What is Arthur Rankin Jr.?
{{Infobox person | name = Arthur Rankin, Jr. | imagesize = 250px | caption = Rankin in an undated photo. | birth_name = Arthur Gardner Rankin, Jr. | birth_date = {{Birth date|1924|07|19}} | birth_place = [[New York City]], [[New York (state)|New York]], [[United States|U.S.]] | death_date = {{Death date and age|2014|01|30|1924|07|19}} | death_place = [[Harrington Sound, Bermuda|Harrington Sound]], [[Bermuda]] | other_names = Arthur Rankin | alma_mater = | occupation = Animator, director, producer, writer | spouse = [[Olga Karlatos]] | children = 2 | parents = [[Arthur Rankin]],<br />[[Marian Mansfield]] | relatives = [[Harry Davenport (actor)|Harry Davenport]] (grandfather),<br />[[Phyllis Rankin]] (grandmother) | years_active = Late 1940s&ndash;2014 | signature = ArthurRankinJr.png }} '''Arthur Gardner Rankin, Jr.''' (July 19, 1924 &ndash; January 30, 2014) was an [[Americans|American]] director, producer, and writer, who mostly worked in [[animation]]. He was a part of [[Rankin/Bass Productions]] with his partner [[Jules Bass]], he created [[stop-motion]] animation features such as ''[[Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (TV special)|Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer]]'' and the 1977 [[cartoon]] animation of ''[[The Hobbit (1977 film)|The Hobbit]]''. He is credited in over 1,000 [[television]] [[:wikt:program|programs]]. Arthur Gardner Rankin, Jr. was born on July 19, 1924 in [[New York City]], [[New York (state)|New York]]. He was the son of actors, [[Arthur Rankin]] and [[Marian Mansfield]]. His grandparents, [[Harry Davenport (actor)|Harry Davenport]] and [[Phyllis Rankin]], were also actors. He was of [[English people|English]] and [[Irish people|Irish]] ancestry.<ref name=RG>{{Cite web|url=http://www.royalgazette.com/article/20140131/NEWS/140139945|title=Arthur Rankin Jr, ‘Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer’ co-producer dies, age 89|first=Jonathan|last=Bell|date=February 16, 2014|publisher=[[The Royal Gazette]] |access-date=January 31, 2014}}</ref> Rankin died afte