How Bendy and the Ink Machine Was Inspired By Animation History

Indie games are becoming increasingly popular nowadays, particularly those of the horror genre. And several appear to have been inspired in some form by Disney. Five Nights At Freddy’s involves haunted animatronics in a rundown family diner, though this has a closer connection to Chuck E. Cheese than Disney. And, then, you have such games as Cuphead and Bendy and the Ink Machine, which are based around cartoon characters who have an animation style akin to that of the Golden Age of Animation.

Bendy, a five-part game, has a really great, intriguing, yet creepy story and world. The player controls the unseen character of Henry, a retired animator who returns to the old film studio run by his former friend Joey Drew, thirty years after leaving the company. Joey found success with several animated characters including Bendy the Dancing Demon, Alice Angel, and Boris the Wolf. The studio eventually failed and was abandoned. But, perhaps not as Henry thought.

Henry soon uncovers a disturbing underbelly of the studio he left behind. A humongous ink machine stands in the studio, leaking out black ink all over the place. Oh, and Joey may been involved in a satanic ritual of some kind that made the ink a sentient hive mind, and could bring his cartoon characters to life possibly using human hosts or cadavers. Bendy is running around as a hostile monster, several members of the staff have become ink monsters, and the studio appears to be made up of multiple underground levels, with each getting worse and worse as Henry descends into Joey’s hell.

But, we aren’t here to directly examine the lore of Bendy – as fun as that may be. If you are a Disney and animation fan, you may notice some similarities between the characters and story of the game, and actual people and events in animation history. How Bendy resembles a multitude of characters, the relationship between Henry, Joey, and the rest of the studio’s staff, and even the strange cult aspects going on.

Joey Drew appears to draw inspiration from two major figures in the early years of animation: Walt Disney and Max Fleischer. Most people know Walt’s history, but Max Fleischer has become sadly obscure in recent years. While most people believe Walt invented such things as rotoscoping, and mixing live action with animation, but Fleischer actually developed most techniques first. History and word of mouth have twisted a lot of early animation history and giving Walt Disney credit. This could be the inspiration for Joey Drew’s nasty habit of taking credit for the creations of his staff.

 

Now, I’m not bashing Walt Disney. Unlike the fictional Joey Drew, Walt treated his employees with dignity and respect most of the time, crediting them where credit was due. Though never one for personally complimenting his staff, Walt did appreciate their talents, particularly when it came to filmmaking and Imagineering. He sought out talent, and came to understand the work ethos to maintain a good working environment.

Max Fleischer invented rotoscoping back in 1914, which allowed live action footage to be traced onto paper. This technique was later used in the first major cartoon he and his brother Joe and Dave created – Out of the Inkwell. In this live action short, Max directly interacts with his character Koko the Clown, who emerges from an inkwell, escapes into the real world, before being shoved back into the animated world by Fleischer. Now that sounds a little familiar. Joey Drew builds the ink machine to bring his creations to life. Or to possibly cheat death if the lore’s hints are anything to go by. Thus, Bendy and other characters are found running around the studio, free of their 2D worlds, but still monstrous and very leaky.

Ultimately, the success of Disney created heavy competition for the Fleischer Studios during the 1920s and 1930s. Of course, Disney created Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, and Goofy amongst others. Fleischer invented Koko the Clown, Bimbo, and Betty Boop, as well as bringing Popeye and Superman to the big screen. Several of these characters appear to have inspired by Bendy and co.

Throughout the game, Henry comes across various tape recordings of the disgruntled staff, describing Joey Drew as disorganized, backstabbing, secretive, and egocentric. He focuses more on the ink machine than the cartoons or the welfare of his employees. It is likely what led to Henry leaving the studio. This reflects some real life events at both significant studios. Both Fleischer and Disney encountered very public strikes by employees due to poor working conditions and low pays. It shook both studio heads to their core, destroying the familial relationships they had built with their employees. Though, in the case of Joey Drew Studios, the employees suffered a fate worse than death.

 

So, Joey Drew acts like he’s Willy Wonka, but is in fact a two-faced lair. And where does that leave Henry? Well, he’s an unappreciated animator who left the company, and Joey considered him a good friend regardless. That sounds a lot like Ub Iwerks, Walt’s first hired animator, a close friend, and the co-creator of Mickey Mouse. Yes, Mickey Mouse has a co-creator. In fact, Iwerks basically created Mickey’s iconic look, while it was Walt’s wife Lillian Bounds who named him. Henry left Joey Drew Studios thirty years prior to the events of the game, but returned to the studio on Joey’s invite.

 

Iwerks actually left Disney around 1930. Struggling to keep up with Walt’s demands and harsh command, Iwerks felt unappreciated, despite being the source of much of Disney’s success. Iwerks eventually formed his own studio, backed by Pat Powers, former distributor of Disney’s cartoons. Unfortunately, his studio did not last long. Iwerks would return to Disney in 1940 during the height of its success, now working in the special effects department, helping in films and Imagineering. But, unlike Iwerks returning to a studio in its prime, Henry returns to a boarded up studio, with monstrous toons running amuck.

