Saul Zaentz, Will Vinton, John Fogarty, and Vanz Kant Danz

You may not know the name Saul Zaentz, but you're probably familiar with one of the films or some of the music his company produced. Three of his films—One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, Amadeus, and The English Patient—won best picture Oscars, and his record company's flagship band, Creedence Clearwater Revival, sold millions of albums—making Zaentz a rich man.

In 1979, my boss, Claymation film producer Will Vinton, was seeking an investor for what would be the world's first clay-animated feature film, Metamorphos Man. Will and I had spent months courting potential investors, including a weeklong trip to Los Angeles during which we met with film producers Michael Phillips, Alex Winitsky, and Arlene Sellers; animator Nick Bosustow; and an entertainment lawyer named Peter Dekom, among others.

It was Dekom who ultimately landed us not just an investor, but powerhouse producer Saul Zaentz. Zaentz verbally agreed to finance the entire production, to the tune of about $2 million. It was like a dream come true for Will and his crew (including yours truly).

Dekom, who was now Will's business attorney, drew up the papers for Zaentz to sign. Before he would sign, however, Zaentz wanted to visit the studio, ostensibly to meet the crew and scope out the facilities.

It sounded reasonable to us. Why shouldn't we let a guy who was willing to risk $2 million on a relatively unknown quantity see what he was spending his money on?

It was summer when Zaentz came to the studio, and our upstairs offices were hot due to a lack of air conditioning. When Will brought Zaentz into my office to introduce me, I was wearing a T-shirt, cutoffs, and sandals. I'll never forget the look on Zaentz's face as he stepped forward to shake my hand: ashen. I  could feel my face burning, and it wasn't from the heat.

A few days later, Zaentz informed Will that he was backing out of the project. His excuse: a downturn in the economy. It's anyone's guess as to whether that was the real reason, but I'll never stop wondering if it had more to do with my casual attire—or perhaps the casual atmosphere of the studio in general. All of us—Will, Barry Bruce, Don Merkt, Joan Gratz, Matt Wuerker, and myself—were pretty laid back, and in fact I may not have been the only one dressed like a beach bum that afternoon.

Whatever Zaentz's real reason for backing out, Will was crushed. Metamorphos Man would have to be shelved.

Fast forward six years. Creedence Clearwater's John Fogarty enlists Will to do the clay animation for his music video, Zanz Kant Danz.

It would be a collaboration made in heaven: the song's lyrics are a thinly veiled indictment of Zaentz's character and business practices ("Zanz can't dance but he'll steal your money"). However, Zaentz sued Fogarty for defamation and won—sort of. As part of the settlement, Fogarty agreed to changed the word "Zanz" to "Vanz."

It was a minor concession for the sake of art. And beach bums.