellence

In Florida a number of school districts are participating in a program called Stretch for Excellence, a campaign to motivate students and staff to stretch beyond the normal, expected outcomes and to never give up. It is designed to foster that “can do” life attitude that helps a person excel in our information age.

The program started first with teachers and support staff in a public school in Florida. They received much needed recognition through the 3” and 6” bendable Gumby, a token or reflection how “flexible” they had been.

Each month honorees were awarded the coveted “Gumby Award.” The program was so successful that it expanded to include students and has been used each year since its initiation in 2009. Gumby green can be found in almost every office and in many classrooms. More and more enthusiastic students challenge themselves as the concept continues to spread to new districts.

Keep on stretching for excellence! As Gumby has shown, learning can be fun.

Gumby Central met with puppet maker Nicole LaPointe-McKay to get the inside scoop on making puppets and what it is like to have a career in puppetry and stop motion animation. Part Two: The Puppet Maker Career follows. Part One: Making Gumby appeared in our December 2011 blog post.  

GC: Thank you for taking time to continue our conversation on puppet making and animation as careers. Let’s start with the basics. What kind of education is needed to be a puppet maker?

NLM: Going to college helps you to focus and push forward in the right direction. There are plenty of theater arts programs worldwide. Going to college helped me meet and team up with others, who helped me break into the industry. If you are highly disciplined and self-motivated, you may be able to learn on the job. Building your portfolio is critical as is doing volunteer projects that help get your name out.

GC: In our last interview, you mentioned some of the events in your life that inspired you to become a puppet maker. Where did you study for this career?

NLM: I started out as a theater major with a concentration in scenery and stagecraft at Radford University in Virginia. I found that I really enjoyed a sculpture class I took one semester too. For French class, I chose to write a paper on the French Punch and Judy puppets (Le Guinol).  At the same time I wrote a report on Bunraku, (Japanese puppet theater) for a theater history class.  While researching, I learned about the University of Connecticut’s Puppet Arts program. All of my research and writings on puppetry, in addition to my new found love of sculpture, pushed me in that direction. I auditioned and was accepted into the UCONN Puppet Arts Masters Program.

While working on my master’s degree at UCONN, I was influenced by my study of old style Italian performance Commedia dell’arte.  There is a lot of slapstick comedy and clowning performance in this art and it is actually where the “slapstick” came from. By learning to use my own body in expression, I could better understand and transfer the motions to the puppets. I also studied Chinese rod puppetry, which is a very high energy and expressive style of Chinese puppetry.  There was a lot to gain in going to school for puppet arts. I got to know the history of puppetry around the world, gained experience in woodcarving, mould making and met some great people along the way. All of our classes required performances, so we not only made puppets, but we performed them. This hands-on experience was great, and I would recommend it.

GC: How did you gain your first employment in puppet making?

NLM: During and out of college, I joined forces with my colleagues and fellow students to do work at a few different studios, making puppets and scenery on the east and west coasts. Some of the jobs started as volunteer projects or unpaid internships and ultimately turned into paying jobs. Puppet making led to doing stop motion animation. Many jobs are obtained by word of mouth, so it’s good to maintain a strong network of colleagues.

GC: How did you go from puppet making to stop motion animation?

NLM: Once the puppets are made, it’s only natural to take the next step into animating them. Puppetry is “bringing an inanimate object to life.” Animation is much the same thing—you bring a drawing, painting, or puppet to life, giving them breath, a personality and movement to tell a story.

I believe that it’s important to continually hone and expand my skill set. For instance, I experimented in the garage with my cousin and a friend a lot while at school to learn more about mould making and casting. We used a variety of materials to make puppets, life castings, and gigantic Halloween monster costumes.

GC: Do you have any heroes or mentors who inspired you?

NLM: Besides Arthur Clokey? Art was a man of few words, but when he spoke, we all listened and not just because he did the voice of Pokey and many of the narrator voice overs. He had a great sense of humor and loved word play. You can see this in many of the Gumby episodes. Jim Henson and Frank Oz were two more heroes of mine of course! All their characters have been part of my life since birth: Sesame Street, the Muppets, the Dark Crystal, Fraggle Rock and many others. There is so much life and personality in all the characters they developed and inspired. The humor appealed to me as a child and still holds my attention as an adult. Gumby is the same, especially the 1950s and 60s episodes; I loved them as a kid and still like to watch them now. There  is magic in creating a character and stories that work on these various levels and age groups.

GC: What is the life of stop motion animator or puppet maker like?