Joey Drew’s characters and cartoons are presented in “Sillyvision”, which is likely a nod to Silly Symphonies. Bendy is a mischievous, grinning, dancing demon who served as the mascot of the studio. By far, he appears to be the most successful and popular character. Looking at his design, he immediately resembles the likes of Mickey Mouse or Felix the Cat, or maybe even Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, Mickey’s big brother and Disney’s first successful character.

But, Bendy has a closer resemblance to one of Max Fleischer’s character – Bimbo, a cartoon dog, who at first was a major star and competitive rival to Mickey. However, the popularity of Betty Boop, and then the enforcement of the Hays Code in 1934, pushed Bimbo out of notoriety and into obscurity. Bimbo was a very mischievous character, pulling pranks, chasing women, and being a bit of a trickster. The animated shorts starring Bendy appear to take inspiration from this. Bendy may have fallen in obscurity following the collapse of the studio, mirroring Bimbo’s fate.

 

Boris the Wolf is Bendy’s sitcom arch nemesis in his shorts, but also proved to be a popular character. His role is likely a nod to Pegleg Pete, the long-time enemy to Mickey, Donald, and Goofy. Pete is actually an older character than Mickey, and even Oswald, first appearing in Walt’s Alice Comedies. Boris also resembles such characters as Goofy or Horace Horsecollar. He could also take inspiration from Koko the Clown, who appeared in numerous shorts with Bimbo.

 

 

And then we have Alice Angel. It’s kind of obvious who she is based on – Betty Boop, the most successful character from Fleischer Studios. Their design is quite similar, a pretty, dark-haired girl dressed in a tight, halter top skirt. Betty started off as a supporting character in Bimbo’s shorts, and was actually an anthropomorphic poodle, before being reimagined as a human. Betty was considered to be gorgeous and became a sex icon in the 1930s. Both Betty and Alice serve as the love interests to Bimbo and Bendy.

However, as history shows, Betty became hugely popular and sent Bimbo to the doghouse. Alice was predicted to outshine Bendy in terms of popularity. According to one character in the game, who designs the toys, Alice apparently wasn’t as popular as Joey had hoped, due to disappointing sales in her toyline. Betty Boop went through several voice actresses in the space of about five years, including Margie Hines and Mae Questel. Bendy seems to take note of this, and add an extra layer of drama too it.

In the game, Alice was originally going to be voiced by Susan Campbell, who was elated to have the role and even started referring to herself as “Alice”. She also is implied to have had a relationship with Joey, who only fuelled her delusions of grandeur. Then, Susan found out she had been unceremoniously replaced by another actress named Allison. Needless to say, Susan didn’t take this well. It fed her insecurities and mania, and when she was put through the ink machine, she came out as a vain, psychotic version of Alice Angel, hellbent on revenge against Joey, and becoming the perfect incarnation of her animated alter ego.

Well, nothing like that happened in real life. No voice actress of Betty Boop went bat shit insane and tried to become the character. Instead, an actress tried to sue Fleischer Studios for copying her appearance and distinct voice. Helen Kane was said to have been the inspiration for Betty Boop. You’d think most people would be flattered to be immortalised in animation, but not Kane, who instead sued the studio $250,000 for infringement. Apparently Betty’s success ruined Kane’s career, even though it was essentially declining at the time anyway.

It turns out Kane in turn may have got her look from another actress named Clara Bow. The Fleischers, meanwhile, claimed Betty was created purely from scratch without inspiration. Kane also claimed her distinct singing style was her own. But, a recording of an African American performer, Esther Jones, had sung in a similar tone years before, and Kane had witnessed it. This led to her lawsuit being thrown out.

Betty was censored in 1934 by the Hays Code, which was designed to make cartoons more decent for audiences. This involved toning down Betty’s sex appeal, making her more of a housewife. Bimbo’s fall into obscurity was also caused by the code, since a dog being in a romantic relationship with a human rubbed people the wrong way. In the world of Bendy, it is possible Joey’s studio fell victim to the code’s censorships. Bendy is a demonic entity, while Alice was both a sex symbol and a devilish character.

Chapter 3 introduces a trio of additional characters from Bendy’s cartoons called the Butcher Gang, who appeared to be antagonists to Bendy. They were Charley the Chimp, Barley the Pirate, and Edgar the Spider. Barley, in particular, bares a striking resemblance to Popeye, another of Fleischer’s most popular and recognised characters.

Interestingly, in each chapter, we see a progressive step for the studios. In the first chapter, the player can view silent projections of Bendy shorts. The second chapter is set in the music department, introducing sound to the cartoons. The third reveals the studio had its own toy manufacturing plant called Heavenly Toys, showing the mass marketing and production of Bendy and co. Then, the most recent fourth chapter shows that Joey even had plans to make a fully-fledged theme park called Bendy Land. Anyone else getting Disneyland vibes?

