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Carl Macek

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Carl Macek
BornCarl Frank Macek
(1951-09-21)September 21, 1951
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, U.S.
DiedApril 17, 2010(2010-04-17) (aged 58)
Topanga, California, U.S.
OccupationVoice actor, screenwriter, script editor, director, casting director, dialogue director, voice director, storyboard artist, producer
NationalityAmerican
Alma materCal State Fullerton
Period1979–2006
Notable works
Spouse
Svea Macek
​
(m. 1981)​
Website
www.carlmacek.com

Carl Frank Macek (September 21, 1951 – April 17, 2010) was an American screenwriter, script editor, voice actor, director, casting director, dialogue and voice director, storyboard artist and producer on numerous English language adaptations of anime during the 1980s and 1990s. His work is considered by many to have been instrumental in creating mainstream awareness of Japanese animation in the United States.[2][3]

Career

Robotech and Harmony Gold USA

Macek came to public attention in 1985 as the producer and story editor of the influential animated television series Robotech, which he produced for Harmony Gold USA.[4] Robotech is considered one of the titles most responsible for igniting anime fandom in North America and internationally.[5] Macek intended to produce a sequel to Robotech, Robotech II: The Sentinels, but this project was canceled. While at Harmony Gold, Macek also produced the little-known, rarely-seen Captain Harlock and the Queen of a Thousand Years (which combines the almost-unrelated stories of Space Pirate Captain Harlock and Queen Millennia).[6][7]

Later career

Macek went on to co-found (with Jerry Beck) Streamline Pictures in 1988.[8][9] Joining him were writers who had worked with him on Robotech, most notably, Steve Kramer, Tom Wyner, Gregory Snegoff, and Ardwight Chamberlain, each of whom are also experienced voice actors. Streamline Pictures was one of the first American companies to successfully deal in the regular production of imported Japanese animation.[10] Among the titles released by Streamline are Lensman, Robot Carnival, Doomed Megalopolis, Twilight of the Cockroaches, Crying Freeman, Wicked City, the Fist of the North Star film, Akira, Lupin III: Mystery of Mamo as well as the original English dub versions of Hayao Miyazaki's Lupin III: Castle of Cagliostro, Laputa: Castle in the Sky, My Neighbor Totoro, and Kiki's Delivery Service. As of 1993, Streamline Pictures distributed their anime through Orion Pictures and was eventually purchased by Orion in 1996. Both companies shut themselves down, but Orion was resurrected for television in 2013 and as a whole in 2014, all by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, while Streamline stays defunct.

He was working as a scriptwriter for the English dub of Naruto and Bleach for Viz Media, and consulting for Harmony Gold on Robotech: The Shadow Chronicles before his death.[11]

Other works

Macek was a co-editor of McGill's Survey of the Cinema and Film Noir—An Encyclopedic Reference to the American Style (1979). He authored The Art of Heavy Metal: Animation for the Eighties and Robotech Art 3: The Sentinels in which he chronicles in detail the conception and what went wrong during the production of the latter aborted animated series. He also worked as a scriptwriter for the animated series C.O.P.S., was the executive consultant for the animated film Heavy Metal 2000, and wrote the animated adaptation of Brian Pulido's Lady Death.[12]

Macek adapted the treatment by Merian C. Cooper (the producer of King Kong) for the unproduced film project War Eagles into a novel and screenplay in 2008. The book was published in the summer of 2008 by Angelgate Press.

Legacy in anime

Macek became one of the most controversial figures amongst English anime fandom.[13] Streamline Pictures-dubbed anime were among the first to be available on home video as well as broadcast on cable.[14] Over the years, he has seen his share of detractors and proponents, for while he did help to bring Japanese animation titles and series to the United States, his edits, re-rewrites and mash-ups (particularly The Robotech Saga) angered many fans of the original titles and series. To this day, anime fans still remained divided between appreciation and scorn for his work.[15]

Death

Jerry Beck, one of Macek's former business partners, revealed that Macek died of a heart attack on Saturday, April 17, 2010.[9][16] Barely three months before his sudden death, Macek recorded a lengthy two-and-a-half-hour podcast interview with Anime News Network, offering an extensive retrospective on his entire career.[17]

His brief obituary in the Los Angeles Times reported the place of death as Topanga Canyon.[3] The obituary shows a picture of him surrounded by several Robotech characters from all three series.

Biography documentary film

After his death, a short documentary, Carl Macek's Robotech Universe, was produced.[18][19]

References

  1. ^ "PASSINGS: Carl Macek". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2010-04-20.
  2. ^ "Macek Training". Anime News Network. Retrieved 2010-01-25.
  3. ^ a b Obituary Los Angeles Times, April 25, 2010; page A38.
  4. ^ Tommy Yune. "Robotech's original producer Carl Macek passes away on Saturday, April 17th". Robotech.com. Retrieved 2010-04-20.
  5. ^ Yang, Jeff (2010-08-10). "The 'Robotech' master". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 2010-09-16.
  6. ^ "Carl Macek Fan Interview (Part 2)". Robotech.com. Retrieved 2008-07-16.
  7. ^ "Carl Macek Fan Interview (Part 3)". Robotech.com. Retrieved 2008-07-16.
  8. ^ Yang, Jeff (2010-05-06). "The 'Robotech' master". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 2010-10-25.
  9. ^ a b "Carl Macek (1951-2010)". Cartoon Brew. Retrieved 2010-04-19.
  10. ^ "Right Stuf's Anime Today interviews Carl Macek!". Right Stuf!. Archived from the original on 2010-08-09. Retrieved 2010-04-20.
  11. ^ "In Memory of Anime Producer Carl Macek (1951-2010)". Right Stuf!. Archived from the original on 2010-04-23. Retrieved 2010-04-20.
  12. ^ "Macek Training". Anime News Network. Retrieved 2010-01-25.
  13. ^ "To the stars and beyond: a tribute to Carl Macek". Den of Geek. Retrieved 2010-04-20.
  14. ^ "American anime pioneer Carl Macek passes away". Comic Book Resources. Retrieved 2010-04-20.
  15. ^ "Carl Macek Passes Away". Mania.com. Archived from the original on 2010-04-23. Retrieved 2010-04-20.
  16. ^ Carl Macek (1951-2010) by Tommy Yune, Robotech News, Robotech.com.
  17. ^ "Macek Training". Anime News Network. Retrieved 2010-01-25.
  18. ^ "Carl Macek's Robotech Universe (Video 2011) - IMDb". The Internet Movie Database. Retrieved November 16, 2011.
  19. ^ McKeever, Kevin (2011). "Harmony Gold announces special theatrical screening of Carl Macek's Robotech Universe". Robotech.com. Harmony Gold USA. Retrieved November 16, 2011.
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