Animation luminaries and adoring fans – who are often one and the same – have expressed their admiration for SpongeBob SquarePants creator Steve Hillenburg, who died on Monday of ALS.
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Brad Bird, a driving force behind The Simpsons, Rugrats, and The Incredibles, took to Twitter to share his first experience with the madcap adventures of the rectangular invertebrate.
I first discovered SPONGEBOB through my sons, who were loudly singing along with the dopey & memorable theme song downstairs. I came down to see what the ruckus was about and ended up watching my first episode. Many laughs.
Many thanks, Steve Hillenburg. May you Rest In Peace. pic.twitter.com/3VNsxYJVXq— Brad Bird (@BradBirdA113) November 27, 2018
Butch Hartman, the genius behind The Fairly OddParents, praised his fellow animator and Nickelodeon colleague.
No words. Steve Hillenburg was a friend and immensely talented creator. We grew up together at Nickelodeon. Prayers for his family and legions of fans. You will be sorely missed, Steve. pic.twitter.com/iwaAggGb31
— Butch Hartman (@realhartman) November 27, 2018
Invader Zim mastermind Jhonen Vasquez spoke of the influence the SpongeBob Squarepants pilot had on his work, saying “when I think of how much of himself Hillenburg gave to his creation over so many years it just amplifies the immense respect I already had for him.”
Most people have no idea how grueling it is to make a show at all, even if it’s supposed to be absurd and silly, and when I think of how much of himself Hillenburg gave to his creation over so many years it just amplifies the immense respect I already had for him.
— Jhonen Vasquez (@JhonenV) November 27, 2018
Dan Povenmire, of Phineas & Ferb fame, had this to say:
This is the saddest day. https://t.co/pnJ9VJRAta
— Dan Povenmire (@DanPovenmire) November 27, 2018
David Hasselhoff, who featured in The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie, also offered praise to Hillenburg and the world he created.
Wow what a unique and fantastic character Steve created! It was my pleasure and honor to be in SpongeBob The Movie and to share some great laughs with this gentleman, Shocking Loss! To this day I am stopped and flattered by people and kids who have seen me in the film.#SpongeBob pic.twitter.com/gNF1CkJk69
— David Hasselhoff (@DavidHasselhoff) November 27, 2018
Elsewhere, Hillenburg has been singled out as one of the forefathers of the warped, absurd humour which has proliferated across youth culture since SpongeBob’s inception.
Take it from the guy who gave us Zendaya Is Meechee, among others:
The quality of the first three seasons of Spongebob are to blame for it’s decades-long cultural relevance. Stephen Hillenburg created a broad, optimistic universe without sacrificing any of his absurd sensibility, giving us art that could be loved and understood commonly. Tragic.
— Gabriel Gundacker (@gabegundacker) November 27, 2018
https://twitter.com/BRANDONWARDELL/status/1067523117369753601
second, on a professional level. i’ll always admire stephen and the SB crew for not making a show “for” kids and just making something that was genuinely funny and well-made. they also consistently got together an A-team without any ego. so many fantastic artists spawned from SB.
— zach (@psychicpebble) November 27, 2018
Stephen Hillenburg kicked ass, this is so sad. I was lucky enough to get to meet him very briefly ten years ago and he was so sweet and cool
— branson 🦢 reese (@bransonreese) November 27, 2018
https://twitter.com/CCLXXXI/status/1067524701499609089
RIP to a quiet legend, whose work has been given a new life by the very kids SpongeBob first entertained in 1999.