Gene Deitch

Gene Deitch (8 August, 1924 – 16 April, 2020), was an American Academy Award-winning animator. Mainly known for his work on the Popeye and Tom and Jerry series, he was the director and creator of the first animated film of The Hobbit in 1967. The film was produced by William Snyder and was made in under a month. The running time for the film was a minuscule 12 minutes and was produced simply so Snyder could extend his license for The Lord of the Rings, and sell it back to Tolkien and his publishers for $100,000.