Directing

John Foster

Born — Died

1886-11-27 — 1959-02-16

Place of birth

New Jersey, USA

Known for

Directing

Credits

40 titles

John Foster (November 27, 1886 – February 16, 1959) was a cartoonist and film director. He is remembered for his direction in over a hundred films, including the Van Beuren Tom and Jerry series and the early (1928) sound-on-film cartoon "Dinner Time". Later in the 1930s, he created Gandy Goose for Terrytoons.

Known for

Trouble poster
9.0

Tom and Jerry are ambulance-chasing lawyers in search of more business.

Trouble

1931

Jolly Fish poster
6.0

Tom and Jerry go fishing, where they encounter an affectionate but annoying fish who won't leave them alone. They hear a piano-playing octopus (with twelve arms!) and have a run-in with a sword fish who cuts their boat in half. Other hijinks ensue, and the two eventually catch a tiny fish, which is in turn swallowed by a larger fish, and this process continues until they've caught a veritable whale. They row ashore triumphant, but when one of them puts their reel (still holding the fish) over their shoulder, the larger fish slip off, unbeknownst to them, leaving them with the runt they started with.

Jolly Fish

1932

Magic Art poster
7.0

Waffles the Cat and Don the Dog fiddle around with a magic pencil, producing drawings that come to life.

Magic Art

1932

No artwork available
2.0

All the Dutch Van Beuren animals wearing clogs and making.... swiss cheese?!

In Dutch

1931

Midnight poster
4.0

It's a straight musical involving a barbershop quartet of alley cats and some dogs summoned from the pound to quiet them to little success. The animation and visual gags are simple and old fashioned, but the aural gags are nicely done and even if there's little coordination between the animation and the music.

Midnight

1930

Pencil Mania poster
6.4

This Tom and Jerry cartoon (the human versions, not the cat and mouse) is an opportunity for the animators to have fun with the medium. There is no specific plot. One of the boys uses a pencil to create a myriad number of animated illusions that could only work in a cartoon. For example, a short vertical line is drawn, which when held by both ends suddenly becomes a saxophone. When played, the notes pop out of the bell of the instrument to suddenly grow legs and transform into ducks. After the song, the saxophone itself quickly follows suit and becomes a goose. The entire short consists of these disjointed, though often creative and humorously unlikely events.

Pencil Mania

1932

Behind the camera

Trouble poster
9.0

Tom and Jerry are ambulance-chasing lawyers in search of more business.

Trouble

1931

Jolly Fish poster
6.0

Tom and Jerry go fishing, where they encounter an affectionate but annoying fish who won't leave them alone. They hear a piano-playing octopus (with twelve arms!) and have a run-in with a sword fish who cuts their boat in half. Other hijinks ensue, and the two eventually catch a tiny fish, which is in turn swallowed by a larger fish, and this process continues until they've caught a veritable whale. They row ashore triumphant, but when one of them puts their reel (still holding the fish) over their shoulder, the larger fish slip off, unbeknownst to them, leaving them with the runt they started with.

Jolly Fish

1932

Magic Art poster
7.0

Waffles the Cat and Don the Dog fiddle around with a magic pencil, producing drawings that come to life.

Magic Art

1932

No artwork available
2.0

All the Dutch Van Beuren animals wearing clogs and making.... swiss cheese?!

In Dutch

1931

Midnight poster
4.0

It's a straight musical involving a barbershop quartet of alley cats and some dogs summoned from the pound to quiet them to little success. The animation and visual gags are simple and old fashioned, but the aural gags are nicely done and even if there's little coordination between the animation and the music.

Midnight

1930

Pencil Mania poster
6.4

This Tom and Jerry cartoon (the human versions, not the cat and mouse) is an opportunity for the animators to have fun with the medium. There is no specific plot. One of the boys uses a pencil to create a myriad number of animated illusions that could only work in a cartoon. For example, a short vertical line is drawn, which when held by both ends suddenly becomes a saxophone. When played, the notes pop out of the bell of the instrument to suddenly grow legs and transform into ducks. After the song, the saxophone itself quickly follows suit and becomes a goose. The entire short consists of these disjointed, though often creative and humorously unlikely events.

Pencil Mania

1932

The Magic Mummy poster
6.3

Tom and Jerry are police officers, driving around in their car and enjoying listening to some music on their police radio, when they hear a bulletin announcing another theft of a mummy from the local museum. They stumble upon the culprit, a mysterious and ghoulish man who is carrying a coffin through a secret door in a cemetery. They sneak in after him and watch him command the mummy to life; it is a beautiful woman, who he then commands to sing for his audience of skeletal theatre-goers.

The Magic Mummy

1933

No artwork available
7.0

An animated short subject created by Paul Terry and actor-turned-writer Howard Estabrook.

Fly Hi

1931

Plane Dumb poster
5.0

After crash landing in Africa, Tom and Jerry masquerade as Africans in a futile attempt to adapt to a strange environment.

Plane Dumb

1932

No artwork available
5.0

A "Aesop's Fable" cartoon from the Van Beuren Studios.

Chinese Jinks

1932

No artwork available
2.7

All of the animal from all the continents, it appears, are gathered around a frozen lake and ice skating, playing hockey and, in general showing off and usually end up crashing through the ice. A romantic, crooning monkey serenades the lady of his dreams...a blushing hippo...while three of the most-badly animated mice in all cartoon-land take on a rhino in ice hockey. Written by Les Adams

Frisky Frolics

1932

No artwork available
6.0

An evil spider kidnaps a housefly from a cabaret and takes her to his secret lab.

