{"id":115579,"date":"2022-08-05T15:42:57","date_gmt":"2022-08-05T14:42:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/centmagazine.co.uk\/?p=115579"},"modified":"2022-08-05T15:43:00","modified_gmt":"2022-08-05T14:43:00","slug":"you-cant-spell-classic-without-rubber-hose","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/staging.centmagazine.co.uk\/?p=115579","title":{"rendered":"You Can’t Spell Classic Without Rubber Hose"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Even if you\u2019ve never heard of \u201crubber hose animation\u201d you would probably recognize it if you saw it. Picture a cartoon character in black and white with white gloves and skinny, extendable spaghetti limbs that look similar to a rubber hose. This animation style carries a retro and old-timey aesthetic now, but was incredibly advanced when it dominated animation in the 1920s. Yet why did rubber hose go out of style, and is it coming back? Read You Can’t Spell Classic Without Rubber Hose<\/em> to find out!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Side image by That Irish Historian<\/a> from Wikimedia Commons<\/a> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Featured image by wiredforlego<\/a> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the early 1920s, animation was in its infancy. There was no rulebook for how to animate, and most animators were skilled comic artists intrigued with the medium and testing what could and could not be done. Out of this age of trial and error, rubber hose emerged.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Image by Clker-Free-Vector-<\/a> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The style of rubber hose animation was not so much a personal design choice as it was a matter of convenience. Due to the cartoon characters having to be drawn over and over again to produce the appearance of movement, a character\u2019s design had to strike a balance between being simple enough to redraw quickly but advanced enough to look alive. Even the iconic white gloves commonly worn by characters like Micky Mouse were done so that the hands could be seen against a character\u2019s black body.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The characters of the rubber hose era lived in a world unmarred by reality’s rules and fully embraced the wildness that could only come from one’s imagination and a skilled pen. Not tied down by physics, characters could bend and stretch their limbs with ease for comedy. In rubber hose, the popular character Felix the Cat could use his tail as a water pipe to put out fire in a burning building. Kitchen appliances could come to life and walls could swallow keys. Anything was possible. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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