Fadeaway (1926)

This fascinating series features Max himself filmed in live action sitting at a drawing board and concocting adventures for his star performer KoKo the Clown Max is supposedly the guy in charge and he takes sadistic glee in putting KoKo through various forms of hell but the clown usually fights back and sometimes gets the best of his Uncle Max FADEAWAY elevates this charged relationship to new heights or depths of nightmarish surrealism its also one of the most enjoyable Inkwell cartoons Ive seen to date packing lots of imaginative unpredictable twists and turns into an eight minute running time