MASTER OF THE LAIR: DON BLUTH

[MattBrady]

With Dragon’s Lair coming out in August, Don Bluth is shortly going to be introduced to a new generation of fans, those who may not know if his nearly legendry past. Newsarama caught up with Bluth for a brief chat about Dragon’s Lair, animation, and dream projects, as well as a look at original Dragon’s Lair sketches.

For many, Bluth’s name is synonymous with animation. Perhaps one of the of the greatest animation pioneers of the 20th Century, Bluth cut his teeth at Walt Disney Studios, working on such animated classics as Robin Hood, The Rescuers, Winnie the Pooh and Tigger Too, and countless others, imbuing each with a certain feel that characterized the studio’s movies throughout the ‘70s. Bluth’s commitment to quality and entertainment set a bench mark for all animated movies that followed, as he opted not to use many of the animation shortcuts of the time, but rather make sure the extra work was done.

Bluth broke away from Disney in 1979 to form his own production studio with fellow animator Gary Goldman and several others, called Don Bluth Studios. There Bluth and his friends followed their own vision for animation, and created animated films such as The Secret of Nimh, An American Tail, All Dogs Go to Heaven, Anastasia, and more recently, Titan AE for Fox Studios.

While head of Don Bluth Studios in the ‘80s, Bluth, as leader of ‘The Bluth Group’ partnered with video game developer, Rick Dyer in 1983 to create the video game cult classic Dragon’s Lair. As anyone who had a quarter in their pocket around the time can tell you, the game was somewhere beyond innovative, foreshadowing full-motion video adventures as well as the branching and open-ended story style of gameplay (that is, more than one way to accomplish the goal of the game) that wouldn’t be full realized until the console and computer games of the late 20th century. Although they don’t look too similar, in a fashion, Dragon’s Lair could be considered Grand Theft Auto: Vice City’s grandfather.

In playing the game, the player entered an animated film, becoming the character, Dirk the Daring. Dragon’s Lair was followed by Space Ace, which featured similar gameplay and animation, but was set in space, rather than a fantasy setting.

Not content to rest on his laurels, Bluth has continued to push at the edges of the envelopes he sees and raise every bar he can get his hands on. We caught up with Don to talk ask him some questions about his about animation, and about the New Dragon’s Lair comic book series coming out this August produced in conjunction with MVCreations and CrossGen Comics.

Newsarama: First off, Don, when you were growing up, what prompted you to get into animation?

Don Bluth: Disney’s early pictures, what we now call the golden age of animation was my inspiration. Even from four years old, I was pulled towards the beauty of that art, but watching it was not enough - I wanted to get involved.

NRAMA: Were comic books a strong influence on your work growing up?

DB: Comic books were a huge influence in learning to draw. Basically, I copied characters long before I originated my own. I recommend it to any wannabe.

NRAMA: What was behind the creation of Dragon’s Lair? Were you looking to fully branch out into a new direction as a company?

DB: Dragon’s Lair was never intended to be a big hit, at least not in my head. We, at the studio were just having fun with the game while waiting for the next feature to be funded. Who knew? No one had planned it to be as big as it was.

NRAMA: Why did you choose to reintroduce the characters using the comic book format?

DB: The idea of re-introducing the Dragon’s Lair characters in the comic book format was Rick Dyer’s idea, mainly to create awareness to a new generation of the property for the release of the new 3D Dragon’s Lair game.

NRAMA: Are there any additional Dragon’s Lair video games in the works to follow up the newly released Dragon’s Lair 3D: Return to the Lair game?

DB: To my knowledge, the 3D Dragon’s Lair game is a once off thing. The jury is still out on a sequel.

NRAMA: What about further expansion of the property? Should we be expecting Dragon’s Lair to show up on the silver screen anytime soon?

DB: The Dragon’s Lair movie, so far, represents years of dreaming. The script is comedic and dramatic, but so far, we here at the studio are still in pre-production mode. We’ll see how it pans out. I’m optimistic.

NRAMA: What about you’re other animated properties like, American Tail and the Secret of NIMH? Is there anything in the works with those?

DB: Thanks for enquiring about NIMH, but no, no sequel is on the horizon. MGM tried one on their own, but it stumbled on several levels.

