was the numberlys an influence for the movie robots

#Was the numberlys an influence for the movie robots tv#

My First Book of Nursery Tales / Retold by Marianna Mayer illustrated by William Joyce (1983).

Source: Children’s Books and their Creators, Anita Silvey. The results, the books that are “vintage Joyce,” present a talent that pleases a great variety of tastes and satiates even the most finicky connoisseur. William Joyce’s interests and influences blend so creatively in his work that, though detectable, they subconsciously meld to produce a completely original flavor. Joyce created several books about this buglike robot family, Snowie Rolie (2000), Sleepytime Olie (2001), and some board books, Olie (2001), Zowie (2001), and Spot (2001).

#Was the numberlys an influence for the movie robots tv#

Joyce’s work reached an even wider audience when the characters from Rolie Polie Olie (1999) became the stars of their own TV show. Bently, however, successfully tracks it down and saves the day, not to mention the egg. The affectionate story of Bently, who is asked to egg-sit for his friend, Kack Kack the duck, turns to adventure when the egg, beautifully painted by Bently, is mistaken for an Easter egg and heisted. Bently and Egg (1992), rendered in gentle pastels, contains a playful use of language.

Joyce has even concocted something for the sentimentalist. On his night table is a list of chores left for him by his parents, which he manages to complete with comic ingenuity. The wish is fulfilled when Art rescues Esther from the terrible Dark Queen.Īnother book of movie influence is Joyce’s first book as both author and illustrator, George Shrinks (1985), which Joyce has referred to as “King Kong in reverse.” A young boy, George, awakes to find himself about the size of a mouse. Unbeknownst to Art and Spaulding, the adventure has been arranged by Santa in an effort to meet Esther’s only Christmas request: her brother’s friendship. Spiced with moments of Wild West adventure and bravado, the story includes a trip to the North Pole by Art Atchinson Aimesworth his little sister, Esther and his best friend Spaulding, a young Comanche. His enthusiasm for this medium is evident in Santa Calls (1993), which is the closest thing on paper to an animated film production and is the movie buff or fantasy lover’s dream. William Joyce, a fan of cartoons, television, and movies (from science fiction and horror to classic), maintains that a career goal is to see one of his stories produced as a feature-length film. After they are found - in a frog’s mouth - everyone celebrates with a pillow fight.Ī Day with Wilbur Robinson – William Joyce 1990 The pokerfaced text relies on the visual punch lines to complete this story, in which Wilbur’s visiting friend joins in the family search for Grandfather’s missing teeth. Wilbur’s eccentric extended family is a surrealist’s cup of fur: an uncle who blasts himself from a cannon, a robot, a cousin who floats with the aid of an antigravity device, and some yodeling frogs. Add a few futuristic elements to the nostalgia of Dinosaur Bob and you have A Day with Wilbur Robinson (1990), in which a spaceship is parked on a lawn that, judging by the garb sported by those gracefully relaxing on it, one would think belonged to Gatsby. The minimalist text and expressive illustrations recount the story of the family Lazardo and Bob, the dinosaur they befriend and bring home to New York from their safari in Africa. His creations are a subtle blend of a lifetime of accrued American interests and influences, and each offers something for nearly everyone’s tastes.Įvery art aficionado will savor the rich, Edward Hopper-like paintings of Dinosaur Bob (1988). William Joyce, who resides in Louisiana, was educated at Southern Methodist University and sold paintings through galleries before discovering that children’s book illustration provided the ideal mode of expression for the ideas simmering in his imagination.

Tolkien spoke of the “cauldron of story.” If ever there were a “cauldron of illustration,” William Joyce would be its master chef.