NLM: You have to be flexible! Few studios hire for life. When one production is done, you may have to take another project in a different studio and city. Much of the work in this industry is freelance. It’s like a traveling circus. That makes it interesting—you never know what you will be doing next or where.

GC: What advice would you give to those who are interested in a career in stop motion animation or puppetry?

NLM: One thing that has helped me to gain employment is to be open-minded and continue to expand my skills. Having a broad skill set has opened many doors. An animator who can fix his/her own puppets, do lighting and paint sets is more marketable. Building a resume and portfolio are very important. You have to be willing to start at the bottom—cleaning up puppets, working as an intern for little or no pay, to get your foot in the door.

GC: Thank you again, Nicole!

You can see some of Nicole’s work and read more on her blog:  http://www.nicolelapointe-mckay.blogspot.com/

Learn more about puppet making and how Gumby is made in the first segment of this interview available on our blog.  See production photos from the Gumby Studios here.

GC: Welcome Nicole. Thank you for taking time to join us at Gumby World today to tell us more about yourself and your experiences as a puppet maker. 

NLM: I’m happy to be here. I appreciate the opportunity.

GC: How did you become interested in being a puppet maker?
NLM: I’ve been interested in puppets since I was a kid. I was obsessed with the Muppet Show and stop animation programs. I watched Gumby on TV with my little brother. My mother would craft puppets for me to use in plays that I made up. I put on shows with hand puppets, my favorite monkey puppet, and a few marionettes. I always volunteered to get up in front of people to perform and lead others, such as the Girl Scouts, in plays. I was a thespian in high school, and it seemed natural that I would go on to study theater in college.

GC: How did you get involved with Gumby?
NLM: After college and having gained a few years of experience in puppet making, set design and animation, I applied to a posting on AWN.com (Animation World Network), not knowing what the studio was. I didn’t get that particular job, since it had already been filled, but I kept in touch with the studio—Clokey Productions. When studio producer Joe Clokey had an opening for a set designer, he called me. I worked on the Gumby Namco game commercial and have been with Gumby ever since. You can see some production photos here: (http://www.gumbyworld.com/gumbys-studio/)

GC: What kinds of puppets do you make?
NLM: I’m trained to work with just about any material and style of puppet. In my studies I was exposed to puppets from around the world and different time periods. Some of my favorites were the Japanese bunraku, the French Guinol and the Italian Commedia dell’Arte. Currently I fashion a lot of clay puppets for stop motion. I do have some personal projects in the works that involve hand-rod, big-mouth puppets (like the Muppets-type puppets.) I’m doing some new clay animation, too.

GC: How do you make a Gumby puppet?
NLM: Gumby is made of mostly Van Aken clay—a secret recipe! I whip up a batch following his unique recipe, mix, and boil it down in a double boiler to a unified color and the right consistency. I prep the silicone/stone mold with a floating armature. This is Gumby’s skeleton. I then pour the mixture into the mold and let it cool. Sometimes I chill it in the fridge to speed the process. Next, I pop him out of the mold and clean him up by trimming the seams and patching the bubble marks. Gumby gets an oil massage to make him smooth. I then drop a faceplate on him to mark where the features will go. Finally, I add the delicate clay features of his face.

GC: How many Gumby puppets does it take to make a Gumby TV episode?
NLM: More than you would think. The number of puppets needed really depends upon the storyline and type of morphing and movement that the puppet does. When Gumby morphs and changes shape, he needs to be replaced after every few seconds of animation, because the clay loses its shape. One minute of animation can require 20 Gumbys, sometimes more. The lights can also melt the clay, requiring a change of puppets. Because we go through so many puppets, it’s critical that they are all identical and made to the same specifications.

GC: You were involved in the Gumby Google doodle that appeared on October 12, 2011 to honor Art Clokey’s 90^th birthday. Tell us about that.
NLM: It was a collaborative effort, involving a small subset of the Clokey Productions’ crew. We worked long distance—by phone, Skype and email. With the short deadline, I made puppets non-stop for a week before the animator could do his part. We used 3-6 puppets of each character for about 4-6 seconds of animation per character. The individual segments of animation were then sent to Google, where their programming team integrated them into their home page. It was exciting to see the characters come to life and move with the click of a mouse. The interaction was really fun! I think this was the first clay animation doodle that Google has used. The doodle was online around the world, so I hope that it inspired a renewed interest in clay animation. You can view it live and interact with it here: http://www.gumbygoogle.co.cc/

GC: What do you do for fun?
NLM: I’m always brainstorming and designing puppet shows and animations based on the interests of little kids that I know. I watch a lot of cartoons with my two-year-old daughter. I love to create (working in clay, painting…) and most enjoy brainstorming creative ideas with my artsy friends.

