Los Angeles: Hollywood animator Joseph Barbera, who created the lovable characters Fred Flintston and Scooby Doo, died on Monday at the age of 95, the Warner Bross film studio said in a statement.
Barbera founded the Hanna-Barbera Studios with partner William Hanna nearly 50 years ago and went on to become one of Hollywood's best known animation companies.
He died at his home in Los Angeles with his wife Sheila by his side, Warner Bros said.
Warner Bros Chairman Barry Meyer said in a statement, "The characters he created with his late partner William Hanna are not only animated superstars, but also a very beloved part of American pop culture. While he will be missed by his family and friends, Joe will live on through his work."
The animation creators won wide acclaim in 1945 when they were responsible for getting Tom and Jerry to dance on movie screens alongside the very real Gene Kelly in "Anchors Aweigh."
The pair later formed Hanna-Barbera Studios in 1957, where they created the Flintstone family, the Jetson clan, Scooby-Doo and Yogi Bear.
By the 1980s, Hanna-Barbera had taken cartoon characters the Smurfs and developed a US TV show for them.
Hanna-Barbera won numerous Emmys and in 1994 Joseph Barbera and William Hanna were elected to the US-based Academy of Television Arts & Sciences' Hall of Fame.
Barbera wrote his autobiography, "My Life in 'Toons," in 1994, detailing his rise to cartoon legend from a childhood in New York City, where he was born on March 24, 1911.
He is survived by his wife and three children from a previous marriage.