NRAMA: What would be the ultimate dream project you’d love to work on in the near future?

DB: I would love to write and direct a Secret of NIMH movie myself, but so far, no one’s buying the idea. That would be my dream project.

NRAMA: Any words of wisdom for any of those up-and-coming artists and animators out there?

DB: For all you wannabe’s even though the current popular style in animation is 3D, I advise you to: One, learn to draw; the discipline will translate into whatever modem you are hired to work in. And two, get a good liberal education so you find yourself flowing with your own ideas. Drawing is the gun; ideas are the bullets..

Newsarama thanks MV Creations for facilitating this interview.

Click on the thumbnails for larger versions.






For a preview of MV Creations' Dragon's Lair, click here.

[Richard Emms]

It's great to see Dragon's Lair and Space Ace finally getting a comic series - it's long overdue.

Bluth, in my eyes, is a great animator and probably one of the best - I personally had loads of fun playing the arcade games of the above named.

This to me is a great 80's revival and a great acknowledgment to one of the greatest commercial artists that ever lived.

Did you know you can buy the games on DVD? (DL 1, DL2 and SA)Well they're definitely out there! So go grab a copy!

I'm really looking forward to these books more than Transformers, Turtles etc... perhaps it was because I was a computer game junkie, rather than a square-eyed TV freak - but the summers have never been the same without Dragon's Lair and Space Ace. All I need now is a copy of the Lost Boys on DVD and I'm on my way to being 16 again!

Thanks CrossGen & Mr Bluth!

Richard
APComics.com

[Zadillo]

Regarding the Dragon's Lair movie..... I still can't help but think the ideal time to do that has passed.... I don't really understand why they didn't push through with making a Dragon's Lair movie back at the height of the popularity of the game..... seems like it could have been a huge success.

-Zadillo

P.S. Daphne still has great legs.

[Bklyn Artist]

I find it amazing that with all this talk about HULK being a bomb...being bad for future comic book movies...

we are now discussing something that honestly was a flash in the pan and people are wondering why it took so long! Why because poeple had a hard time seeing this as a profitable franchise...unless you wanna see...Land before time 17 (talk about bad and cheap animation)

First of all THIS was simply a fad, it never really became as popular as many other fads at the time. Don Bluth while a good annimator, for the most part never fully succeeded...escpecially where it counts, Artistically and financially. At least to my limited knowledge.

So the fact that he's FINALLY coming out with a comic book...honestly who cares. Just the die hard fans. And honestly how many are there!

Perhaps this will be the new HE-MAN or GI JOE or perhaps its another flash in the pan and the only people who will care again are the fans of this artist and his creation.

As for a movie...dont hold your breath, if you think HULK has limited appeal, wait till this comes out. Maybe if the DVD has the game included on it and you can play after watching the movie and/or parts of the movie are interactive (now that would be a blast)!!!

Anyway...I wont hold my breath! While waiting for this to pass till the next Spiderman film comes out, I'll watch Spiderman the movie, Dark City, & FIght CLub and enjoy myself...and not about things that do not really matter.

I think a better ting to waste our time and think about is if God forbid Another CARE BEARS flick will be coming out...because kiddies I've been hearing rumors!!!!

Neil

[Taylor Porter]

Originally posted by MattBrady
Bluth broke away from Disney in 1979 to form his own production studio with fellow animator Gary Goldman and several others, called Don Bluth Studios. There Bluth and his friends followed their own vision for animation, and created animated films such as The Secret of Nimh, An American Tail, All Dogs Go to Heaven, Anastasia, and more recently, Titan AE for Fox Studios.

The only one of those movies that I've seen is The Secret of Nimh, but I LOVE that movie. I loved it when I was a kid, but I've seen it recently and it still holds up. Truly great, and so much better than what Disney was capable of at the time.

[Peter David]

Originally posted by Bklyn Artist
:First of all THIS was simply a fad, it never really became as popular as many other fads at the time. Don Bluth while a good annimator, for the most part never fully succeeded...escpecially where it counts, Artistically and financially. At least to my limited knowledge.

So the fact that he's FINALLY coming out with a comic book...honestly who cares. Just the die hard fans. And honestly how many are there!

Yo. One over here.

