"Yogi," "Flintstones" designer made Auburn his last home

Ed Benedict's is one of those stories of Auburn that tend to fall through the cracks because of time and tide but one that Media Life tries not to ignore.Benedict wasn't a household name but the cartoon characters he designed are. Most famously, he drew the first Fred Flintstone and Yogi Bear when he was a major creative force for Hanna-Barbera in the late 1950s and early 1960s.Benedict lived the last seven years of his life at his rural Auburn home, dying last Aug. 28 in his sleep, just a few days after his 94th birthday. He'd moved to Auburn from Carmel shortly after the death of his wife of 56 years, Alice.His son, Don - who has lived in the Auburn area for several years - said his father kept a low profile but did welcome younger artists and researchers who made the pilgrimage to the foothills to visit with one of the legends of animated cartoons.Benedict's animation work started with Walt Disney Studios in 1930 and he continued to draw right up until the end. He was cited by "Ren & Stimpy Show" creator John Kricfalusi as a major influence and recently drew "guest" characters for a holiday episode of the "Johnny Bravo" cartoon.Benedict's role in the animation process was mainly character designer and layout artist. Others did the actual animation work.His design work is all over "The Flintstones" - a success from its debut in 1960 as television's first prime-time cartoon. He designed Wilma Flintstone, Barney and Betty Rubble, the Bedrock houses and modern Stone Age interiors, and many of the quirky prehistoric devices that mimicked modern household conveniences. Don recalled that he was dubbed the Architect of Bedrock for his solid body of work on "The Flintstones."Saturday-morning kids of the Baby Boomer generation can also thank Benedict's drawing touch for cartoon-world immortals Huckelberry Hound, Quick Draw McGraw, Tomcat, Augie Doggy, Booboo, Jinx the Cat, Pixie and Dixie, and Doggie Daddy.While news of Benedict's death carried quickly over the blogosphere, it took over a month for it to filter into the mainstream media. From there, it was picked up by media outlets throughout the world - a tribute to the staying power of Benedict's images and the love people have for them."He just loved to draw," Don said. "He started at 5 or so and never stopped."Benedict was hired by Disney at 18 as an assistant animator, leaving in 1933 for Universal Studios where he worked with Woody the Woodpecker creator Walter Lantz on "Oswald the Lucky Rabbit" cartoon shorts. A brief return to Disney yielded his only credit with that studio - on "Make Mine Music." Before joining Hanna-Barbera, Benedict also was lead animator and did layout for Tex Avery's animation unit at MGM. His work can be seen in "Deputy Droopy," "Dixieland Droopy," and "The First Bad Man."Leaving Hanna-Barbera, Benedict moved to Carmel and continued to freelance, never completely retiring, Don noted.Media Life's Gus Thomson can be reached at gust@goldcountrymedia.com.