John Ryan

JOHN RYAN d2009. British animator and cartoonist best known for his character Captain Pugwash. Whilst teaching art at Harrow, he first created Captain Pugwash as a comic strip for The Eagle in 1950. The strip was dropped after three months as it was felt to be too young for the target audience. Unperturbed, Ryan created  Harris Tweed Special Agent. However, when The Radio Times commissioned him to provide a strip, he resurrected Captain Pugwash and in 1957 he was commissioned by the BBC to produce a series of animation shorts featuring the character, originally running from 1957 to 1958. The animation of these films was done in real time (rather than by the stop-frame method) using an ingenious system of cut-out characters and boats, moved by hidden cardboard levers. Further episodes were commissioned for almost twenty years later until 1974. In all 126 episodes were made with the last airing in 1975. He died aged 88 in Sussex on July 22nd 2009