Editing Chuck Jones (section)

=== Warner Bros. Cartoons ===
{{See also|Chuck Jones filmography}}Jones joined [[Leon Schlesinger|Leon Schlesinger Productions]], the independent studio that produced ''[[Looney Tunes]]'' and ''[[Merrie Melodies]]'' for [[Warner Bros.]], in 1933 as an assistant animator. In 1935 he was promoted to animator and assigned to work with a new Schlesinger director, [[Tex Avery]]. There was no room for the new Avery unit in Schlesinger's small studio, so Avery, Jones, and fellow animators [[Bob Clampett]], [[Virgil Ross]], and [[Sidney Sutherland|Sid Sutherland]] were moved into a small adjacent building they dubbed "Termite Terrace". In 1937, Jones' old boss [[Ub Iwerks]] was subcontracted to produce several ''Looney Tunes'' shorts for Schleshinger, with Clampett and Jones brought in to assist him. Iwerks completed only two shorts before he left, with Clampett taking his position soon after.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Animator Breakdown: Bob Clampett's "Porky's Badtime Story" (1937) {{!}} |url=https://cartoonresearch.com/index.php/animator-breakdown-bob-clampetts-porkys-badtime-story-1937/ |access-date=2025-03-24 |website=cartoonresearch.com}}</ref> Jones worked alongside Clampett as an animator and an uncredited co-director (or "supervisor", the original title for an animation director in the studio) before becoming a main director himself in 1938 when [[Frank Tashlin]] left the studio,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Animator Breakdown: "Porky's Hero Agency" (1937) {{!}} |url=https://cartoonresearch.com/index.php/animator-breakdown-porkys-hero-agency-1937/ |access-date=2025-03-24 |website=cartoonresearch.com}}</ref> a position that was initially offered to animator [[Robert McKimson]]. The following year, Jones created his first major character, [[Sniffles (Merrie Melodies)|Sniffles]], a cute Disney-style mouse, who went on to star in twelve Warner Bros. cartoons.<ref>{{cite web |title=Sniffles |url=https://www.chuckjonescenter.org/characters/sniffles |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171216201311/http://chuckjonescenter.org/characters/sniffles |archive-date=December 16, 2017 |access-date=December 16, 2017 |website=Chuck Jones Center}}</ref>

Jones initially struggled in with his directorial style in his formative years. Unlike the other directors in the studio, Jones wanted to make cartoons that would rival the quality and tone to that of ones made by [[Walt Disney Animation Studios|Walt Disney Productions]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Chuck Jones {{!}} American animator {{!}} Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Chuck-Jones |access-date=December 25, 2021 |website=www.britannica.com |language=en}}</ref> However, his cartoons suffered from sluggish pacing and confusing gags, with Jones himself later describing his early conception of timing and dialog to have been "formed by watching the action in the [[La Brea Tar Pits]]".<ref>{{Cite book |last=Jones |first=Chuck |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NJzAdheaSc0C&dq=Not+only+Bugs+suffered+at+my+hands,+but+difficult+as+it+is+to+make+an+unassertive+character+like+Elmer+Fudd+into+a+flat,+complete+schmuck,+I+managed.&pg=PA197 |title=Chuck Amuck: The Life and Times of an Animated Cartoonist |date=1999 |publisher=Macmillan |isbn=978-0-374-52620-7 |language=en}}</ref> Schlesinger and the studio heads were unsatisfied with his Disney-esque style and demanded him make cartoons that were more funny.<ref>Chuck Jones: Extremes and In-betweens - A Life in Animation (PBS 2000)</ref> Jones began to change of directorial style starting with the 1942 short ''[[The Draft Horse]]'', but the cartoon that was generally considered his true turning point was [[The Dover Boys at Pimento University or The Rivals of Roquefort Hall|''The Dover Boys'']] later that year. The short became highly-regarded in recent years for its quick-timed gags and extensive use of [[limited animation]]. Despite this, Schlesinger and the studios heads were still dissatisfied and begun the process to fire him, but they were unable to find a replacement due to a labor shortage stemming from [[World War II]], so Jones kept his position. 

