Tom Ruegger is a renowned producer and creative force behind numerous popular and successful animated television series. He has won fourteen Emmy Awards and has been involved in the development, writing, and production of multiple television series and feature films.
Throughout his career, Tom has worked with major studios such as Warner Bros. Animation, Hanna-Barbera Productions, and Filmation Studios. He began his career as an animator at Hanna-Barbera, where he worked under the mentorship of his childhood heroes, William Hanna and Joseph Barbera.
Tom's early animation efforts appeared in shows such as "Scooby Doo", "The New Flintstones", "Casper", and "Godzilla". He honed his writing skills at Filmation Studios and later returned to Hanna-Barbera to serve as a story editor and producer for various shows.
In 1988, Tom created and produced "A Pup Named Scooby-Doo", which was the first Scooby Doo series to be nominated for an Emmy Award. He then joined Warner Bros. Animation in 1989 to head up production of "Tiny Toon Adventures" (1990),which marked the beginning of a decade-long creative collaboration with Steven Spielberg.
This collaboration led to the creation of several successful series, including "Animaniacs" (1993),"Pinky and the Brain" (1995),"Freakazoid!" (1995),"Histeria!" (1998),"Road Rovers" (1996),and "Animaniacs: Wakko's Wish" (1999). Tom has also executive-produced several feature films, including "Batman: Mask of the Phantasm" (1993).
Tom grew up in Metuchen, New Jersey, and attended Metuchen High School, where he served as Student Council President and editorial cartoonist for the high school newspaper. He attended Dartmouth College, where he graduated cum laude with a bachelor's degree in English.
In his junior year at Dartmouth, Tom received a grant to create an animated film, which led to the beginning of his film career. Before graduation, Tom received the Marcus Heiman Award, Dartmouth College's highest honor for creative achievement.
Currently, Tom serves on the board of directors for the Hopkins Center and Hood Museum at Dartmouth College and is a member of the Writers Guild and the Screen Cartoonists Guild. He lives in Calabasas, California, with his three sons, Nathan, Luke, and Cody.
In recent years, Tom has worked on several projects, including the Emmy Award-winning animated series "Tutenstein" (2003) and the CGI animated series "Animalia" (2007) for PorchLight Entertainment and Burberry Production. He is currently developing a new animated series for the Walt Disney Company.
