Ralph Bakshi
70 movies · 9 TV shows
- Known for
- Directing
- Born
- Oct 29, 1938 (age 87)
- Place of birth
- Haifa, Mandatory Palestine [now Israel]
Biography
Ralph Bakshi (born October 29, 1938) is a Palestinian-born American animator and filmmaker. 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.
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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.
Known for
Ralph Bakshi: movies and TV shows
Acting (11)
- 2023
- 2003
- 1997 Malcom and Melvin
as Super Hero
- 1997 Babe, He Calls Me
as Super Hero
- 1997
- 1981 The Cigarette and the Weed
as Cigarette / Weed (voice)
- 1981 American Pop
as Piano Player (voice)
- 1977 Wizards
as Fritz (voice, uncredited) / Storm Trooper (voice, uncredited)
- 1975 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)
Behind the camera (79)
- 2023 Midwest
Writer, Director
- 2015 Last Days of Coney Island
Director, Writer, Producer
- 2012 Trickle Dickle Down
Director, Writer, Producer
- 2010
- 1997 Malcom and Melvin
Director, Writer
- 1997 Babe, He Calls Me
Animation, Director, Writer
- 1997
- 1995
- 1994 Cool and the Crazy
Director, Writer
- 1994
- 1992 Cool World
Director
- 1991 The Ren & Stimpy Show
Storyboard Artist
- 1989 Imagining America
Director
- 1989 Tribe
Writer
- 1989 Reflections of A Native Son
Writer
- 1989 Get Your Kicks on Route 66
Writer
- 1989 The Butter Battle Book
Director, Producer
- 1989 Hound Town
Director
- 1989 This Ain't Bebop
Director, Writer
- 1988 Christmas in Tattertown
Director, Characters
- 1987
- 1984 Cannonball Run II
Animation
- 1983 Fire and Ice
Director, Characters, Producer
- 1982 Hey Good Lookin'
Director, Writer, Producer
- 1982
- 1981 The Cigarette and the Weed
Writer, Director, Animation
- 1981 American Pop
Director, Producer
- 1978 The Lord of the Rings
Director
- 1977 Wizards
Director, Writer, Producer
- 1975 The Monsterizer
Director
- 1975 Coonskin
Director, Writer, Additional Photography, Lyricist
- 1975 The Junker
Director
- 1975 The Plastic Blaster
Director
- 1974 The Bigger Digger
Director
- 1973 Heavy Traffic
Director, Screenplay
- 1973 The Paper Monster
Director
- 1973 The Return of the Monsterizer
Director
- 1972 The Time Eraser
Director
- 1972 The Scarecrow
Director
- 1972 Fritz the Cat
Director, Screenplay
- 1972 The Timekeeper
Director
- 1970 The Drifter
Director
- 1970 Lost and Foundation
Director
- 1970 The Ghost Monster
Director, Story
- 1969 The Toy Man
Director
- 1969 The Frog
Director
- 1969 The Stretcher
Director
- 1967 Mouse Trek
Director, Executive Producer
- 1967 Baron Von Go-Go
Director
- 1967 Mini-Squirts
Executive Producer, Character Designer, Creator, Director
- 1967 Frozen Sparklers
Director
- 1967 The Fuz
Director, Executive Producer
- 1967 Marvin Digs
Production Design, Director, Executive Producer
- 1967 Fancy Plants
Director
- 1967 Traffic Trouble
Director, Supervising Animation Director
- 1967 The Opera Caper
Director
- 1967 Dr. Rhinestone's Theory
Supervising Animation Director
- 1967
- 1967 Which Is Witch?
Supervising Animation Director
- 1967 Give Me Liberty
Director
- 1967 Bugged By A Bug
Supervising Animation Director
- 1967 It's for the Birds
Director
- 1967 The Heat's Off
Director
- 1967 Mr. Winlucky
Director
- 1967 A Voodoo Spell
Supervising Animation Director
- 1966
- 1966 Scuba Duba Do
Director, Animation
- 1966 Dr. Ha-Ha
Director
- 1966 The Monster Master
Director
- 1965 The Third Musketeer
Director
- 1965 Dress Reversal
Director
- 1965 Don't Spill the Beans
Director
- 1965 Gadmouse: The Apprentice Good Fairy
Animation, Director
- 1965
- 1962 Where There's Smoke
Animation
- 1961 Crossing The Delaware
Animation
- 1961 The Unsung Hero
Visual Effects
- 1960 The Mysterious Package
Animation
- 1960 House of Hashimoto
Animation
Talk shows and appearances (3)
- 2011
- 2010
- 2003