DePatie-Freleng Enterprises



David Hudson DePatie and Isidore "Friz" Freleng founded this animation studio in 1963 after Warner Bros shut down their animation department. Their first collaboration was the opening titles to Blake Edwards' comedy-mystery The Pink Panther. The Pink Panther character later starred in a long-running series of short theatrical cartoons released by United Artists (which also released the film), most of which were No Dialogue Episodes. Other theatrical series included The Inspector, Roland and Rattfink, The Ant and The Aardvark, Tijuana Toads, Hoot Kloot and The Dogfather, all of which are also released by UA. They also produced new Looney Tunes shorts from 1963-1967, with the majority of them (at least not the ones outsourced to Format Films) directed by WB veteran Robert McKimson.

DePatie and Freleng also produced several Animated Shows for television, including Here Comes the Grump, Baileys Comets, The Houndcats, The Super 6, Super President, Baggypants And The Nitwits, The Oddball Couple and the 1978 version of The Fantastic Four. Their biggest success in TV, however, would come after DFE was sold to Marvel Comics after Freleng retired; renamed Marvel Productions Ltd., the studio produced some of the most famous animated shows of The Eighties, including The Transformers, the first few series of G.I. Joe, and Muppet Babies, as well as a considerable amount of Marvel superhero programs.

One of the company's animators (Nelson Shin) was also the creator of the Star Wars Lightsaber effect and founder of AKOM, and lord knows how they've been treated.