Victor Cook

American television director, writer, and producer From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Victor A. Cook (born c. 1960/1961) is an American film and television producer and director best known for his work on the animated series The Spectacular Spider-Man (2008–2009), Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated (2010–2013) and Stretch Armstrong and the Flex Fighters (2017–2018),[2][3] and as an executive producer of Disney Junior's T.O.T.S.[4]

Quick Facts Born, Education ...
Victor Cook
Born1960s
EducationCSULB
Occupations
Years active1987–present
Known for
Children2
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Early life

Cook was born in the early 1960s,[4] one of five children on the Johnson Air Force Base in Saitama, Japan.[1] His parents met in an Air Force cafeteria while his father was enlisted.[1] He is half-Korean through his mother.[5] After leaving Saitama, the family lived in San Antonio, Texas; Florida; Fort Worth, Texas; Euless, Texas; Okinawa, Japan (at Kadena Air Base); and Atwater, California.[1] After high school, he briefly attended a junior college in Central California before transferring to California State University, Long Beach.[1][4]

As a child and into college, Cook desired to be a print cartoonist, but was dissuaded after reading about Jack Kirby's career.[4] While at the junior college, a life drawing teacher gave him the contact information for a former student who went on to work for Hanna-Barbera.[4] He only called once he was already into his career.[4] The student suggested taking an animation class at The Animation Guild.[4]

Career

After graduating college, Cook worked as a graphic artist and political cartoonist for Costa Mesa's Daily Pilot then as an assistant animator at Filmation.[1] At Filmation, he found himself drawn to storyboards because they reminded him of comic cels.[4] He worked on BraveStarr during the day and took storyboard classes at night until Filmation folded.[4] He was able to find a job working on ALF Tales and ALF: The Animated Series.[4] This experience helped him eventually land at Disney Television Animation, where he worked for 16 years.[1][4] After leaving Disney, he worked with Greg Weisman to create The Spectacular Spider-Man; worked on Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated; and started at Hasbro, where he helped develop Stretch Armstrong and the Flex Fighters alongside writer Kevin Burke and producer Chris Wyatt.[4] In the late 2010s, he was hired onto T.O.T.S. by Disney Junior.[4]

He is the creator of the Mecha-Nation comic books.[1] It is the first comic book he's worked on.[1]

The Spectacular Spider-Man

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Perspective

I wanted to make sure that this was an iconic Spider-man for the different generations of fans, but I also wanted to bring in a new generation of fans that had a passing interest in it. I also really wanted this to be a two dimensional Spider-man that moved like we've never really seen him move in animation before. I thought Sam Raimi set the bar of how he should move and I haven't seen that in animation.

—Cook on the animation style he chose for The Spectacular Spider-Man[6]

Cook was called by Sony Entertainment to develop a DVD project about Spider-Man. Cook developed it with Greg Weisman; they wanted to base it on the early comic book publications of the character that showed him younger, which Cook had never seen done before in any adaption. The idea was reformatted to an animated television series, but maintained a similar chronicle style with story arcs whose episodes could still work as standalone stories.[6] The original title for the series was The Amazing Spider-Man, based on the comic series of the same name, but by mid-2007 the name was changed to The Spectacular Spider-Man.[7][8]

Cook wanted the animation to be squash and stretch style, and the action to be as good as the first two Spider-Man films. Sam Raimi directed as they had "set the bar" for the fluid movement for Spider-Man.[6][9] As they were on a specific budget, they wanted to allow the animation to "move" more than anything, giving it simple and stylistic designs.[10] He also looked back on Blood and Iron which had a "fresh, young, look to it" that appealed to him visually. Cook wanted to make an "iconic" Spider-Man for both new and older generations and "really wanted this to be a two dimensional Spider-man that moved like we've never really seen him move in animation before."[6][11]

Personal life

He and his wife Sonia, who is also half-Korean, have been married since the late 1980s.[1][12] They have two children: Hanah and Jackson.[citation needed] His daughter is an animation writer.[13] and, according to Victor's friend and colleague Greg Weisman, served as the inspiration for Artemis Crock in Young Justice.[12]

As an animator, Cook admires Charles M. Schulz, Jack Kirby and Hayao Miyazaki, and was a Hanna-Barbera fan growing up.[4][1]

