‘Roger Rabbit’ creator on display in hometown of Earlville

The Earlville Community Historical Society not only is displaying framed art pieces from Gary Wolf, local writer of "Who Censored Roger Rabbit?" — more commonly known from the major motion hit movie, "Who Framed Roger Rabbit?" — but also is putting on an exhibit solely dedicated to the hometown success story "legend."

The exhibit will run through July — weekends 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturdays and noon to 2 p.m. Sundays, or by appointment, and is expected to be especially popular during the annual Earlville High School reunion, taking place Saturday, June 10.

Visitors can expect to see many items from Wolf's repertoire including movie posters, billboards and other items.

Society representative Kris Goodbred described the memorabilia on display.

"Items on display include comic books, posters, cardboard display items that were used in theaters to advertise the movie, items related to the opening of ToonTown at Disneyland, a book of Roger Rabbit artwork that became part of the Sotheby's collection and a Jessica Rabbit doll," she said.

Loyal to his hometown, Wolf donated items for the event.

Wolf is busy lecturing about animation and movie-making, writing, etc., and currently touring in Japan to teach students there about American animation and movie-making, "versus the popular Anime taught there," he said.

"Of course I love to give back," he said. "Earlville is where I grew up and I have great memories there. It's a great little town and I appreciate the people there remembering me as well."

When The Times spoke with Wolf seven years ago, he explained his propensity toward creativity.

"In fourth grade, Wolf and his classmates were asked to write about their summer vacations. When Wolf wrote of a trip to the moon he and his family took, his teacher was a bit shocked by his out-of-this-world essay, but convinced him to pursue his creativity nonetheless. Wolf’s mother, a much-loved cafeteria worker at the school, told him also that if he wanted to get out of a small town and 'be something,' he should read everything he could get his hands on.

And so he did. Wolf read books, magazines and comics and watched silent cartoons and movies — anything he could do to experience creativity and fantasy.

“I had no siblings. I had only 24 classmates in the whole school and most of them lived in the country, so I had nobody to play with," Wolf said. "Forced me to invent my own fun.”

Hence, the early conception of a cartoon rabbit that found its way into the human world.

History of the Wolf and the Rabbit in Earlville
(The following is what the ECHS is providing to visitors of the exhibit:)
"Gary K. Wolf was born in 1941, the son of Ed and Hattie Wolf. He grew up on the north side of Earlville, Illinois. His dad owned the town's pool hall and later had an upholstering business. Hattie worked in the school cafeteria.
Anybody who knows Ed and Hattie knows that a child could not have had better parents. They gave Gary the greatest gift two people can offer a child. From his earliest childhood they encouraged him to believe in himself, in his visions and in his creative talent. They also encouraged him to read, which he did – primarily comic books which he bought by the armload at Andy Giles corner store.
Gary remembers his time growing up in Earlville with great fondness. "You knew everybody," he says, "and everybody knew you. There was a real sense of community. People helped and supported each other. Plus, with so few kids in school, even a wimp like me could make the football team, something that never would have happened had I grown up in Chicago."
Gary graduated from Earlville High School in 1959 and furthered his education at the University of Illinois where he earned Bachelor's and Master's Degrees in advertising and communications. He served as an Air Commando in the Vietnam War winning two Air Medals and the Bronze Star.
In 1980, Gary had already written three acclaimed science fiction novels. He was looking for a concept for his next novel. He was watching Saturday morning cartoons ("purely for research," he told his wife.) He describes his inspiration. "During the commercials. I saw Tony the Tiger and the Trix Rabbit, and Cap'n Crunch, and Snap, Crackle and Pop, cartoon characters, talking to real people. And nobody thought that was odd. I said to myself, 'What a great idea for a novel. A place where Toons lived side by side with humans.'" Out of this insight came Who Censored Roger Rabbit?
Getting the novel published proved difficult. "Publishers told me it was too esoteric. Too weird. Nobody would understand it," Wolf explains. Along the way, the novel was rejected 110 times. A small publisher finally brought it out in a limited quantity. In 1981 Walt Disney bought the film rights and teamed up with Steven Spielberg to make Who Framed Roger Rabbit.
The film stars Bob Hoskins, Christopher Lloyd, Charles Fleischer, Stubby Kay, and Joanna Cassidy, and Kathleen Turner. It was directed by Robert Zemeckis. Set in Hollywood in the 1940s, the film combines live-action and animation.
Who Framed Roger Rabbit became the most critically acclaimed and highest-grossing film of 1988, bringing in more than $950 million at the box office, winning four Academy Awards, and the prestigious science fiction Hugo award for Gary.
Gary's novel has gone through 16 printings in paperback.
Gary is credited with being the primary inspiration for the modern-day resurgence of movie animation.
In addition to "Who Censored Roger Rabbit," Wolf's works include:
Novels:
"Who Wacked Roger Rabbit?"
"Typical Day"
"The Late Great Show"
'Space Vulture" (written with Archbishop John J. Myers from Earlville)
"Carousel Animals: Artistry in Motion"
"Who P-P-P Plugged Roger Rabbit?"
"The Resurrectionist"
"A Generation Removed"
"Killerbowl"
"The Road To Toontown," as well as numerous short stories, screen plays, television series and magazine articles."

Wolf continues to be a full-time author, screenwriter and lecturer. He lives in Boston with his wife, Bonnie, and their two cats.

For more about Gary K. Wolf, visit garywolf.com or visit the Earlville Historical Museum at 136 S. Ottawa St., Earlville; earlvillehistory.org.