A Romance in Lower Mathematics
It’s days like today that I am so happy to have cable. 99% of the time I spin through the channels and find very little that grips my attention for more than a few fleeting moments. But Saturday mornings I can always rely on the Cartoon Network and old Looney Tunes episodes to amuse and delight while I coerce the coffee machine to pump out its warm black love. Today things went to a new level. Sandwiched between some classic Bugs Bunny and another short featuring those two aristocratic yet devilishly brilliant chipmunks, who, I think may be lovers as well, was the most amazing piece of minimalist animation I have seen in many moons. It was Chuck Jones’ “The Dot and The Line”. This synopsis form geocities tells all:

“A straight line is in love with a dot; however, the dot finds the line too plain, unimaginative, and rigid. She would rather spend her time with an undisciplined squiggle who is much more fun. The dejected line later realizes that he doesn’t have to be unbending. With a little concentration, he forms angles and various shapes. They are two-dimensional at first, but after much practice, he can form many-sided solids, and even curved figures. When the line demonstrates his abilities to the dot, she realizes that true beauty comes from discipline and that the squiggle is not for her.”

The animated cartoon is an interpretation of the book, The Dot and the Line: A Romance in Lower Mathematics. There are a few of Chuck Jones’ animation cells for this film that are for sale online too. Alone, they are brilliant examples of artistic discipline. I want them all!!