Al Brodax

Veteran animation producer Al Brodax pulled off a remarkable coup not once, but twice, by getting the Beatles to participate in two animated projects: the critically decried "Beatles" (ABC, 1965-67) cartoon series and later, the cult favorite "Yellow Submarine" (1968). Born Albert Philip Brodax in Manhattan, New York, he was raised in Washington Heights and Brooklyn, where he attended school at Midwood High School. After graduation, Brodax enlisted in the Army and served in World War II, earning a Purple Heart, Bronze Star and Combat Medical Badge for his participation in the Battle of the Bulge. Upon returning to the United States, he received a bachelor's degree in English literature from the University of Wisconsin in 1948 and returned to New York City. There, he worked his way up from the mail room at the William Morris Agency to its program development department, where he was a key figure in the creation of "Your Show of Shows" (NBC, 1950-54) and "Omnibus" (CBS/ABC/NBC, 1952-1961). In 1960, Brodax became the head of King Features Syndicate's film and television development department, where he produced countless low-budget animated programs for children, including a revived "Popeye" (syndicated, 1961-62) series, "Cool McCool" (syndicated, 1966-69) with "Batman" co-creator Bob Kane, and "Casper the Friendly Ghost" (syndicated, 1963-64). In 1965, he sold the Beatles' manager, Brian Epstein, on the idea of an animated series featuring the band; "The Beatles" was a huge ratings hit for King Features, though the Beatles themselves were dismissive of the final product. Despite this, Brodax again approached Epstein about the idea of an animated project featuring the band, this time a feature film based on their 1966 single "Yellow Submarine." The offer this time was a win-win for everyone involved: the project would complete the Beatles' film contract with United Artists, and as an animated film, would require almost no participation by the band members beyond granting the rights to songs rejected from other projects. After hiring actors to provide the voices of the Beatles, Brodax, along with director George Dunning and Czech illustrator Heinz Edelmann, created a freewheeling fantasy-adventure indebted to Pop Art and the psychedelic movement of the period that also appealed to younger audiences. The resulting film was a success, not only with audiences, but also with the Beatles themselves, who shot a brief live-action coda with Brodax after screening the picture. Following the completion of "Yellow Submarine," Brodax completed his tenure with King by producing a short-lived, live-action version of the comic strip "Blondie" (1968-69) for CBS, and settled into work as a freelance producer/writer/director, collaborating with Marvel Comics and supervising animation on ABC's "Make a Wish" (1970-75), among other series. Brodax eventually penned a book about "Yellow Submarine" called Up Periscope Yellow in 2004, and oversaw his own television production company, Brodax Film Group. He died on November 24, 2016 in Danbury, Connecticut at the age of 90.