
I had just left Pixar after a four and a half year run and Steve Jobs and John Lassiter were trying to get me to come back. I was almost convinced this was true. Every day when I came in to work, they would leave me little notes like this:

I was touched by the outpouring of emotion.

And the sadness was just heartbreaking.

Then once I was ready to call Steve and John back, Disney security sent me this photo. Yes, folks, it was Floyd Norman, and once again, The Phantom strikes.

I had the pleasure of working with Floyd at Pixar on "Toy Story 2" and "Monsters Inc." Floyd is one of a kind. Disney's first black hire, a Disney legend and one of the best trench buddies you will ever have on any production. I should know because Mr. Norman and I pulled way too many late nights back at "the little studio that could" on Cutting Boulevard in Point Richmond.

We would seem to lapse into Benny and Rochester or the occasional Mantan-Charlie Chan routine, all the while scaring the PC-straights.

You couldn't help but laugh. We are funny guys.
Floyd told me a few very important things during our tenure together. One, it's all right to be white and like Mantan Moreland. The guy's a genius.
And two, "As you go through life, always remember: Rich people are funny."
He has made this way too clear in his "Faster! Cheaper!" books.

The three editions are full of sketches Floyd would leave all around the studio. A painfully funny look at living, dying and working in the animation industry.

If you have not seen these gems, pick one up. It's the God's honest truth about working in the animation business.

His website is a hoot too, full of pictures of him and his pals working at Disney in the '50s.

And the gag wall is just packed with cartoon goodness as well. No target is too big or too small when it comes to Mr. Norman, and if you're in charge of a studio, watch out!

I do love working with Mr. Fun, and I hope we get to do another project here very soon. But until then, I will keep a sharp eye out, because you never know when THE PHANTOM STRIKES!


















































