Jim Smith

Writing

1954-10-08 · Lubbock, Texas, U.S.

James Carl Jobb (October 8, 1954 – May 2, 2025), known professionally as Jim Smith, was an American animator and musician. He worked on Mighty Mouse: The New Adventures with his long-time working partner John Kricfalusi. Smith later briefly worked on Tiny Toon Adventures, and then, along with Kricfalusi, Bob Camp, and Lynne Naylor, he founded Spümcø, where he co-developed The Ren & Stimpy Show (from which he departed in 1992 alongside Kricfalusi) in 1991 and The Ripping Friends in 2001. He was notable for remaining faithful to Kricfalusi, having refused to join Games Animation (though he worked on The X's after its rebranding to Nickelodeon Animation Studio), working with Kricfalusi on his projects amid other work until Cans Without Labels (2017). He was also the one playing the guitar for the Ren & Stimpy theme in the intro, performing alongside production assistant Scott Huml and co-worker Chris Reccardi. Smith died of a heart attack on May 2, 2025, at the age of 70; his former Spümcø colleagues Bob Camp and Richard Pursel used their respective social media profiles to pay tribute to him.