Gene Deitch, Director of Tom and Jerry, Popeye, passes away at 95

Gene Deitch, an Oscar-winning illustrator and animator, has passed away at the age of 95. He was best known for directing popular cartoon shows Tom And Jerry, and Popeye for television.

Deitch, whose full name was Eugene Merrill Deitch, was born on August 8 in 1924, in Chicago. As per the sources, Gene Deitch died in his apartment in Prague's Little Quarter.

Deitch directed 13 episodes of Tom And Jerry for MGM between 1961 to 1962 and also directed a few episodes of Popeye for King Features between 1960 and 1963. 

He won the Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film in 1960 for his film Munro. Gene Deitch also received the Winsor McCay Award for his lifelong contribution to animation in 2004.