Michael Maltese began his career in animation as a cel painter at
Fleischer Studios in 1935. A year later, he was fired for quickly moving himself up position after being promoted to an assistant animator. After a brief stint at the Jam Handy Organization, Maltese was hired by
Leon Schlesinger Productions in April 1937 as an in-betweener, and later a storyman due to everyone laughing at his jokes. Maltese was also the voice of the
Lou Costello-esque character in
Wackiki Wabbit (1943) and the
Benito Mussolini duck in
The Ducktators (1942). Some of his earlier works include
The Wabbit Who Came to Supper and
Fresh Hare,
Hare Trigger (which introduced
Yosemite Sam) and
Baseball Bugs for Freleng and
Bear Feat,
Rabbit of Seville,
A Pest in the House, and
Rabbit Fire for Jones. Some of his best-known cartoons are
Feed the Kitty,
Beep, Beep,
Rabbit Seasoning, ''
Don't Give Up the Sheep, Duck Amuck, Bully for Bugs, Bewitched Bunny, From A to Z-Z-Z-Z, and Beanstalk Bunny, all of which were directed by Jones. He also wrote One Froggy Evening'', the first appearance of future Warner Brothers mascot
Michigan J. Frog. Some of his later Warner cartoons included
Ali Baba Bunny,
Robin Hood Daffy, the seminal ''
What's Opera, Doc? and Duck Dodgers in the 24½th Century for Jones, Rabbit Romeo and Fox-Terror for Robert McKimson and Person to Bunny (the final occasion Arthur Q. Bryan voiced Elmer Fudd) and Here Today, Gone Tamale'' (the only
Speedy Gonzales cartoon he ever wrote) for Freleng. Following the shuttering of Jones's unit in 1953 (at the height of the 3-D craze), Maltese was hired by
Walter Lantz Productions as writer of some
Woody Woodpecker cartoons:
Helter Shelter,
Witch Crafty (co-written with
Homer Brightman),
Real Gone Woody, ''
Square Shootin' Square and Bedtime Bedlam''. He also is the writer of
Chilly Willy's
Academy Award-nominated theatrical short
The Legend of Rockabye Point, directed by fellow Warner alumnus
Tex Avery. Jones's unit would be resurrected early in 1954, with Maltese departing Lantz to rejoin his longtime collaborator several months afterwards; Maltese's first post-shutdown Warner credits by release would be on
Rocket-Bye Baby and
Gee Whiz-z-z-z-z-z-z, a
Wile E. Coyote/Road Runner short. Maltese departed Jones's unit for the second and final time in 1958, with his final credit appearing on 1961's
The Mouse on 57th Street. From 1958 until 1972, he worked at
Hanna-Barbera Productions on television cartoons such as
The Yogi Bear Show,
The Quick Draw McGraw Show,
The Flintstones, and
Wacky Races. He wrote for a total of 200 storyboards for Hanna-Barbera. He briefly worked with Jones at Sib-Tower 12 Productions on writing
Tom and Jerry shorts from 1963 to 1965. Maltese also wrote
comic books published by
Western Publishing, including for many of the Warner Brothers and Hanna-Barbera characters whose animated exploits he scripted. == Death ==