Bollywood actor Vicky Kaushal took to social media in the early hours of Tuesday morning to mourn the demise of Gene Deitch, best known for directing the animated ‘Tom and Jerry’ series. Taking to his Instagram story the Masaan actor, shared an illustration of Gene with Tom and Jerry on either side. Vicky penned a heartfelt note for the director that read, “Thank you for making our childhood so amazing!”The American born animator directed 13 episodes of beloved children’s cartoon Tom and Jerry and a number from the series Popeye the Sailor.
Born in Chicago in 1924, Deitch arrived in Prague in 1959 intending to stay for 10 days. But, after falling in love with his future wife, Zdenka, he ended up spending the rest of his life in the city. Deitch is survived by his wife and by three sons from his first marriage, all of whom are cartoonists and illustrators.