Joseph Barbera
What the real world of 1941 needed most was the release and relief provided by laughter.
Joseph BarberaI first pitched the idea of doing a series of cartoons based on Bible stories. They didn't much like it.
Joseph BarberaLos Angeles was an impression of failure, of disappointment, of despair, and of oddly makeshift lives. This is California? I thought.
Joseph BarberaCreating fantasy is a very personal thing, but you can't take the process too personally.
Joseph BarberaExcept for me, no one in my family could draw.
Joseph BarberaAmong the great glories of the MGM lot were the vast outdoor sets that had been constructed over the years.
Joseph BarberaIn those days, boxing was very glamorous and romantic. You listened to fights on the radio, and a good announcer made it seem like a contest between gladiators.
Joseph BarberaI don't know that I spent any more time alone than any other kid, but being by myself never bothered me.
Joseph BarberaI cannot say who, precisely, came up with the idea of a Stone Age family.
Joseph BarberaI don't know anyone who enjoys going to the hospital. To help remedy this, I got an idea to create what a Laugh Room in the pediatric ward of hospitals.
Joseph BarberaDespite the rejection, and in violation of all the rules, I came back year after year.
Joseph BarberaTed Turner sailed into the meeting, and I mean sailed. He holds himself as if he were at the helm of his sailboat, in the process of winning the race.
Joseph BarberaParents look at me like I'm somebody pretty important, and say, We were raised on your characters, and now we're enjoying them all over again with our children.
Joseph BarberaFriends don't necessarily made good business or creative partners.
Joseph BarberaThat's what keeps me going: dreaming, inventing, then hoping and dreaming some more in order to keep dreaming.
Joseph BarberaNot once in six years did I make it to the office by 9 on the dot.
Joseph BarberaI have spent a lot of years on the outside looking in.
Joseph BarberaWhat about Mickey Mouse? Disney tried very hard to make him a star. But Mickey Mouse is more of a symbol than a real character.
Joseph BarberaI learned long ago to accept the fact that not everything I create will see the light of day.
Joseph BarberaI hope we don't get to the point where we have to have the cat stop chasing the mouse to teach him glassblowing and basket weaving.
Joseph BarberaI never got tired of Tom and Jerry, but I did have a dream of doing more with my life than making cartoons.
Joseph BarberaWhile I have never been a regular churchgoer, I'm anything but immune to the power and the majesty of the religious experience.
Joseph BarberaOne of the most attractive things about writing your autobiography is that you're not dead.
Joseph BarberaMy last days at MGM were like the fall of the Roman Empire in fast motion.
Joseph BarberaEveryone we saw agreed: Cartoons were just too expensive. We were out. And at 46, I was not eager to learn a new trade.
Joseph Barbera
