On Nov 26 in San Marino, California Stephen Hillenburg passed away from ALS at age 57. Hillenburg is known for creating the popular nickelodeon animated tv series Spongebob SquarePants.

According to infoplease, Hillenburg is a former Marine biologist and scientist, and just like his famous character, a fry cook in a seafood restaurant. But also went to California institute of the Arts to study in cartooning.

According to Today I found out, after Hillenburg graduating with a degree in experimental animation, he went to a animation festival where he meet the creator of the cult show Rocko’s Modern life, and offered Hillenburg a job after they hit off. While working on Rocko’s Modern life as director, and producer, storyboard artist, and writer. He became close friends with Tom Kenny who would voice Spongebob later.  

According to Today I found out, in 1997 Hillenburg and Derek Drymon went to Nickelodeon for a pitch meeting. With Hillenburg making a set of Bikini Bottom and tinier versions of the characters and put them all inside a large aquarium. During the meeting Hillenburg and Drymon described a run down of the pilot episode “Help Wanted”. After the executives talked it over they agreed to give a little amount of money to create the pilot.

According to Variety, Hillenburg served as director, producer for the show, and was the writer, producer, and director for “The Spongebob SquarePants Movie” in 2004, and came back as executive producer for the sequel “The Spongebob Movie: Sponge Out of Water” in 2015.