Animation Guild | We are 839 Digital Magazine
Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/1203639
MARY LESCHER 6/2/2019 Her credits span three decades, as she worked as a Scene Planner on projects such as The Lion King, Lilo & Stitch and Brother Bear at Disney Feature Animation in Florida and Los Angeles. Her most recent project was last year's Klaus. She was 61. ART LOZZI 11/4/2019 Name a classic, beloved Hanna-Barbera series and you can bet that this iconic Background Designer and Color Stylist worked on it. To name a few: Yogi Bear, The Jetsons, Top Cat, Huckleberry Hound, Quick-Draw McGraw and The Flintstones. He was 90. J. MICHAEL MENDEL 9/22/2019 The Emmy-Award winning Producer of The Simpsons and Rick and Morty was much respected for supporting the artists, writers and creators with whom he worked. He was 54. LEE MENDELSON 12/25/2019 The producer (and sometimes writer) of countless Charlie Brown movies and TV series also produced Garfield TV specials, the Mother Goose and Grimm series and Babar movies among many others. He was 86. DON MORGAN 3/31/2019 With a background in industrial design, Morgan was a natural Layout Artist and Designer for animation. Over his long career, he worked on classics such as The Famous Adventures of Mr. Magoo, Tom and Jerry and How the Grinch Stole Christmas at UPA, Chuck Jones Productions, Ralph Bakshi, Hanna-Barbera, and DreamWorks, among other studios. He was 80. PEGGY NICOLL 7/5/2019 Perhaps most well known for her work on Daria, Nicoll also worked as a Writer and Story Editor on Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, Bratz and WordGirl. She was 60. LETHA PRINCE 12/14/2018 During her years at Hanna-Barbera, Filmation and Ralph Bakshi studios, she worked as a mark-up supervisor in the Ink and Paint department and as an animation checker on such classics as He-Man and the Masters of the Universe, She-Ra: Princess of Power, The Original Ghostbusters and Cool World. MILTON QUON 6/18/2019 After Graduating from Chouinard Art Institute in 1939, Quon went straight to Disney Animation to work as an Animator and Designer. Though his career in animation was not long, he will always be known for his work on such classics as Fantasia and Dumbo. He was 105. C. RAGGIO IV 2/9/2019 He jumped straight from CalArts to a solid career in character and prop design at Cartoon Network, Disney TVA and Nickelodeon, and then made the jump to storyboarding for animated features at Illuminations Entertainment and Sony Pictures. His final film was The Angry Birds Movie 2. He was 40. CHRIS RECCARDI 5/2/2019 A Jack Of All Trades, he was a Designer, Storyboard Artist, Visual Development Artist, Writer, Director, Producer and musician on projects such as The Ren & Stimpy Show, The Powerpuff Girls and Samurai Jack. Reccardi was married to fellow artist Lynne Naylor for 25 years. He was 54. JACK SHELDON 12/27/2019 When he wasn't playing sidekick to Merv Griffin, he was teaching kids important con- cepts in the Schoolhouse Rock cartoons "I'm Just a Bill" and "Conjunction Junction." He was 88. MORGAN SHEPPARD 1/6/2019 An actor who was comfortable on the stage and screen, Sheppard was a prolific voice- over actor for animation, video games and radio plays. With his memorable deep voice, he brought to life many characters for Disney TV animation, Warner Bros. and Gang of Seven. He was 87. JAY WON SO (JASON SO) 10/9/2019 With hundreds of credits as an Animator on such series as She-Ra: Princess of Power and The Original Ghostbusters, So also worked as a Storyboard and Character Layout Artist at Baer Animation, Warner Bros., Disney, Filmation, Hanna-Barbera and Marvel. TED STEARN 2/1/2019 Perhaps most well- known for his work as a comics artist— especially the "Fuzz and Pluck" stories— Stearn worked as a Storyboard Artist and Art Director on many prime time animated series, such as Beavis & Butthead, Daria, King of the Hill, Drawn Together, Squirrel Boy, Futurama, Rick and Morty. He was 57. RUSSI TAYLOR 7/26/2019 The voice of Minnie Mouse from 1986 until she passed away last year, she was married to the voice of Mickey Mouse, the late actor Wayne Allwine. In addition, she provided voices for many other animated characters at Disney, Hanna-Barbera, Warner Bros. Jim Henson Studios and on The Simpsons. She was 75. RICHARD TRUEBLOOD 8/21/2019 Over his 30-year career in animation, he worked as an Animator, Director and Timing Director at Hanna-Barbera, Filmation, Disney TV Animation, Universal, Marvel and Nickelodeon and other studios, and still managed to perform as a clown in many Doo Dah parades and watch every circus he could find. He was 78. SHERRI VANDOLI 8/17/2019 She worked in the Ink and Paint Departments at Disney, Ruby-Spears and Filmation as a Cel Painter, Xerox Processor and Supervisor. RICHARD WILLIAMS 8/16/2019 The groundbreaking animator brought Roger Rabbit to life, and his best known work includes The Thief and the Cobbler, A Christmas Carol and Prologue, but perhaps his greatest strength was hiring the right people to work with, in some cases his own mentors. His book, "The Animator's Survival Kit," is an essential industry reference. He was 86. ALAN ZASLOVE 10/2/2019 After starting as an "office boy" at Leon Schlesinger's studios, he went on to animate, direct and produce on the all-time classics at UPA, Hanna-Barbera and Disney. Zaslove co-created Chip 'n Dale Rescue Rangers and was one of The Animation Guild's earliest members—his membership paperwork is dated April 30, 1952! He was 91. T R I B U T E SPRING 2020 43 Compiled and written by Paula Spence