CRAIG MCCRACKEN

'Craig McCracken' (b. May 29, 1971 in Detroit, Michigan) is an American animator. Craig draws upon diverse sources of inspiration for his work, from The Beatles (of whom Craig is a huge fan) to obscure Japanese films.

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Biography

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Biography

Craig McCracken was born in May 29, 1971 in Detroit, Michigan. He however grew up in an extreme urban environment in the lower class areas of Detroit. The high crime of his childhood neighborhood helped inspire to create his ficitious "Townsville" in the ''Powerpuff Girls'', which is a city ridded with crime. However by the time he reached 10 years old his family moved to a more middle class suburban area in Huntington Beach, California where he remained for much of his adolsecence.
Craig became interested in drawing at an early age. Upon graduation of high school, he attended the California Institute of the Arts (CalArts), where he honed his animation skills. There he met classmate Genndy Tartakovsky, with whom he would occasionally collaborate throughout his career. During his freshman year at CalArts, he created a series of short cartoons featuring a character named No Neck Joe. These cartoons were picked up by Spike and Mike's Sick and Twisted Festival of Animation and seen by audiences worldwide. While at CalArts, Craig also created a short entitled ''The Whoop@$$ Girls,'' featuring three cute little girls with superpowers.
In 1993, Craig was tapped by Cartoon Network to do the art direction on one of their first original shows, ''2 Stupid Dogs''. The show was popular, but only lasted for about a year. However, while there, Cartoon Network allowed Craig to develop more shorts of ''The Whoop-@$$ Girls;'' only this time, under the title of ''The Powerpuff Girls'', since the previous title was deemed verbally offensive by Cartoon Network execs. The first shorts aired in 1995 on What-A-Cartoon!, and full half-hour episodes hit the air in 1998, and the show has been airing ever since. The show itself has become famous internationally, especially for young girls. No new episodes are currently in production and the show has been officially cancelled in some countries while others remained having it. McCracken is not involved in the production of the anime adaptation of ''The Powerpuff Girls'', ''Demashita! Powerpuff Girls Z''.
In August 2004, Craig's latest project, ''Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends'', began airing on Cartoon Network. The cartoon soon turned into a famous Emmy- and Annie-winning show, appealing to all ages, both to boys and girls.
McCracken is married to Lauren Faust, who works alongside with him on ''Foster's'' and ''The Powerpuff Girls''. She has also created the website called 'Milky Way and the Galaxy Girls', with characters slightly like the Powerpuff Girls.

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