I played Dragons Lair, Space Ace, Dragons Lair II. Beat them all. Currently going head to head with the evil wizard in the 3D game. Love the series, the characters. I'll be there buying the comic. Hell, I'd have *written* the comic if they'd asked me.

PAD

[Zadillo]

Originally posted by Peter David
Yo. One over here.

I played Dragons Lair, Space Ace, Dragons Lair II. Beat them all. Currently going head to head with the evil wizard in the 3D game. Love the series, the characters. I'll be there buying the comic. Hell, I'd have *written* the comic if they'd asked me.

PAD

Man..... I would totally buy a Peter David Space Ace comic.....

-Zadillo

[Kevin Peterson]

wow... sometimes you guys are brutal...

well, Bklyn Artist, just so you know most animation fans, like myself, consider Don Bluth to be an animation god. One of the best classic animation guys, period. But he is also the most underapreciated guy in animation...

Don Bluth is the first person to leave disney and go and make multiple successful animated movies...

Most people don't realize that An American Tail was, at the time, the most successful animated movie of all time. NOT the most successful non-disney movie, but the most successful animated movie, period.

oh and so people know, don bluth had nothing to do with any sequals to an american tail, secret of nimh, or the land before time, the only sequals he had anything to do with were Dragon's lair 2 and the anistasia sequal.

Alot of animation fans I know are excited about the Dragon's lair and Space ace comics...

OH! and don bluth fans be on the lookout for his upcoming series of animation books coming out later this year!

oh and animation fans, go see Sinbad.

[Bullwinkle]

Originally posted by Taylor Porter
The only one of those movies that I've seen is The Secret of Nimh, but I LOVE that movie. I loved it when I was a kid, but I've seen it recently and it still holds up. Truly great, and so much better than what Disney was capable of at the time.

Yes, The Secret of NIMH was/is fantastic!!!

I actually did an interview with Val Staples (of MVCreations) recently where I asked about the chances of a NIMH comic - check it out at http://www.shocktraumastudios.com/collectededition/

It makles sense to me that if Don wants to continue the NIMH story and the studios aren't biting then perhaps he should take the property straight to comics. Surely MV could accommodate him wanting to write and 'direct' his creation over there?! I'd definitely pay for, and be all over, that ....

So, hands up ..... Who wants a NIMH comic?! Let's start the chant ....

NIMH! NIMH!! NIMH!!!

- Chris

[Bullwinkle]

Originally posted by Peter David
Yo. One over here.

I played Dragons Lair, Space Ace, Dragons Lair II. Beat them all. Currently going head to head with the evil wizard in the 3D game. Love the series, the characters. I'll be there buying the comic. Hell, I'd have *written* the comic if they'd asked me.

PAD

Glad to hear it, PAD!

I'm kinda hoping that Val and co. read these posts because maybe, just maybe, they could line you up for the second mini or an ongoing. I'm sure that it would give them a boost to have you on board, and vice versa.

You've got my vote!

- Chris

P.S. How about co-writing a NIMH comic with Don Bluth?! Up for that?!

[mc (_(\/)_)achete]

Originally posted by Peter David
Yo. One over here.

I played Dragons Lair, Space Ace, Dragons Lair II. Beat them all. Currently going head to head with the evil wizard in the 3D game. Love the series, the characters. I'll be there buying the comic. Hell, I'd have *written* the comic if they'd asked me.

PAD

word!!!

well, i discovered the dragon's lair game once upon a time in spain, where I snuck into an arcade where you had to be 18 & over and played it before being kicked out. i will always remember being chased out and feeling blown away by the game i played.

anyway, the books look like fun. I may not be a die-hard fan, but i will be picking it up.

[Val]

I think reading PAD's posts is as close as I've ever gotten to meeting him.

Glad to hear there are Bluth fans out there!
Besides, I think there's plenty of room in this world for comics of all kinds... even if some think they are fads.

-Val

[Falkner]

Originally posted by MattBrady
As anyone who had a quarter in their pocket around the time can tell you...

A QUARTER? I seemed to remember being outraged that this game cost 50 cents. Please...don't tell me that I was being robbed at Showbiz Pizza.

