Snoopy cartoonist dies, aged 91

BILL MELENDEZ, the animator who gave life to Snoopy, Charlie Brown and other Peanuts characters, has died aged 91.

Melendez died of natural causes on Tuesday at St John’s Health Centre, Santa Monica.

Melendez’s nearly seven decades as a professional animator began in 1938 when he was hired by Walt Disney Studios and worked on Mickey Mouse cartoons and classic animated features such as Pinocchio.