Above is the very first Felix the Cat cartoon from 1919 called Feline Follies…but he wasn’t Felix yet, he was “Master Tom”. Don’t worry about the ending, he’s got nine lives!
Below is a Fleischer cartoon from the same year called The Tantalizing Fly featuring none other than Max Fleischer and, of course, Koko the Clown who is a rotoscopeified Dave Fleischer in a clown costume.
For great quality versions of both these cartoons pick up the first volume of Popeye cartoons on DVD which also includes a great documentary on the birth of the animation industry. I got my copy for five bucks from Amazon! You can’t beat that!
And just to give you the full 1919 theater experience ( this film started filming in 1919 and was released in 1920 ) here’s The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari!
B. Stone
