Three Fingers

(W/A) Rich Koslowski
Through a series of never-before-seen interviews and rare photos, documentary-maker Rich Koslowski reveals the horrifying true story behind the Cartoon industry and our most celebrated cartoon actors - the story that Hollywood doesn't want you to see.. Told in the style of a Ken Burns documentary, with interviews of 'toon stars today as well as historical "file footage" of the "early years," you will forever rethink those beloved characters in the white gloves.

Unlike Koslowski's Eisner-nominated Geeksville series, this work takes a more realistically drawn, documentary-style approach to its story of an alternate world where cartoons exist alongside humans, albeit as second-class citizens. Mimicking a television expos‚'s hyperbolic format, Koslowski alternates confessional head shots of interviewees with "archival" stills that narrate the history of toons in film. Koslowski began in animation, and its influence is visible in his ability to capture finely shifting facial expressions and in his preoccupation with animated cartoons. Dizzy Walters, a visionary figure strangely reminiscent of Walt Disney, has founded an entertainment empire on the charisma of his formerly down-and-out toon prot‚g‚, Ricky Rat. But lurking beneath this rag-to-riches story are rumors of a nasty "ritual," a surgical enhancement many toons are desperate to have done hence the book's title with the implicit demand of studio executives. The pressure has driven Ricky to depression and a bad cigarette habit. The ensuing mockumentary offers testimony from Ricky's peers on the vile practice: toons such as Buggy Bunny and Sly Vester Jr. sound off on the "ritual," and celebrities come out strongly against it. Koslowski even suggests the ritual could be behind many of the notorious assassinations and deaths during the 1960s and '70s. Disappointingly, though, the ritual itself turns out to be a letdown. It's a clever tool, but is essentially a passing joke that lacks literary payoff or power. By the book's end, the earlier chapters' tension and inventiveness have petered out. Still, much like a good TV show, when it works, the audience really does want to stay tuned
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

Roger Rabbit meets Behind the Music in this graphic novel that uses interviews and historical "photos" to reveal the sordid truth behind the rise of anthropomorphic animal stars in Hollywood's golden age. The focal character is Rickey Rat, whom filmmaker Dizzy Walters discovered in a seedy nightclub in the segregated part of Columbus, Ohio, known as Toonsville. Rickey's rise to fame should have opened the door to other toon stars, but for some reason audiences resisted those who tried to follow in his footprints. Desperate to emulate his success, toon actors even began copying the birth defect that left him with only three fingers by means of a surgical mutilation that came to be known as "the ritual." The premise is clever, and Koslowski executes it skillfully, placing the toon characters in a world quite recognizable as our own. Even if there isn't much here beyond that premise, it is great fun to see stars like "Buggy Bunny," "Portly Pig," and "Dapper Duck" blow the lid off Toonsville in this comic a clef. Gordon Flagg
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