Happy Birthday Tim Burton

On this day, August 25th, fifty-one years ago, a mad genius was born in the quiet, Eisenhower-reflected suburbs of Burbank, California.

Timothy William Burton had entered the world.

Little did his parents, Bill (a former minor-league ballplayer turned Parks and Rec employee) and Jean (who ran a cat-oriented gift store), know that their detached, horror film-obsessed child would go on to be one of the most original, quirky, and successful film directors of his time.

Since my childhood I have been continually entranced by Burton's films all the way back to his first full-length motion picture Pee-Wee's Big Adventure (which also marked the first union of Burton and Academy Award-nominated composer Danny Elfman, of whom I am also an avid admirer).

Tim Burton's dark, fairy tale-esque films never fail to bring me joy and inspiration. All of them. Batman, Beetle Juice, Edward Scissorhands, Batman Returns, The Nightmare Before Christmas, Mars Attacks!, Ed Wood, Sleepy Hollow, Big Fish, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, etc. And his short films such as Frankenweenie and Vincent. Over the years I have grown unconditionally biased when it comes to this man and his work. He can do no wrong in my eyes.

So Happy Birthday, Tim Burton! Thank you for your amazing work which continually brings me great joy.

Can't wait to see Alice in Wonderland! March 5, 2010. Day of reckoning.

Below is Tim Burton's first short film, a stop motion animated piece entitled Vincent. The short is narrated by the late and great Vincent Price, of whom Burton is a lifelong fan.