Image via AWN
Animation director, producer, artist, and educator Gerard Baldwin died April 18 at his home in Kingwood, Texas, reports the Animation World Network (AWN). Baldwin is known for his work on Mr. Magoo, Rocky and Bullwinkle, Yogi Bear, and The Flintstones, culminating with Emmy Award-winning work on The Smurfs. The Smurfs was based on Belgian artist Peyo’s comic books.
Baldwin grew up in depression-era New York, attending the Chouinard Art Institute, before serving in the Army during the Korean war. He then had a long and successful career animating, directing, and producing cartoon characters for Hanna-Barbera.
A note his family sent to AWN reads in part:
“Gerard moved with his family to Kingwood in 1989 and had a second career passing on his extensive knowledge as a popular drawing instructor at Lone Star college. Unceasing in ambition and creativity, Gerard never retired; he published a memoir, wrote essays, and created drawings and paintings until the end.”
