Family and friends had asked for prayers for the health of the famous cartoonist who had been hospitalized in the intensive care unit since last Wednesday.
Edwin Aguilar, the Salvadoran cartoonist who has been drawing The Simpsons for more than 20 years, died on Saturday from a cerebral thrombosis, family and friends confirmed.
According to sources close to the artist, Edwin remained in Los Angeles for several days in the intensive care unit after suffering “a stroke”. Through social networks, his relatives asked for prayers for his speedy recovery.
For more than two decades, this talented Salvadoran has been drawing the characters of Homer, Bart, Lisa, Marge and Maggie, from the Simpsons series, a production in which he served as assistant director.
Edwin is originally from San Miguel. In the eighties he emigrated to the United States where he had lived since the age of nine. Photo EDH / Archive
Edwin Aguilar was originally from the canton of El Carao, in the department of San Miguel, in the eastern part of the country. He was born in 1974. At the age of 9, he emigrated to the United States with his brother, where he will reunite with his Los Angeles-based family.
In an interview with El Diario de Hoy, Edwin commented that he left El Salvador so as not to be recruited by the guerrillas or the armed forces during the armed conflict.
Read also: The story of Edwin Aguilar, the Salvadoran who drew the “Simpsons” for 20 years
Far from El Salvador, his life has changed. Thanks to a scholarship to study illustration at the Art Center of Design in Pasadena, California, and animation at the Bridges Visual Institute in Santa Monica.
He started animating for “Graz Entertainment” when they produced “Transformers” and “GI-Joe”, then for Hanna-Barbera he created episodes with “Pebbles” and “Bam-Bam”, then he looked for work with Chuck Jones, creator of animated short films such as “Merrie Melodies” and cartoon characters such as “Looney Tunes” for Warner Brothers.
Photo EDH / Archive
In 1989, when Fox aired Simpson, created by Matt Groening, the Salvadoran underwent a pencil examination and approved it, where he signed a contract to become the designer of the yellow family’s animated characters.
After learning the news of his death, numerous messages of condolence and memories from his life with friends, family and people who knew him monopolized social networks.
Over the years, Edwin has always maintained a close connection with El Salvador, where he returned regularly and took the opportunity to share his knowledge of design and anime with children from different communities.
At this time, no further details have been given about the funeral documents.