A new character is introduced in the fourth chapter, a theme park architect named Bertrum Piedmont is hired by Joey to design Bendy Land. Bertrum seems really passionate about his creations, and is enraged when Joey tries to cut him out of the picture and take credit for his designs. This leads to the theme park never seeing the light of day, despite actually been built. Bertrum didn’t take this very well. So by the time Henry encounters Bertrum within Bendy Land, the theme park designer has somehow become part of a ride himself, his gigantic, deformed head visible within the mechanics.

Now, Disneyland was built by many talented designers, engineers, artists, carpenters, and all under Walt’s guiding hand. It was no easy task getting the theme park built. Bertrum Piedmont could be inspired by several figures in the amusement park industry. There isn’t really anyone that fits the description of a resentful, bitter attraction designer though. Bertrum could be inspired by Walter Knott, founder of Knott’s’ Berry Farm, which just happened to be down the road from where Disneyland would be built. Yeah, a theme park close to Anaheim, opened by a man named Walter. Weird, huh. But, yeah, Knott opened his park, initially a berry stand, many years before Disneyland was even conceived. Both Walts were in fact friends, and Disneyland took some inspiration from the Berry Farm.

Another possible source of inspiration is Wendell “Bud” Hurlbut, a prominent and early designer of theme park attractions. He helped put Knott’s on the map by helping to change it from a chicken farm into a theme park. Hurlbut would design the Calico Mine Train, and a replica of the Liberty Bell, which he gave to Knott when he built a full scale replica of Independence Hall. Though Hurlbut had no involvement in Disneyland, Walt would often visit him for ideas and to share his own. And again, there was no conflict between them.

But, there is one notable person associated with Disneyland, who has all but been erased from its history. C.V. Wood worked at Stanford Research Institute, being in charge of the southern California brand. Walt Disney came to SRI to find a location for Disneyland. Wood was hired as Vice President and General Manager of Disneyland. Wood was just as charismatic and persuasive as Walt, convincing him they needed to bring in the help of outside companies to build Disneyland. A lot of the people Wood brought in to help had worked with him previously, and were quite loyal to him. Walt disliked this sort of organization, and feared a repeat of when Charles Mintz stole all of his animators from under his nose.

Wood came off as quite arrogant, later describing himself as “The Master Planner of Disneyland”, whilst trying to design other theme parks. Wood was fired less than a year after he was hired, and erased from Disney’s history books as having any involvement with Disneyland’s creation. Now, does that ring any bells? This seems to match up quite nicely with Bertrum’s character, with some tweaks. Wood named himself the mastermind behind Disneyland, when in fact Walt was. Joey took credit for Bertrum’s work, enraging the architect, so the situation is reversed here.

And what about the creepy cult within Joey’s studio. Characters literally worship Bendy as a god and saviour, painting the walls with words like, “He will set us free!”. Sammy Lawrence, the former music director of the Bendy cartoons, fell victim to the ink machine and now worships Bendy. In the second chapter, Sammy takes Henry prisoner with the plan on sacrificing him to Bendy, in the hope that his humanity can be restored. Bendy doesn’t seem to take kindly to his creator being murdered, despite being openly hostile to him throughout the first three chapters of the game, and instead massacres Sammy.

Other cult vibes include statues of Bendy everywhere, and the pentagrams Henry may have been using to bring his characters too life. Heck, right at the start of the game, Henry unintentionally recreates the ritual that was used to power the ink machine to begin with. By no means was either Walt Disney or Max Fleischer cultists, but the latter did seem to have a lot of cult-like imagery in his cartoons. Most notably in Bimbo’s Initiation, released in 1931, which is considered to be one of the most darkest cartoons ever made.

In the short, Bimbo falls down a manhole cover, and is locked within by noneother than a cackling Mickey Mouse. How did they get away with that? It was no secret that Fleischer resented Disney for stealing his thunder, often referring to Walt as “that son of a bitch”, as described in his memoirs. Bimbo lands in the lair of a secret society, who repeatedly ask him if he wants to join up. He eventually agrees to join when the cult’s leader turns out to be Betty Boop, and all of the members rip off their disguises, revealed to be clones of Betty. Seems like Bendy took some inspiration from here too. Alice Angel, on her path to perfection, created endless clones of Boris in order to make “pure”.

In one final connection to history, one of Bendy’s cartoons, “Tombstone Picnic”, appears to take direct reference from The Skeleton Dance, the first of the Silly Symphonies, and a cartoon entirely animated and storyboarded by Ub Iwerks.

I think it is awesome when these kind of stories look back to the past and take inspiration from what has happened in history. Bendy and the Ink Machine is an impressive game with a story of shadows, lies, and broken dreams. It may even yield some more connections to animation history once the fifth and final chapter comes.