Biography
Rick Reinert (September 14, 1925 – November 5, 2018), born Frederick George Reinert, Jr. in Parma, Ohio, was one of three sons of Fred and Anita Reinert. His father was a longtime member of the Cleveland Plain Dealer’s editorial art department and a skilled caricaturist.
Reinert attended Parma Schaaf High School and began his art career in 1945, working in MGM’s cartoon department. In 1947, he was drafted and served at the Army Photo Center Animation Department in New York. During the 1950s, he worked as art director for WJW-TV in Cleveland, creating sales films and title designs.
In 1960, he founded Rick Reinert Productions, an animation studio based in Cleveland. The company produced hundreds of animated TV commercials and films for General Pictures Corp. and other sponsored film studios.
While in Cleveland, Reinert created the animated special "The Dipsy Doodle Show" (1974) and designed the opening credits for ABC’s "After School Special" and "Weekend Special."
In 1979, he relocated his company to Burbank, California, where it expanded to 75 employees.
Reinert worked on numerous beloved cartoon characters including Tom & Jerry, Charlie Brown, Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, and Winnie the Pooh. However, his main passion was character creation, background painting, and overseeing production as a producer/director. He produced and directed animated shorts for Disney such as "Food Is Fun: A Nutrition Adventure" (1980), "Winnie the Pooh Discovers the Seasons" (1981), and "Winnie the Pooh and a Day for Eeyore" (1983).
According to the Internet Movie Database (IMDb), he contributed background animation to the film "Mrs. Doubtfire" (1993).
Reinert collaborated with the Library of Congress’ "Read More About It" program, creating short ads to encourage reading, including five animated films like "Capt'n O.G. Readmore's Jack in the Beanstalk" (1985).
He also produced specials such as "The Bollo Caper" (1985) and "The Kingdom Chums: Original Top 10" (1990). In the early 1990s, he produced animated specials based on Precious Moments figurines, including "Timmy's Gift: A Precious Moments Christmas" (1991). In 1997, he was the animation supervisor for the half-hour Peanuts special "It Was My Best Birthday Ever, Charlie Brown.
