Animation historian Jerry Beck reports that American anime pioneer Carl Macek passed away from a heart attack on April 17. He was 59.

Macek co-founded Streamline Pictures with Beck in 1988. However, he is best known for his work with Harmony Gold on Robotech, the 1984 TV series that re-dubbed and edited together three unrelated shows: Super Dimensional Fortress Macross, Southern Cross, and Genesis Climber Mospeada. He worked on a large number of titles in his career, including My Neighbor Totoro, Vampire Hunter D, and Bleach. He is often regarded as one of the most influential figures in anime.

Outside of anime, Macek co-founded Spumco (Ren & Stimpy with animator John K, and wrote The Art of Heavy Metal in 1981. In addition, he co-wrote Heavy Metal 2000 and developed ADV Films's Lady Death.

We at Anime Dream offer our deepest condolences to the friends and family of Mr. Macek.