Flintstones creator Barbera dies aged 95

11 April 2012
The Weekender

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Joseph Barbera, who helped create Tom and Jerry, The Flint-stones and Scooby Doo, has died at the age of 95.

His death in Los Angeles marks the end of one of the most talented and prolific duos in Hollywood cartoon-making - Hanna-Barbera.

During his 60- year partnership with William Hanna, the pair won seven Oscars and produced more than 300 television series, many of which are still watched by children around the world.

His death comes five years after that of Hanna, aged 90, and just two months after the death of Ed Benedict, the genius who drew many of the most famous Hanna-Barbera favourites.

'The characters he created with William Hanna are not only animated superstars, but also a very beloved part of American pop culture,' Barry Meyer, chairman of Warner Brothers - which now owns the cartoon company - said.

'While he will be missed by his family and friends, Joe will live on through his work.'

Barbera was born in New York City on March 24, 1911.

He 'intensely disliked' his first job as a banker and moved to Los Angeles to try his hand as a cartoonist in 1929.

It was at the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer film studio in 1937 that he met Hanna.

They first worked together on the cartoon Puss Gets the Boot, which led to the creation of the cat and mouse foes, Tom and Jerry.

Barbera, the animator, and Hanna, the director, left MGM in the 1950s and formed Hanna-Barbera Studios.

There, they created characters such as the Flintstone family, the space age Jetson clan, the ghost-hunting dog Scooby-Doo and the goofy Yogi Bear.

Although they sold their production company in 1967, they remained closely involved in the business throughout their lives.

But the two never mixed socially. 'It isn't deliberate - it just happened that way,' Barbera explained in 1988.

'Bill likes the great outdoors and goes fishing, boating and on camping trips. I hate boating. I hate fishing. I hate camping. While Bill is up north at his ranch, I go to Palm Springs.'

Barbera is survived by his wife Sheila and his three children from a previous marriage.

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