[Zadillo]

Originally posted by Falkner
A QUARTER? I seemed to remember being outraged that this game cost 50 cents. Please...don't tell me that I was being robbed at Showbiz Pizza.

Hrmm, most arcades I saw this in also charged 50 cents... although I didn't feel robbed, considering what the game was.

Of course, now I go nuts if I ever walk into an arcade, where there are games that actually cost anywhere from $1.50 to $2.00 a GAME.

-Zadillo

[jawaplumber]

Originally posted by Peter David
Yo. One over here.

I played Dragons Lair, Space Ace, Dragons Lair II. Beat them all. Currently going head to head with the evil wizard in the 3D game. Love the series, the characters. I'll be there buying the comic. Hell, I'd have *written* the comic if they'd asked me.

PAD

Grrrr!!!! Peter, why do you have to say stuff like that?! Don't you know it's torture for us little fanboys? I think you'd be perfect for a Dragon's Lair series. And the next time we met at a con...as we did last Saturday at the NYC Sci-Fi/Fantasy show...I'd be sure to bring a copy for you to autograph, instead of coming empty-handed...as I did last Saturday at the NYC Sci-Fi/Fantasy show

[jawaplumber]

Originally posted by Zadillo
Hrmm, most arcades I saw this in also charged 50 cents... although I didn't feel robbed, considering what the game was.

Of course, now I go nuts if I ever walk into an arcade, where there are games that actually cost anywhere from $1.50 to $2.00 a GAME.

-Zadillo

I was lucky to even get within 5 feet of Dragon's Lair at the arcades I haunted, let alone pay any amount of money to play

[Alan Coil]

Bklyn Artist:

It's Spider-Man, not Spiderman.

[Redmond]

Don Bluth is far too awesome! I can hardly wait. Who gives a shit about fads, how timeless can you get. I've seen lot's of stuff from people who work for him and it all kicks-ass. Really, only art this good could make me buy some dungeon and dragons type stuff.

[Redmond]

Furthermore, I've known people who were completely blown away by secret of nimh, and a tpb of that kind of stuff would make some nice chrismas gift. It's about time that not only they make more comics to attract kids but comics for kids with high-quality art like this.

[Scavenger]

Just an aside, if you're a NIHM fan, you should check out the original book, Mrs. Brisby and the Rats of NIHM, which I recall liking much better than the movie (not that the movie didn't look great).....

[CoreyB]

Wow, way to go Newsarama, on getting an interview with Don Bluth!

A Secret of NIMH comic would be awesome!

That reminds me - is the movie available on DVD? I'd love to get a copy.

MyWords

[Zadillo]

Originally posted by MyWords
Wow, way to go Newsarama, on getting an interview with Don Bluth!

A Secret of NIMH comic would be awesome!

That reminds me - is the movie available on DVD? I'd love to get a copy.

MyWords

It looks like it was released on DVD in 2001.... amazon.com has it in stock, although some other places I checked did not, such as DVDplanet.

-Zadillo

[Brian Langlois]

Originally posted by MyWords
Wow, way to go Newsarama, on getting an interview with Don Bluth!

A Secret of NIMH comic would be awesome!

That reminds me - is the movie available on DVD? I'd love to get a copy.

MyWords

I picked one up at Wal-Mart a while back. It was really cheap too, maybe 8 or 9 bucks. It is Pan & Scan though, but I don't believe there is a widescreen version on DVD. I'ts a bare bones disc, but it looks pretty good. Good luck in finding one.

Oh, and Dragon's Lair is going to be awesome. I hope they can get that movie under way soon.

[CoreyB]

Too bad about the pan & scan, but it's good to know it's out there. Thanks, Zadillo and Brian!

MyWords
(let the hunt begin!)

[Elayne Riggs]

Originally posted by MattBrady
With Dragon’s Lair coming out in August, Don Bluth is shortly going to be introduced to a new generation of fans, those who may not know if his nearly legendry past.

Gad, I'm old. I remember hanging outside the old Thalia movie theatre back in the early '80s (before VCRs were big, before the Cartoon Network existed) during "Cartoozdays" when Jerry Beck would pamphlet the queue with his "Youth for Bluth" info sheets. I still can't hear the animator's name without shouting out "Youth for Bluth!"

- Elayne