Fly Frolic

1932

Jungle Jazz poster
4.3

In this early synchronized sound cartoon from the Van Beuren cartoon factory, a dog and cat encounter huge, strange and terrifying creatures in the jungle. They seek refuge in a missionary hits, where they play an organ, which causes the animals to dance. They are captured by cannibals, but escape and lead the jungle animals in song.

Jungle Jazz

1930

The Jungle Fool poster
7.5

Farmer Al Falfa flies to Africa with the Royal Society of African Explorers to hunt in the jungle.

The Jungle Fool

1929

No artwork available
10.0

The Van Beuren Studios animals have their Venice moments of song and romance.

Venice Vamp

1932

No artwork available
10.0

The film begins with Milton riding his horse comically around the West until he hears a wanted criminal roaming the West. Upon hearing this, Milton's mouse agrees to comically change to be the width of a twig, as a way of disguise. The criminal, who remains nameless throughout the entire short film, rides in front of a tree; and sees a Wanted sign with himself on it.

Western Whoopee

1930

No artwork available
9.0

A catfish living in a submarine in a lake, lures a cat to pursue her. Their playful antics are interrupted by an octopus, and a fight ensues.

A Cat-Fish Romance

1932

When The Snow Flies poster
10.0

A group of anthropomorphic animals are having fun in the snow, and steal Farmer Al Falfa's door. After fighting with his water pump and later his hand, Al Falfa wakes up from a drunken dream and has trouble getting inside his house. The animals invite the farmer to have fun with them.

When The Snow Flies

1927

Old Hokum Bucket poster
5.5

A slow farm life is turned upside-down thanks to some magic pills....

Old Hokum Bucket

1931

Tom & Jerry and Friends poster
10.0

Rare Tom & Jerry treasures.

Tom & Jerry and Friends

1931

The Mouse of Tomorrow poster
7.3

The origin story of Super Mouse (later changed to "Mighty Mouse").

The Mouse of Tomorrow

1942

No artwork available
10.0

An animated short subject created by Paul Terry and actor-turned-writer Howard Estabrook.

Farmer's Goat

1929

A Swiss Trick poster
5.6

Tom and Jerry are aboard a train making its way up a mountain in the Swiss Alps. When their train breaks down, they're spotted by a very thin St. Bernard, who brings the engine some liquor. The engine zips through the Alps, but leaves the pair behind.

A Swiss Trick

1931

No artwork available
9.0

Silent cartoon.

Sunday on the Farm

1928

No artwork available
7.0

Van Beuren Studios with a cartoon having Fun on Ice.

Fun on Ice

1931

No artwork available
7.0

An animated short subject created by Paul Terry and actor-turned-writer Howard Estabrook.

Pale Face Pup

1931

No artwork available
10.0

A Van Beuren Studios cartoon...

Bugs and Books

1932

Good Old Schooldays poster
5.0

A Aesop's Fables cartoon with the animals going to school and causing mischief.

Good Old Schooldays

1930

The Three Bears poster
7.8

A singing, jitterbugging Goldilocks goes through her paces with the grizzly trio, but when a bear hunter gets into the house, she joins with them to fight and eventually tie him up.

The Three Bears

1939

Silvery Moon poster
5.8

As two feline sweethearts sail along Moonlight Bay, the moon invites them up for a visit. They discover the moon is not made of green cheese, as is rumored, but is actually a land of candy, ice cream and cake.

Silvery Moon

1933

Gandy the Goose poster
10.0

In Gandy's debut film, he leaves home to make is way in the world. Unfortunately, he's an idiot with an Ed Wynn voice, and a wolf with a George Givot voice tries to lure him into his lair to eat him. Incredible coincidences save him from the stew pot.

Gandy the Goose

1938

No artwork available
6.0

Dancing animals in a depression-era shanty town.

Tumble Down Town

1933

No artwork available
8.0

The party life in a pond.

Love in a Pond

1931

Laundry Blues poster
4.3

Strange doings in a Chinese laundry with outrageous Oriental and Yiddish stereotypes.

Laundry Blues

1930

No artwork available
9.0

A wedding in the Aesop's Fables jungle.

Stone Age Error

1932

In the Bag poster
6.0

Tom and Jerry crash their plane in the cartoon wild, wild west. Surreal hi-jinx involving a vicious outlaw and robbery ensue.

In the Bag

1932

No artwork available
10.0

An Aesop's Fable cartoon by Van Beuren Productions.

A Romeo Monk

1932

The Tuba Tooter poster
5.5

A German "ohm-pah" trio is incomplete until their tuba player arrives on a boat from overseas. The resulting quartet brings the whole town out for a German dance party, until the police arrive to take the "tuba tooter" to jail.

The Tuba Tooter

1932

The Family Shoe poster
6.5

This is about the little old lady who lived in a shoe and had so many kids she's didn't know what to do....or something like that. One day, one of her kids - Jack - says "I know what to do," and takes off with a sack of beans. Well, to make a long story short, we wind up seeing "Jack And The Beanstalk" and mom winds up a rich woman in the end. The show goes from a beat-old boot to a glittery high heel shoe!

The Family Shoe

1931

No artwork available
8.0

Bugs having a good old time that ends up with two getting hitched.

A Bugville Romance

1930