In October of 1937, with the completion of a new two-story building on the M-G-M lot, the company announced a new production division called Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Cartoon Studios to be housed in the new building at 10202 W. Washington Blvd, Culver City and, those who wished to talk to anybody at Metro's Cartoon Studio could dial (or have the operator do it)REpublic 0211, which meant R-E-0-2-0-1. On Octobert 14, the company announced the hiring of 31 key men, to go along with the other 200 employees that might be needed.
Head(s) of Production: Hugh Harman, Rudolf Ising
General Manager: Fred Quimby
Directors: Robert Allen, William Hanna and Isadore Freleg (all three had formerly been with the Harman-Ising unit, while Freling had had experience with Charles Mintz, Walt Disney and Leon Schlesinger, according to the M-G-M publicity department.)
Production Supervisor: C. G. Maxwell (formerly with Disney and Harman-Ising)
Writers: Harry Hirschfield, "Pinto" Colvig, Ray Kelly (formerly with Van Beuren), Kin Platt (formerly with Disney), Henry Allen (from Harman-Ising), Joseph Barbera (from Terrytoons), Allen Freleng (from Schlesinger's shop.) In-Between-Department Head: Edmund Schultz (from Mintz and Universal) Painting and Inking Head: L. S. Gobel Music Department Head: Bert Lewis (six years with Disney) Camera Department Head: E. J. Moore Cameraman: Jack J. Stevens Character and Settings Design Head: Charles Thorsen Contract Animators: Ben Clopton, Sam Stimson, Gary Meyer, Bill Nolan, A. J. Zander, Richard Bickenbach, and Cecil Surry.
Sound Technician: F. McAlpin Finish Layouts: Willie Hopkins and Karl Karpe Other Layout: Ernest Nordli, Dan Gordon and George Gordon The first cartoon series under the new expansion program would be based on the syndicated newspaper feature, "The Captain and The Kids.
Not a bad line-up, even if some didn't stay very long, albeit some stayed for a lifetime.