GC: What are your favorite recent animated productions?
NLM: I’m into watching Timmy Time, a stop motion animation with clay, foam, and rubber puppets done by the Aardman studio in England. I like this style of animation, because there is little speaking; it’s simple and tells the story through actions. Rather than a lot of words, they use onomatopoeia. Timmy Time is a preschool of animals, which children of all ages can enjoy watching. It’s cute, funny, has bright colors and teaches a lesson.

GC: What inspires you about the future?
NLM: Giving back is essential. I grew up in an area that did not provide many opportunities for kids to learn the arts. I still remember a week in my fifth grade class when our teacher had us make puppets and do a book report using them. That changed my life I think. You never know how you can have a positive influence on the next generation. To do my part, I teach stop motion animation classes and workshops at summer camps for kids.

Today, kids are animating with their phones and digital SLR’s. They have so many opportunities to create animations or other imaginative works. The tools are readily available. I love to help spark their imaginations.

GC: You can see some of Nicole’s work and read more on her blog:
http://www.nicolelapointe-mckay.blogspot.com/

Learn more about the career of puppet making in the second segment of our interview with Nicole. Look for it in a future blog post.

“The Google Doodle is the perfect tribute to my fathers work,” says Joe Clokey, Art Clokey’s son and creator of Gumby’s new website. “Art’s life and film career were ahead of their time. My dad would have been thrilled to be connected with Google in this way.”

A true visionary and pioneer, Art Clokey touched millions around the world with his creations. Art’s clay animation short Gumbasia expressed an exciting kinesthetic brand of film making that has influenced many of our current leading directors. The new Gumbyworld.com website is rich with new, classic and rare film clips, pictures, biographical information about Art Clokey’s formative years along with an in-depth look at his five decade long run of his cutting-edge film making.

From the Adventures of Gumby and Davey and Goliath to surrealistic art films, Art Clokey had a fascinating and influential career. The new website Gumbyworld.com is the most comprehensive look ever at the iconic green clay boy and all of the other characters in Art’s limitless universe of imagination and artistic expression. Included are clips of Art Clokey talking about the creative process and a look into some of his lesser known pilots. Gumby and Art Clokey, two American originals.

Renowned animator Anthony Scott created the doodle animation. Scott is known for his animation direction and supervision on Coraline, Corpse Bride and The Nightmare Before Christmas. Scott got his start in animation working on the 1980’s Gumby series, under Art Clokey himself. He was also the lead animator under the direction of Art’s son Joe Clokey on the Davey and Goliath Snowboard Christmas movie, which was released in 2004. Gumby lead puppet maker Nicole La Pointe-McKay modeled the various characters for the Google animation.

About Premavision

Clokey Productions and Premavison studios, founded by Art Clokey in 1956, produce stop motion animation TV series, films and commercials. They are best known for creating the iconic characters Gumby, Pokey and friends and Davey and Goliath. Located in central California, they draw the most talented animators, puppet makers and set designers in the industry.

For more information about Gumby, Premavision and existing licensing opportunities visit www.gumby.com

Nicole LaPointe-Mckay Making Gumby

Anthony Scott - Gumby Google Doodle Animator

Gumby fans are everywhere. Online you can find creative videos by long-time Gumby aficionados who hop into a Gumby costume for some interesting break dance maneuvers and unbelievable crazy antics. Others photograph or film their Gumby bendable figure in exotic locations. Fans show their love for Gumby offline by sporting Gumby hairdos and donning Gumby-inspired green apparel. You may have even seen a Gumby and Pokey or two roaming the streets. Hint: they are often seen at major sporting events. During a trip to northeastern Ohio not long ago, we ended up behind a custom-painted, Gumby-green car with Gumby license plates. Gumby creator Art Clokey would have loved the ingenuity.

Art created Gumby as a gift of love for all children and the child within us. The character captures the spirit of wonder, adventure and imagination. Gumby takes us to new worlds and opens our eyes and hearts. “If you’ve got a heart, then Gumby’s a part of you.”

Show your Gumby spirit, and join us on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube!

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Documentary – Available on DVD.

In honor Art Clokey’s many creative accomplishments and impact on the film industry, we are proud to introduce Gumby Dharma. This Emmy Award winning documentary captures the fascinating life of Art Clokey and his famous creations Gumby and Pokey and Davey and Goliath. From the mud (called gumbo) on his grandparents’ farm in the Midwest to his many adventures with his adopted father out west, you’ll see the myriad of influences on Art’s life and how they translated into iconic characters, which the world has embraced.

