Yasuo Otsuka, Influential Japanese Animator And Mentor, Dies At 89
“It was Otsuka-san who taught me the fun of working,” Hayao Miyazaki once wrote.
RIP
Brenda Banks, One Of The First Black Women Animators In America, Dies At 72
Even as she built up an impressive career working with the likes of Ralph Bakshi, Hanna-Barbera, and Warner Bros., Banks remained very private about her life.
RIP: Vinnie Bell, 89, A Pillar Of The New York Animation Scene For Half A Century
In his long career, Bell animated for prominent studios including Terrytoons, Hubley Studios, Perpetual Motion Pictures, and J.J. Sedelmaier Productions.
Allan Burns, Screenwriter Who Worked On ‘Rocky & Bullwinkle,’ Dies At 85
Burns had a short but productive animation career, creating such memorable characters as George of the Jungle and the Cap’n Crunch cereal mascot.
Disney Great Dale Baer, An Animator For Five Decades, Has Died At 70
Quiet and shy, Baer’s name may not be as familiar as other contemporary animators, but he was a highly respected animator’s animator and beloved by colleagues.
RIP: Dave Creek, Lead Character Designer Of ‘Bob’s Burgers,’ Dies After Skydiving Accident
Creek succumbed to injuries from a skydiving accident last weekend.
Industry Artist Tuck Tucker, A Veteran Of ‘Spongebob’ And ‘Hey Arnold!,’ Dies At 59
Tucker worked in roles including layout, storyboard, writing, and directing, picking up credits on influential series like “The Simpsons,” “Rugrats,” and “The Ren & Stimpy Show.”
Doug Crane, Renowned East Coast Animator, Dies At 85
Crane’s epic career ran from Terrytoons in the 1950s to MTV in the 1990s and beyond, spanning series, commercials, and features.
In Memoriam: Remembering The Animation Industry Figures Who Died In 2020
A tribute to the talents the community lost this year: animators and cartoonists, directors and producers, voice artists, dancers, and basketball players.
Ken Spears, ‘Scooby-Doo’ Co-Creator And Titan Of Saturday Morning Cartoons, Dies At 82
Spears’s death comes only four months after the passing of his long-time business and creative partner Joe Ruby.
Tony Eastman, Veteran East Coast Animator And Director, RIP
A mainstay of the East Coast animation scene, Tony Eastman worked on everything from “Doug” to “Beavis & Butt-head.”
Marge Champion, Actor And Dancer Who Was Model For ‘Snow White,’ Dies At 101
Hired by Disney as a teen, Champion acted out movements which animators then rotoscoped.
Anatoly Prokhorov, ‘Kikoriki’ Creator And Pioneer Of Russian Independent Animation, Dies At 72
Prokhorov co-founded the Soviet Union’s first private animation studio and created the hugely successful series “Kikoriki.”
Sue Nichols Maciorowski, Veteran Artist Of Modern Disney Films, Dies At 55
She worked as a visual development artist, character designer, and story artist on most of Disney’s 2d features of the 1990s.
Joe Ruby, Dead At 87, Was Far More Than Just The Co-Creator Of ‘Scooby-Doo’
With his studio Ruby-Spears, he helped define the look of Saturday morning cartoons for more than a decade.
RIP, Kelly Asbury, Director Of ‘Shrek 2’ and ‘Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron’
Asbury also worked on beloved contemporary works like “Shrek,” “Toy Story,” “Frozen,” “The Nightmare before Christmas,” and “Beauty and the Beast.”
RIP Denise Blakely Fuller, Matte Painter On ‘Toy Story 3,’ ‘The Book Of Life,’ ‘Hotel Transylvania’
Her résumé also includes “Brave,” “The Book of Life,” “Elf,” and an eight-year stint as a layout artist during the Disney Renaissance.
RIP, Maureen Mlynarczyk, Animation Timer On ‘Steven Universe’ And ‘Adventure Time’
In her 20-year career, Mlynarczyk earned seven Emmy nominations, winning once.
Rob Gibbs, Pixar Director And Story Artist, Has Died At 55
A 22-year veteran of Pixar, he contributed to many of the studio’s most successful films.
Gene Deitch, Cartoon Modernist Who Headed UPA New York And Terrytoons, Dies At 95
In the 1960s, he directed a series of infamous Tom & Jerry shorts while living in Eastern Europe.
