Today marks the 2nd Anniversary of the debut of my first history book- DRAWING THE LINE.

Edouard Meissonier


It was a labor of love over 5 years of writing, and I am grateful for all the help and good advice I got from other animation historians.

Although it never became a best seller ( and what animation labor-history ever does?), I expected by now DRAWING THE LINE would be out of print, or at least on the Books-for-a-Buck remainder table. But after two years it's still selling strong. I am honored by the reactions its received from the public and the critics.

The stories he tells are alternately heartbreaking and hilarious, infused with the irreverence that''s always characterized this field. Anyone with more than a passing interest in the world of animation should consider this book a must-read. -- Leonard Maltin (Leonard Maltin )

Drawing the Line contains the best account yet of the 1941 Walt Disney strike, with documentation of the union side. --London Review of Books (London Review of Books )

"Sito is at his best sorting through the issues arising from [the arrival of computers]. given that in a sense all cinema is animation, the demarcation and jurisdictional lines between special affects, digital artists (no more inkers and painters), various managers and supervisors became very complex indeed." (Rick Thompson Screening the Past)

"This is one of the most extraordinary 'insider' books ever written about Hollywood."-- Paul Buhle, Brown Univ

It was also selected for the prestigious List of Recommended Books by the Firestone School of Economics of Princeton University. And most importantly, I've been deeply moved by the thanks of families of many great animators like John Hubley, Dave Hilberman, Selby Kelly and more, for restoring a lost part of their ancestors story.

I am also happy that many understand the book's underlying message is that the battle between employee & employer in Hollywood is the same now, as it was in the era of Silent films. Workers rights and a living wage are as much a part of the film industries' story as the Hollywood Sign.

Thanks again for enjoying it. And if you haven't read it yet, you can still order from the links listed here. For anyone in animation, or a fan or serious about animation, it's not just stories about old artists. It's Your Story. It's Our Story.

Oh, and uh...I have two new book projects in the works, so you can expect to hear me annoying you about them in the near future.

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Quiz: How many capitol cities has the U.S. had?

Yesterday’s Quiz Answered below: Sara Palin, Keith Olberman, Bill O’ Reilly have been called demagogues. What is a demagogue?
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History for 10/6/2008
Birthdays: Alfred Lord Tennyson, Jenny Lind the Swedish Nightingale, George Westinghouse, Janet Gaynor, Carol Lombard, Karol Szymanowski, Thor Heyderthal, Bruno Sammartino, late Syrian President Hafez Al-Assad, Britt Eckland is 66, Le Corbusier, Elizabeth Shue is 45, Sean William Scott, Jeremy Sisto is 34, Ioan Gruffud

In Ireland this is Ivy Day, when Irish folk commemorate the death of the great statesman Charles Stuart Parnell with a sprig of ivy in their buttonholes.

1600- THE BIRTH OF OPERA. This day as part of the celebrations of the marriage of French King Henry IV to Marie de Medici composers Rinconcini and Caecini premiered a new kind of musical drama where soloists sang without the heavy polphony of madrigals but more directly in imitation of ancient dramas. It was “Eurydice” and it was the first true opera. The form was taken up by many composers including Claudio Monteverdi. But remember it ain’t over until the Fat Lady sings.

1802- The Heiligenstadt Testament- Composer Ludwig van Beethoven left behind a note found among his papers after his death in 1827. Dated this day it was addressed to his brother Karl and another unspecified relative. It was more of a spiritual Last Will than anything else. In the note Beethoven poured out of his heart confessing his faults and his fears of going deaf. It is an amazing insight into the great man’s soul.

1847- Charlotte Bronte's novel Jane Eyre first published.

1863- The first Turkish Bath House is opened in Brooklyn.

1863- The BAXTER SPRINGS MASSACRE- Quantrill’s Raiders bushwhacked Union General Blount’s personal entourage on the road and killed 86. It’s called a massacre rather than a battle, because most of the slain were noncombatant office staff trying to surrender. The heartless guerrillas even shot the regimental band. One union soldier with five bullets in him recalled before he lost consciousness, a large horseman standing over him gloating:” When you meet God, tell him the last thing you saw on Earth was Ol’ Billy Quantrill!”