Art’s life takes us from the seminary to the Hollywood movie business, and from traditional Episcopalian values to Buddhism and Indian Holy men. His world famous stop motion animation characters reflect the message of love that Art and his wife Ruth wanted to give the world, while at the same time, his revolutionary kinesthetic filming techniques combined with a real life clay animated world is still ahead of its time. Interviews with contemporary leaders in animation including Director Henry Selick (Coraline, Nightmare Before Christmas, James and the Giant Peach) and special effects legend Ray Harryhausen (Jason and the Argonauts, Adventures of Sinbad), along with Art himself give texture to this riveting movie. From his groundbreaking art film Gumbasia to his surrealistic masterpiece Mandala, you’ll see a life that is honest and rich with art. The tapestry of Art’s life is a classic American story of growth and transformation. With all of life’s tragedies and triumphs, Art finds the nuggets to create a rich mosaic of adventure and joy for all of us to enjoy. Also interviewed are his stars Gumby and Pokey (featuring new stop motion directed by Academy Award^© Nominee Timothy Hittle) who come “offstage” to reveal the more personal facets of Clokey’s story. In this film, we uncover how Art’s animation and personal brand of love of life has influenced millions of TV and film viewers and filmmakers across the world for more than half a century.

A Clip from Gumby Dharma

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DVD: 54 min. Includes a restored print of Gumbasia.

Available in the Gumby Store.

With Halloween just around the corner, we’re pulling out our Gumby and Pokey costumes. The new Gumby costume has been incredibly popular—and not just for Halloween. Gumby costumes are popping up everywhere. We’ve heard about fans who keep the costumes in the trunks of their cars for easy access when they happen to be in situation that invites a green laugh or two. Need a character for your next video? Check. Need to entertain guests at a birthday party? Check. Need to dress up for a parade? Check. Gumby’s ready to go.

Gumby’s no stranger to the sports arena. One of the most common uses for the Gumby costume is to cheer teams on at nationally televised basketball, baseball and football games.

We’ve seen Gumby a number of times cheering from the stands on ESPN coverage of college basketball games, even from the front row. The Milwaukee Bucks have an “official Gumby fan” who made his own outfit. The Bucks star player sports a Gumby haircut.   There is another player, on the Green Bay Packers, whose nickname is Gumby. Gumby and sports—it makes sense. Gumby is known for his flexibility and tenacity to succeed. He stretches for excellence.

We at Gumby Central love all of these. Art Clokey, Gumby creator, would have been honored. A true pioneer in stop motion animation who always pushed the envelope of the imagination and had a great sense of humor… that’s Art Clokey. The creativity that fans show is true to Gumby’s positive, enthusiastic spirit.  Keep ‘em coming, and keep ‘em legal—unlike this one:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zgJyUwpOsmw

We’ll be sharing some of the fun ideas we come across on GumbyCentral, Gumby’s official social media sites. So you’ll want to become a fan on Facebook,  follow us on Twitter, and subscribe to our YouTube channel. Send us your favorite Gumby-inspired costume shots, and we may feature one in the Gumby Fans Hall of Fame or in a future blog post. Email us here.

Happy Halloween from Gumbyworld.com!

P.S. Don’t forget Gumby’s pal Pokey—he has a costume, too.

According to creator Art Clokey, green represents chlorophyll, which converts light into energy, allowing things to grow and move. The color green breathed life into Gumby. Gumby was the Clokeys’ gift of love to all children. Art would say that love is light, and chlorophyll facilitates the transformation from light to life… Light – Energy – Love are the ingredients of Gumby.

Art felt that it was important to speak children of all ethnicities. He wanted his little clay boy to be accessible to children around the world, and he chose green because it is a culturally neutral color. In the fascinating documentary, Gumby Dharma, which chronicles Art’s life and his creative endeavors, Art mentions that Gumby couldn’t be red, white, yellow, brown, or black as those colors had specific connotations. Blue was the color of Krishna, so that wouldn’t work. The color green, as he saw it, was universal and available.

In later years Gumby’s greenness also related to various story lines in which Gumby fought factory chicken farms and pesticide use and promoted organic farming. “Green” took on a whole new meaning.

Happy St. Patrick’s Day to you all!

To celebrate GREEN, The Gumby Store at www.gumbyworld.com is offering 25%-30% off green t-shirts through the month of March, 2012. Get some green and save some green! Check it out.