Pegbar Profile: George Manuell

 

Caricature of George Manuell by T. Hee, circa 1930s.  

Image courtesy: Bonhams Auctions.

 

George Francis Manuell was born in Renton, Washington, on August 7, 1909, as the second child to John Joseph Manuell and Annie McKay; George’s father hailed from Departure Bay in British Columbia, while his mother was Scottish-born.1 George’s family, including his older brother John W., moved away from Renton to California, settling in San Joaquin County before his first birthday.2 By late 1918, the Manuells had relocated to Los Angeles.

 

1918 draft registration card of John J. Manuell, George's father.

 

George attended Garfield School in Pasadena as a teenager, as reported in The Pasadena Post.

 

The Pasadena Post, June 14, 1923.

George drew at least one known cartoon for “The Junior Times,” the Los Angeles Times’ avenue for aspiring young cartoonists—many of whom went into the animation business—published on December 13, 1925. (George's signature is shown in the second panel.)

The 1927 and 1928 Alhambra directories indicate that he worked as a laborer, though no company or business was specified.3

According to the 1930 Los Angeles Census, George took a job as a librarian for a newspaper. (The 1930 Alhambra city directory, however, lists his occupation as a clerk.)4

It is still undetermined when Manuell entered the animation business, but speculation points to approximately 1933. Al Eugster stated in a 1978 interview that George was one of the lead writers at Ub Iwerks’s studio—there, George worked on stories with Otto Englander and Ben Hardaway.5 (George is shown seated for an Iwerks staff photo, circa 1934, on the left.)  

 

George had moved to Walt Disney’s studio as a storyman by the fall of 1934. Archival evidence unearthed by David Gerstein and JB Kaufman revealed that George helmed two story ideas that were never produced beyond early development: “Hillbilly Mickey” and “School Days”—the latter’s outline cast Mickey and the gang as unruly schoolboys!6

George married Olga Jane Winters, a stenographer for Barker Bros., on September 4, 1936.

 

 

Around 1937, George was hired at Leon Schlesinger Productions as a writer, where he received screen credit on at least five cartoons: Porky’s Double Trouble (Tashlin, 1937), Jungle Jitters (Freleng, 1938), The Isle of Pingo Pongo (Avery, 1938), Porky’s Spring Planting (Tashlin, 1938), and Wholly Smoke (Tashlin, 1938). 

 

 

George migrated to Miami to work as a writer at Max Fleischer’s new animation building, following Schlesinger storymen Tedd Pierce and Cal Howard. Among George’s story credits was a trio of Popeye cartoons where the Sailor co-starred with his ornery father Poopdeck Pappy: With Poopdeck Pappy (1940), Child Psykolojiky (1941), and Pest Pilot (1941).

 

Shortly after the release of Gulliver’s Travels, Max Fleischer made cutbacks in personnel. George was laid off from Fleischer’s on February 8, 1940.7 He returned back to Los Angeles.

The 1940 Los Angeles Census lists George’s occupation as a “cartoonist.” His draft registration card, dated October 1940, stated that he worked for The Los Angeles Times, presumably in the same capacity. (The 1942 Los Angeles city directory also lists George as a cartoonist.)8

 

George then became an aircraft worker for the war effort, as his occupation is listed here in the 1944 Arcadia city directory. 

 

 

George and his wife Olga also welcomed their daughter, Sherry Fay, on January 4, 1944.9

In March 1946, The Pasadena Independent reported that George had formed a business, Manuell Arts Advertising Agency.

Later, an August edition noted of George’s participation in the Pasadena Advertising Club. 

Pasadena Independent, Aug. 21, 1946.

By 1950, George used his artistry for Rexall Drug Store, a job he held for at least eight years.10

In 1958, George was hired as a coordinator for Lockheed Aircraft Missiles in Los Gatos.11 He passed away on October 19 that same year in Santa Clara, at age 49.

 

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1. George Francis Manuell, Washington, US Birth Records, 1907-1920. Courtesy: Ancestry.

2. 1910 US Federal Census, San Joaquin (Douglas Township), enumeration district no. 117, lines 91-94. 

3. 1927 Alhambra, California City Directory, p. 191. 1928 Alhambra, California City Directory, p. 196. Courtesy: Ancestry.

4. 1930 US Federal Census, Los Angeles (Alhambra), enumeration district no. 19-1412, lines 47-50. 1930 Alhambra City Directory, p. 201. Courtesy: Ancestry. 

5. Al Eugster, interview with Michael Barrier, March 17, 1978. Unpublished

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6. David Gerstein and J. B. Kaufman, Mickey Mouse: The Ultimate History (Taschen, 2018), pp. 287-289.

7. Al Eugster’s Journal, 1939-1942. Courtesy: Mark Mayerson. Unpublished. 

8. 1940 US Federal Census, Los Angeles, enumeration district no. 60-703, lines 5358. Courtesy: Ancestry. 1942 Los Angeles City Directory. Geo. F. Manuell, US City and Business Directories, ca. 1749-1990. Courtesy: FamilySearch. 

9. Sherry Fay Manuell, California Birth Index, 1905-1995. Courtesy: FamilySearch.

10. 1950 US Federal Census, Los Angeles (Arcadia), enumeration district 19-1204, lines 22-24. Courtesy: Ancestry. 1952 Monrovia City Diretory, p. 313; 1953 Monrovia City Directory, p. 532; 1955 Arcadia City Directory, p. 483.

11. 1958 Los Gatos City Directory, p. 344.