1880- First classes at University of Southern California or USC. In 1921 the Trojans started the earliest university film school with endowments from Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks. Alumni include George Lucas, Ron Howard, Will Ferrel and Robert Zemeckis.

1889- Paris' naughty nightclub the Moulin Rouge opened.

1903-Dr Horatio Nelson Jackson, the Great Automobilist, first man to cross the United States by car, was given a speeding ticket in his home town of Burlington, Vermont. He was accused of going at reckless speeds of up to six miles an hour!

1927-"THE JAZZ SINGER"with Al Jolson debuts. Okay, Okay, Somebody made a sound picture in 1924 and also something called "Footlights of New York" from 1926 but hey, you know what?- who cares! THIS was the movie that made "Talkies" a reality. The premiere was also the occasion for Sid Grauman to throw the first big Hollywood premiere at the Grauman’s Chinese Theater with limos and red carpets and spotlights.

1942-THE BIRTHDAY OF WONDER WOMAN. William Moulton Marston was an educational consultant in 1940 for Detective Comics wondered why there was not a female hero. Max Gaines, then head of DC Comics, was intrigued by the concept and told Marston that he could create a female comic book hero - a "Wonder Woman." In a 1943 issue of The American Scholar, Marston said: 'Not even girls want to be girls so long as our feminine archetype lacks force, strength, and power, Not wanting to be girls, they don't want to be tender, submissive, peace-loving as good women are. Women's strong qualities have become despised because of their weakness. The obvious remedy is to create a feminine character with all the strength of Superman plus all the allure of a good and beautiful woman.'

1959- “Pillow Talk”premiered, the first romantic comedy pairing Doris Day and Rock Hudson. Stanley Shapiro won a best screenplay Oscar for it. The film typified the wink-wink attitude about sex before the 1960’s Sexual Revolution and defined Doris Day’s reputation as the wholesome, girl-next-door archetype. Oscar Levant quipped: “I knew Doris Day before she was a virgin.”

1966- California became the first state to officially declare LSD illegal. Hippies in San Francisco celebrate by rallying in Golden Gate Park in the thousands, and all taking a tab together.

1971- William Freidkin’s gritty cop movie the FRENCH CONNECTION premiered. The film won best picture, director and actor Oscars, made a major star out of Gene Hackman. One unforeseen result was the movie stimulated interest in pursuing the investigation of the real French-Corsican Mafia heroin trafficking in the US. That mob was soon broken up. The two real life detectives the film was based on- Eddie Egan and Sonny Corso, booth retired from the NYPD and pursued careers in show biz.

1973- THE OCTOBER WAR or THE YOM KIPPUR WAR. Egypt and Syria surprised attacked Israel on the holiest religious holiday of the Jewish calendar. They also achieved surprise by attacking at 2:00 in the afternoon instead of dawn. The Sinai and Golan Heights saw some of the largest tank battles since World War Two.

1981- Egyptian President Anwar El Sadat was assassinated while viewing parade marking Yom Kippur War anniversary. Commandos hopped out of the back of a troop carrier and blew him away with machine guns. Almost killed next to him was the current President of Egypt, Hosni Mubarak. One of those arrested was Alman Al Zawahiri, who today is the little guy with the glasses standing next to Osama Ben Laden.

1991- University of Oklahoma Professor Anita Hill testified at the Senate confirmation hearings for Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas. She alleged that when she was his aide she was subject to constant sexual harassment. Her testimony was labeled by Judge Thomas a "symbolic lynching". Thomas' conservative backers countered with a furious media campaign. Despite her impeccable credentials as a Christian scholar, they portrayed Prof Hill as a paranoid slut. Those involved in the smear campaign admitted later most of it was fabricated. Clarence Thomas was confirmed, but the controversy made Sexual Harassment a national issue.

2002- The Mayor of Paris Deloune was stabbed in the stomach at an all night rock concert.
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Yesterday’s Quiz: Sara Palin, Keith Olberman, Bill O’ Reilly have been called demagogues. What is a demagogue?

Answer: A speaker who manipulates the passions of the mob using his charisma and appealing to their fears and prejudices. From the Greek Demos, people and gogue- leader.