The creator behind the children’s show Tom and Jerry, Gene Deitch died at the age of 95. No matter what generation we’re from, cartoons like Tom and Jerry have been a part of our childhood.
Gene Deitch’s sudden death was not explained by his Czech publisher, Petr Himmel. Although Himmel told the Associated Press that the animator had unexpectedly during the night at home some time between Thursday and Friday, he shared no further details.
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The American Oscar-winning illustrator, animator, film director, and producer died in his apartment in Prague’s Little Quarter neighborhood.
Not only did we lose the man behind the Tom and Jerry series, but he also directed some episodes of Popeye the Sailor children’s cartoons as well. He had also directed 13 episodes of Tom and Jerry.
Gene also produced the ‘Tom Terrific‘ series. His ‘Sidney’s Family Tree‘ series was nominated for an Academy Award in 1958.
He was given the Winsor McCay Award for his lifelong contribution to animation in 2014.
More About Gene Deitch
Gene had a long successful career in animation and illustration. The creator won the Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film in 1960 for ‘Munro‘. He was later nominated for the same award twice for ‘Here’s Nudnik‘ and ‘How to Avoid Friendship‘ in 1964.
Although the director was born in Chicago on August 8, 1924, he lived most of his adult life in Prague.
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He arrived in Prague in 1959 for a 10 days stay, but fell in love with his future wife, Zdenka, and never left. His wife and three sons from his first marriage are all cartoonists and illustrators.
During his time in the capital of then ‘Czechoslovakia; the animator captured life in communist Czechoslovakia and later in the Czech Republic after the 1989 anti-communist Velvet Revolution in his memoirs ‘For the Love of Prague”
