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The National Comedy Center, the nation’s official museum and cultural institution dedicated to comedy, and Pixar announced today that the studio has donated rare concept art from its feature film Inside Out 2 to the Comedy Center’s permanent archives.

The artwork will be accessioned into the national archive, and is now on display within the state-of-the-art museum’s cartooning and animation gallery in Jamestown, NY.

“I’m so proud of Inside Out 2 and loved voicing ‘Joy’ once again. To have this character and this film’s story art placed in the archive of the National Comedy Center – my favorite museum of all time – is quite fitting, because both the film and the museum have resonated with me so deeply,” stated Amy Poehler, who is also a National Comedy Center Advisory Board Member.

“The Inside Out film series stands out in the animated film genre because it exemplifies the use of comedy and great comedic talent to deliver material addressing topics less often broached – in this case with kids. Leading the way on emotional self-awareness and mental health with the Academy-Award-winning original, and now on the topics of anxiety and puberty – comedy as an art form, and its artists, have always helped us into these conversations,” said National Comedy Center Executive Director Journey Gunderson.

“To have Inside Out 2 concept artwork in the National Comedy Center archive – and on display alongside work from masters of this art form, including Al Hirschfeld, Saul Steinberg, Chuck Jones, Charles Schultz, Bill Watterson and so many legendary cartoonists and illustrators is an honor for our work at Pixar,” stated Pete Docter, Pixar Chief Creative Officer and the director of the original Inside Out.

Disney and Pixar’s Inside Out 2, which opened in theaters on June 14, had the biggest theatrical opening of 2024, the second-highest opening weekend in Pixar history and the second-biggest animated opening ever. It follows the blockbuster success of Inside Out in 2015, which won an Academy Award® for Best Animated Feature Film and a Golden Globe® for Best Motion Picture – Animated.

“As someone who has spent a stand-up career evoking laughter with anger, it’s a thrill to bring the character of ‘Anger’ back to the big screen and see that little guy accessioned into the official cultural institution for comedy – the National Comedy Center. I wish I’d had this film as a kid, and this museum. People should go see both – truly,” stated Lewis Black, who voiced “Anger” in the original film and in Inside Out 2, and is known in stand-up as the “King of the Rant.”

Inside Out 2 brings audiences back into the mind of Riley, who is now a teenager learning to confront new emotions: Anxiety, Envy, Ennui and Embarrassment, while still managing her original emotions: Joy, Sadness, Anger, Fear, and Disgust. Maya Hawke lends her voice to Anxiety, alongside Amy Poehler as the voice of Joy. The voice cast also includes Lewis Black, Phyllis Smith, Tony Hale and Liza Lapira. The film is directed by Kelsey Mann and produced by Mark Nielsen. The first Inside Out 2 trailer, released last November, had the biggest launch in Pixar history, with 157 million views in just the first 24 hours.

Pixar’s Chief Creative Officer Pete Docter, and Inside Out 2 cast members Amy Poehler, Lewis Black and Paula Poundstone are all Advisory Board members of the National Comedy Center.

The non-profit National Comedy Center is the United States’ Congressionally-designated museum and archive for the art form of comedy. Its mission is to provide education on the comedic arts in the form of commentary and contextualization of its bodies of work, telling the vital story of comedy in America across all eras and genres. The museum celebrates comedy’s great minds and unique voices, while providing an examination of the time-honed creative processes that have elevated comedy to an art. The award-winning museum visitor experience opened in 2018 in Lucille Ball’s hometown of Jamestown, New York.

Disney and Pixar’s Inside Out 2 is now playing exclusively in theaters worldwide.

About the National Comedy Center

The National Comedy Center is the United States’ official cultural institution and museum dedicated to presenting the vital story of comedy and preserving its heritage for future generations, as formally designated by the U.S. Congress. Opened in 2018 in Jamestown, New York, the museum complex offers an unprecedented, immersive visitor experience using state-of-the-art technology, interactivity, and personalization.

USA Today named the National Comedy Center the “Best New Museum in the Country, TIME magazine named it one of its “World’s Greatest Places,” and U.S. News & World Report selected it as one of the “25 Top Family Weekend Getaways in the U.S.,” while Condé Nast Traveler called the National Comedy Center “one of the best museums in the country,” and People magazine named it one of “100 Reasons to Love America.”

The National Comedy Center has been featured in The New York Times, on CBS Saturday Morning, CBS Sunday Morning and on NBC’s TODAY Show, which called it “the Smithsonian of Comedy.” Visitors from all 50 states and eighteen countries have given the Center a rare 5/5 rating on TripAdvisor, ranking among the highest in the attraction and tourism industry.

Based on the vision of Jamestown native Lucille Ball for her hometown to become a destination for comedy, the non-profit National Comedy Center’s mission is to provide education on the comedic arts in the form of commentary and contextualization of its bodies of work across all eras and genres of the art form.

The National Comedy Center has collaborated with dozens of artists and estates to preserve materials that represent comedy’s significant artistic, social, and political contributions to American culture including collections illustrating the careers of legendary artists like George Carlin, Johnny Carson, Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz, Carl Reiner, Joan Rivers, Don Rickles, Lenny Bruce, The Smothers Brothers, and the development of groundbreaking creative work such as sketch comedy series In Living Color, Saturday Night Live, and more.

The National Comedy Center operates the Lucille Ball Desi Arnaz Museum, which explores the lives, careers, and legacy of the “First Couple of Comedy” and the incredible impact they had on the world, as well as the pioneering role and remarkable influence that I Love Lucy and Desilu Studios had on the entertainment industry for generations to come.

The annual Lucille Ball Comedy Festival, produced and presented by the National Comedy Center, showcases comedy’s most significant artists including Jerry Seinfeld, Trevor Noah, Lily Tomlin, John Mulaney, Margaret Cho, Gabriel “Fluffy” Iglesias, Jeff Foxworthy, Taylor Tomlinson, Jay Leno, Amy Schumer, Sebastian Maniscalco, W. Kamau Bell, David Spade, Jim Gaffigan, Paula Poundstone, Joan Rivers, Kevin Nealon, The Smothers Brothers, and more than 300 comedic artists. The 2024 festival, August 1-4, will feature “Roastmaster General” Jeff Ross, Nicole Byer, and dozens of comedic artists over 50 live events.

The National Comedy Center is a 501(c)(3) non-profit national archive and museum. Donations and grants support its work to present the vital story of comedy and preserve its heritage for future generations.

Stay connected to the National Comedy Center and Lucille Ball Desi Arnaz Museum:

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