Rolie Polie Olie did not begin as a television show on the Disney channel but as this painting. I’d been drawing a robot family for a while but with no real story or direction. Then I was seized one day by a very simple idea: what if “Leave It to Beaver” were done with robots? What if I reimagined the 1950’s sitcom optimism with cheerful machines? Blue skies, picket fences and robots-where your house, your car, your bed, your swing set, your refrigerator were all joyfully alive. By circumstances peculiar and kismetian the Canadian animation company Nelvana did a test animation in 1997. They gave me complete control over every aspect. I chose music from the 1930s “Little Rascals” shorts. I wanted the show to be about kindness, simplicity, innocence, and imagination. I wanted the episodes to dramatize all the goofiest and most daft daydreams of childhood. What if gravity got tired and stopped working for a day? What if your house got a cold? What if you jumped so high on your trampoline you went into outer space? The Disney Channel agreed. We did the show for 7 years. I designed every rivet and plotted out every one of the 170 episodes. I even wrote the theme song. But I also had an extraordinary group of collaborators. People who were devoted to the vision. It was among the best creative experiences of of my life. Disney gave us almost complete control for no other reason than they trusted the vision. The show had an impact. There were toys and books and hilariously bad Halloween costumes. Olie and my family were even invited to the White House. Now when I go to book signings I’m greeted by people in their 20s who watched the show when they were kids. They gleefully sing the show’s theme song to me. I hear from artists like @friendswithyou that Olie was a big influence on them. It is an unexpected treasure. Kindness, imagination and innocence still matter. We are working to bring it back. Happy Sunday . . . . . . #illustrationart #kidslit #kidsillustration #librariansofinstagram #robotsketch #roliepolieolie #blueskiesandrobots #animationart #animation3d #disneyanimation #nelvanastudios # https://www.instagram.com/p/ByfZX_Plp4q/?igshid=17v6hsxtikllc
