Lou Scheimer



Louis "Lou" Scheimer was an American television producer and one of the original founders of Filmation, an animation company, serving as an executive producer of many of its cartoons. Born October 19, 1928 Scheimer was the son of German Jewish immigrants. He graduated from Carnegie Tech University (now Carnegie-Mellon University) in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania with a bachelor's degree in Fine Arts in 1952. In 1963, he became founders with Hal Sutherland and Norm Prescott of Filmation Studio for turning out animated television series, often contributing secondary voices to the various productions, such as the voice of N'kima, Tarzan's monkey companion in "Tarzan, Lord of the Jungle" and Gilligan's monkey friend on The New Adventures of Gilligan. He also played a significant role in the creation of the cartoons "He-Man and the Masters of the Universe" and "Bravestarr." His wife, Jay Scheimer, and daughter, Erika, also did various voices in the first season of "He-Man" and most of it's spin-off, "She-Ra." Scheimer's other voices include "Dumb Donald" on the long-running "Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids," the unseen boss "Zero" in the live -action "Ghost-Busters" with Larry Storch and Forrest Kelly, Bat-Mite, the Bat-Computer and Clayface on "The New Adventures of Batman" in 1977 and Tracy the Gorilla in the animated 1986 reboot of "Ghost-Busters." In the late 1990s, Scheimer returned to the field of animation by producing "Robin and the Dreamweavers," an animated feature film that never reached distribution. He also provided consultation work for G7 Animation. In the Late 90s, Scheimer underwent quadruple bypass surgery and was subsequently diagnosed with Parkinson's disease. He died from the disease at his home in Tarzana, California on October 17, 2013, two days shy of his 85th birthday. He was survived by his wife, Jay Scheimer, daughter, Erika, and one son, Lane. The Lou Scheimer Gallery at the ToonSeum, a museum of comic and cartoon art in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, is named in his honor.

Episode(s)

 * The New Adventures of Gilligan
 * Gilligan's Planet