He was actively involved in efforts to unionize the staff of [[Warner Bros. Cartoons|Leon Schlesinger Studios]]. He was responsible for recruiting animators, layout men, and background people. Almost all animators joined, in reaction to salary cuts imposed by [[Leon Schlesinger]]. The [[Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer cartoon studio]] had already signed a union contract, encouraging their counterparts under Schlesinger.<ref name="Sigall">Sigall (2005), pp. 59–61</ref> In a meeting with his staff, Schlesinger talked for a few minutes, then turned over the meeting to his attorney. His insulting manner had a unifying effect on the staff. Jones gave a pep talk at the union headquarters. As negotiations broke down, the staff decided to go on strike. Schlesinger locked them out of the studio for a few days, before agreeing to sign the contract.<ref name="Sigall"/> A Labor-Management Committee was formed and Jones served as a moderator. Because of his role as a supervisor in the studio, he could not himself join the union.<ref name="Sigall"/> 

[[File:The Outpost.ogv|thumb|left|thumbtime=1:59|''Outpost'', a Private Snafu cartoon directed by Chuck Jones in 1944]]
During [[World War II]], Jones worked closely with Theodor Geisel, better known as [[Dr. Seuss]], to create the ''[[Private Snafu]]'' series of Army educational cartoons (the character was created by director [[Frank Capra]]). Jones later collaborated with Seuss on animated adaptations of Seuss' books, including ''[[How the Grinch Stole Christmas!]]'' in 1966. Jones directed such shorts as ''[[The Weakly Reporter]]'', a 1944 short that related to shortages and rationing on the home front. During the same year, he directed [[UPA Animation|UPA]]'s second short subject ''[[Hell-Bent for Election]]'', a propaganda campaign film for [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]].<ref name="imdb">{{IMDb name|0005062|Chuck Jones}}</ref> 

Jones created characters through the late 1930s, late 1940s, and the 1950s, which include his collaborative help in co-developing [[Bugs Bunny]] and also included creating [[Claude Cat]], [[Marc Antony and Pussyfoot]], [[Charlie Dog]], [[Michigan J. Frog]], [[Gossamer (Looney Tunes)|Gossamer]], and his four most popular creations, [[Marvin the Martian]], [[Pepé Le Pew]], [[Wile E. Coyote and the Road Runner]]. Jones and writer [[Michael Maltese]] collaborated on the Road Runner cartoons, ''[[Duck Amuck]]'', ''[[One Froggy Evening]]'', and ''[[What's Opera, Doc?]]''. Other staff at Unit A whom Jones collaborated with include layout artist, background designer, and co-director [[Maurice Noble]]; animator and co-director [[Abe Levitow]]; and animators [[Ken Harris]] and [[Ben Washam]].

Jones remained at Warner Bros. throughout the 1950s, except for a brief period in 1953 when Warner closed the animation studio. During this interim, Jones found employment at [[Walt Disney Animation Studios|Walt Disney Productions]], where he teamed with [[Ward Kimball]] for a four-month period. According to Kimball, Jones expected to work at Disney at a higher salary rate then at Warner Bros., but was instead employed at the same salary despite numerous negotiations with [[Walt Disney]]. Furthermore, Jones was not given any directorial assignments but was instead assigned to assists Kimball on the film [[Sleeping Beauty (1959 film)|''Sleeping Beauty'']] (1959),<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |title=Chuck Jones at Disney {{!}} |url=https://cartoonresearch.com/index.php/chuck-jones-at-disney/ |access-date=2025-03-24 |website=cartoonresearch.com}}</ref> which at the time was going through production delays. Upon Warner Bros. Cartoons reopening, Jones was rehired and reunited with most of his unit. Despite the unsatisfying tenure, Jones still holds the Disney studio to high regard, but later joked that the only job he wanted from Disney's was the position held by Walt.<ref name=":1" />

In the early 1960s, Jones and his wife Dorothy wrote the screenplay for the animated feature ''[[Gay Purr-ee]]''. The finished film featured the voices of [[Judy Garland]], [[Robert Goulet]] and [[Red Buttons]] as cats in Paris, France. The feature was produced by [[United Productions of America|UPA]] and directed by his former Warner Bros. collaborator, Abe Levitow. Jones moonlighted to work on the film since he had an exclusive contract with Warner Bros. UPA completed the film and made it available for distribution in 1962; it was picked up by Warner Bros. When Warner Bros. discovered that Jones had violated his exclusive contract with them, they terminated him.<ref name="endofstudio">Barrier, Michael (1999). ''Hollywood Cartoons''. New York: Oxford University Press. pp. 562–563; {{ISBN|0-19-516729-5}}</ref> Jones's former animation unit was laid off after completing the final cartoon in their pipeline, ''[[The Iceman Ducketh]]'', and the rest of the Warner Bros. Cartoons studio was closed in early 1963.<ref name="endofstudio" />