Joe Murray Biography

Fast Facts

• Was nominated for two CableACE Awards for Animated Programming Special or Series for "Rocko's Modern Life" in 1995
• Won a Student Academy Award for Animation for his very first animated film, "The Chore," in 1989
• Started out as a caricature artist at the age of 16 after attending a summer program at a local art college
• By the age of 17 he was working as an illustrator for an ad agency and as a political cartoonist for a San Jose newspaper
• Quote: "I believe that artists are at the core of our evolution․ And that everyone has art that needs to be shared․ That storytelling binds every culture, and that every media is an extension of cave paintings and dances around fires․"
• Quote: "I think that details are important․ Conscience choices․ I have no qualms about stopping a production line to put an extra gag on a sign in a scene that you may never notice․"
• Best known as an illustrator, animator, and writer and as the creator and executive producer of "Rocko's Modern Life" and "Camp Lazlo․"
• Founded the Joe Murray Studio at the age of 21, starting out as a commercial art studio before progressing into animation
• After the success of "Rocko's Modern Life," he began focusing on children's books, one of which became the idea for his next big series, "Camp Lazlo․"
• The main character in "Rocko's Modern Life" was inspired by another wallaby character that he had used previously in a comic strip