Bud Luckey

Bud Luckey was an American artist whose career spanned more than five decades, beginning in the early 1960s after he returned from service in the United States Air Force during the Korean War. Born William Everett Luckey in Billings, Montana on July 28, 1934, he used the G.I. Bill to study at the Chouinard Art Institute and later received animation training under Disney veteran Art Babbitt at the University of Southern California. His first professional work included animating for The Alvin Show and contributing to the pilot for a Mad Magazine television special, before moving into advertising where he helped create iconic commercial characters such as Tony the Tiger, Toucan Sam, and the “Bosco Dumbunnies” for Best Foods. Luckey’s talent earned him a Clio Award in 1966 for a General Mills Betty Crocker commercial, and his collaborations with legendary figures like Jim Henson and Charles M. Schulz further established his reputation as a versatile visual storyteller. Throughout the 1970s and 1980s he wrote, animated, and voiced dozens of short films for Sesame Street, often partnering with writer Don Hadley, and founded his own studio, the Luckey‑Zamora Picture Moving Company, which later merged with Colossal Pictures. In 1992 Luckey joined Pixar Animation Studios as its fifth employee and quickly became known as a character design virtuoso, contributing to the look of classics such as Toy Story, A Bug’s Life, Monsters, Inc., Finding Nemo, Cars, Ratatouille, and The Incredibles. He famously helped shape the beloved cowboy doll Woody, and provided the voice of NSA agent Rick Dicker in The Incredibles as well as Chuckles the Clown in Toy Story 3. Luckey also wrote, directed, and performed all aspects of the Oscar‑nominated short Boundin’, for which he won an Annie Award in 2004. His musical talents shone as he sang and played banjo on the short’s soundtrack, showcasing his rare blend of visual and auditory artistry. After retiring in 2014, he left a legacy of more than one hundred children’s books and countless memorable characters. Bud Luckey passed away on February 24, 2018, after a stroke, and was posthumously honored in Incredibles 2 and by colleagues who remembered him as one of animation’s true unsung heroes.