Filmography

Television

More information Year, Title ...
Year Title Credited as Notes Ref(s)
DirectorProducerArtWriter
1987—1988BraveStarrNoNoYesNo[4]
1988ALF TalesNoNoYesNo[4]
1988—1989ALF: The Animated SeriesNoNoYesNo[4]
1989The SmurfsNoNoYesNo[14]
The Karate KidNoNoYesNo[citation needed]
Garfield and FriendsNoNoYesNo[citation needed]
Denver, the Last DinosaurNoNoYesNo[citation needed]
1990TaleSpinNoNoYesNoEpisode "Time Waits for No Bear"[4]
1991WidgetNoNoYesNo[citation needed]
1992The Little MermaidNoNoYesNoEpisode "Urchin"[citation needed]
Raw ToonageNoNoYesNoEpisodes "Bonkers in Space/Cro-Magnum PI/The Treasure of the Sierra Marsdre" and "Sheerluck Bonkers/All Potato Network/The Puck Stops Here"[citation needed]
1991—1992Darkwing DuckNoNoYesYesWrote "Kung Fooled"[4][5]
Mr. BogusNoNoYesNo[citation needed]
1993BonkersNoNoYesNo[citation needed]
1994AladdinNoNoYesNo[4][5]
1995Rocko's Modern LifeNoNoYesNo[citation needed]
1995—1996GargoylesNoNoYesNo[4][5]
1996Quack PackNoNoYesNo[citation needed]
Jungle CubsNoNoYesNo[citation needed]
1997—1998101 Dalmatians: The SeriesYesYesNoNo[4][5]
2000Buzz Lightyear of Star CommandYesNoNoNo[4][5]
2001—2002The Legend of TarzanYesNoNoNo[5]
2002—2004Fillmore!NoNoYesNo[citation needed]
2005American Dragon: Jake LongNoNoYesNo[15]
2003—2006Lilo & Stitch: The SeriesYesYesNoNo[4][5]
2007Mickey's Great Clubhouse HuntYesNoYesNo[citation needed]
2006—2008Mickey Mouse ClubhouseYesNoNoNo[1][4]
2008The Spectacular Spider-Man: Attack of the Lizard YesYesNoNo[1]
2008—2009The Spectacular Spider-ManYesYesNoYes[1][16]
2012Young JusticeYesNoNoNoEpisode "Coldhearted"[17]
2010—2013Scooby-Doo! Mystery IncorporatedYesYesNoNo[1][4]
2017—2018Stretch Armstrong and the Flex FightersYesExecutiveYesYesCo-creator
Also wrote the main title lyrics
[4][18]
2019—2022T.O.T.S.NoExecutiveNoNo[19]
2023—presentPupstructionNoExecutiveNoNo[20]
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Film

More information Year, Title ...
Year Title Credited as Notes Ref(s)
DirectorProducerArtWriter
1993The Return of JafarNoNoYesNoDirect-to-video[5]
1996Aladdin and the King of ThievesNoNoYesNoDirect-to-video[21]
2001Lady and the Tramp II: Scamp's AdventureNoNoYesNoDirect-to-video[citation needed]
2002101 Dalmatians II: Patch's London AdventureNoNoYesNoDirect-to-video
Tarzan & JaneYesNoNoNoSegments "Volcanic Diamond Mine" and "Flying Ace"[22]
2003Atlantis: Milo's ReturnYesNoNoNo[23]
21 GramsNoNoYesNo[24]
2007Hellboy: Blood and IronYesNoNoNoTV movie[25]
Hellboy: Iron ShoesYesNoNoNoBonus short for Hellboy: Blood and Iron[25]
My Blueberry NightsNoNoYesNo[26]
2010Dante's Inferno: An Animated EpicYesNoNoNoDirect-to-DVD[1]
2012Ben 10: Destroy All AliensYesYesNoNoTV movie[1]
Scooby-Doo! Haunted HolidaysYesYesNoNoDirect-to-DVD[4][27]
Scooby-Doo! Spooky GamesNoYesNoNoDirect-to-DVD[27]
2013Scooby-Doo! Stage FrightYesYesNoNoDirect-to-DVD[28]
Scooby-Doo! and the Spooky ScarecrowNoYesNoNoDirect-to-DVD[27]
Scooby-Doo! Mecha Mutt MenaceNoYesNoNoDirect-to-DVD[4]
StokerNoNoYesNo[29]
Robosapien: RebootedNoNoYesNo[30]
2014Scooby-Doo! Ghastly GoalsYesNoNoNoDirect-to-DVD[31]
2015Scooby-Doo! and the Beach BeastieYesNoNoNoDirect-to-DVD[4]
2019Mickey's TreatYesNoNoNoTV movie[32]
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References

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