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Emily Laverne Harding (October 10, 1905 – September 25, 1984) was an American animator and cartoonist.

Early life

Harding was born on October 10, 1905, to Christians John B. Harding and Pearle W. Harding in Shreveport, Louisiana. Her family moved to Los Angeles in 1911. Harding attended the Chouinard Art Institute from 1930 to 1932. She was a member of the Delta Kappa Sorority and attended at social events.

Career

Harding, who worked for the Walter Lantz studio for much of her half-century career in animation, is among the earliest woman animators. She is also one of the few women to receive a Winsor McCay Award for lifetime achievement, one of the most prestigious awards in animation (only nine women have been recognized out of 161 awards given). She won this award in 1980.

Working for the Lantz studio from 1932 until 1960, Harding was particularly noted for her work on Woody Woodpecker cartoons; she designed the version of the character that was in use from 1950 to 1998. When Tex Avery offered her to go with him to Warner Bros. Cartoons, she refused. At first, she was an inker, but in 1934, she was ranked up to animator, and from 1940 to 1960, Harding was credited as such. From 1954 to 1955, Harding reunited with Avery to animate on his cartoons at Lantz. While working for the Lantz studios, Harding also drew a humorous newspaper strip, Cynical Susie, for United Feature Syndicate from 1932 to 1934. Cynical Susie revolved around the exploits of the titular heroine (a dwarf woman) and her pet cow, Lily Whey. After leaving Lantz, she animated for Hanna-Barbera cartoons such as Yogi Bear. She later worked for DePatie-Freleng Enterprises on Pink Panther cartoons, and was briefly employed at Warner Bros. and Filmation as well.

Death

Harding died in her home on September 25, 1984, in Los Angeles.

References

1. ^ Biography: Laverne Harding
2. ^ Klein, Tom. "LaVerne Harding: Drawing with Resolve".
3. "Winsor McCay Awards Website". Winsor McCay Awards Website. Archived from the original on July 12, 2015. Retrieved March 7, 2015.
4. Klein, Tom. "La Verne Harding: Hollywood in a '54 Red Mercury".
5. ^ "LaVerne Harding, the first and for many years the..." UPI.
6. "Woody and the Moon Missiles". October 15, 2016. Retrieved July 11, 2022.
7. Trina Robbins and Catherine Yronwode, Women and the Comics. New York, Eclipse Books, 1985. ISBN 9780913035023 (pp. 71-2).
8. Ron Goulart, The Funnies : 100 years of American comic strips.Holbrook, Mass. : Adams Pub., 1995. ISBN 1558505393. (p. 141)

External links

• Laverne Harding at IMDb
• Laverne Harding at Find a Grave

• 1905 births
• 1984 deaths
• American animators
• Artists from Louisiana
• American women animators
• 20th-century American women artists
• Hanna-Barbera people
• Warner Bros. Cartoons people
• Walter Lantz Productions people
• American comic strip cartoonists
• American female comics artists