Russell P. "Rusty" Mills (c. December 16, 1962 – December 7, 2012) was an American

animator An animator is an artist who creates multiple images, known as frames, which give an illusion of movement called animation when displayed in rapid sequence. Animators can work in a variety of fields including film, television, and video games ...

, director and producer. A Primetime Emmy winner, Mills was best known for his work with Warner Bros. Animation, including ''

Animaniacs ''Animaniacs'' is an American animated comedy musical television series created by Tom Ruegger for Fox Broadcasting Company's Fox Kids block in 1993, before moving to The WB in 1995, as part of its Kids' WB afternoon programming block, until ...

'', ''

Tiny Toon Adventures ''Tiny Toon Adventures'' is an American animated comedy television series that was broadcast from September 14, 1990, to December 6, 1992. It was the first collaborative effort of Steven Spielberg's Amblin Television and Warner Bros. Animation a ...

'', and ''

Pinky and the Brain ''Pinky and the Brain'' is an American animated television series that was created by Tom Ruegger that premiered on Kids' WB on September 9, 1995. It was the first animated television series to be presented in Dolby Surround and the fourth col ...

''. Mills was a five time Emmy winner, receiving one Primetime Emmy and four Daytime Emmy awards.

Early life and career

Mills, a native of

Winston-Salem, North Carolina Winston-Salem is a city and the county seat of Forsyth County, North Carolina, United States. In the 2020 census, the population was 249,545, making it the second-largest municipality in the Piedmont Triad region, the 5th most populous city in ...

, graduated from the

University of North Carolina School of the Arts The University of North Carolina School of the Arts (UNCSA) is an arts school in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. It grants high school, undergraduate, and graduate degrees. Founded in 1963 as the North Carolina School of the Arts by then-Governo ...

high school in 1980. He then completed his studies at

California Institute of the Arts The California Institute of the Arts (CalArts) is a private art university in Santa Clarita, California. It was incorporated in 1961 as the first degree-granting institution of higher learning in the US created specifically for students of both ...

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

after high school. He worked as a freelance animator following college before joining Warner Bros. Animation, where he worked for approximately ten years. His production credits with Warner Bros. included ''

'' and ''

'', which he worked on directly with Steven Spielberg one of the show's

producers Producer or producers may refer to: Occupations *Producer (agriculture), a farm operator *A stakeholder of economic production *Film producer, supervises the making of films **Executive producer, contributes to a film's budget and usually does not ...

. In 1996, Mills won a Primetime Emmy Award for his work on " A Pinky and the Brain Christmas," a

Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people around the world. A feast central to the Christian liturgical year ...

episode of the animated television series, ''

'', which aired in December 1995. Mills had directed that particular holiday episode of the series. During his career, Mills also won four

Daytime Emmys The Daytime Emmy Awards, or Daytime Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the American television industry. Bestowed by the New York–based National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences ...

and received eight Emmy nominations. Mills' additional television animated credits included ''

Garfield's Thanksgiving ''Garfield's Thanksgiving'' is a 1989 American animated television special based on the ''Garfield'' comic strip. It once again featured Lorenzo Music as the voice of Garfield. The special was first broadcast November 22, 1989 on CBS and was nomi ...

'' in 1989, ''

Pinky, Elmyra & the Brain ''Pinky, Elmyra & the Brain'' is the retooling of the American animated television series ''Pinky and the Brain'' (itself being a spin-off from ''Animaniacs''), with the title characters being joined by Elmyra Duff from ''Tiny Toon Adventures''. ...

'', ''

Mickey Mouse Clubhouse ''Mickey Mouse Clubhouse'' is an American interactive computer-animated children's television series which aired from May 5, 2006, to November 6, 2016 on the Disney Channel. Produced by Disney Television Animation, it is the first computer-a ...

'', '' Batman: Mystery of the Batwoman'', ''

Pink Panther and Pals ''Pink Panther and Pals'' is an American animated television series and a modern adaptation of the classic DePatie-Freleng Pink Panther shorts from the 1960s. The program was produced for Boomerang by Desert Panther Production and Rubicon Stud ...

'', and '' The Replacements''. His last credited work was for the 2011 animated

television special A television special (often TV special, or rarely television spectacular) is a standalone television show which may also temporarily interrupt episodic programming normally scheduled for a given time slot. Some specials provide a full range of ent ...

, ''

A Very Pink Christmas A, or a, is the first letter and the first vowel of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''a'' (pronounced ), plural ''aes'' ...

'', with the ''

Pink Panther ''The Pink Panther'' is an American media franchise primarily focusing on a series of comedy-mystery films featuring an inept French police detective, Inspector Jacques Clouseau. The franchise began with the release of the classic film ''The Pin ...

''.

Death

Mills died from colon cancer on December 7, 2012, at the age of 49. He is survived by his wife, Andrea; son, Evan; his mother, Janet Mills; and sister, Linda Hough.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Mills, Rusty 1962 births 2012 deaths American animators American animated film directors American animated film producers American television directors American television producers Annie Award winners Primetime Emmy Award winners Daytime Emmy Award winners Deaths from cancer in California Deaths from colorectal cancer California Institute of the Arts alumni University of North Carolina School of the Arts alumni 1960s births People from Winston-Salem, North Carolina