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#31: John Kricfalusi Blows It, Then Things Get Way Worse

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It says something when Ren and Stimpy isn't the most fucked up thing you've ever done.

John Kricfalusi is the creator of The Ren & Stimpy Show, a controversial but exceptionally popular show that during its heyday in 1992 and 1993 was Nickelodeon's most popular show and one of the highest rated shows on all of cable. Kricfalusi himself was a talented animator with a distinct, if disturbing style, a proponent of all things old-school animation, whose warped sensibilities struck a chord with Gen X and early Millennial kids alike. Unfortunately, this warped mind of his led to numerous clashes with Nickelodeon over the direction of the show, with production delays galore, some caused by Kricfalusi's exacting style, some caused by Nickelodeon's lengthy approval process. Whatever the reason, these production delays and Kricfalusi's abrasive personality annoyed Nickelodeon to the point where they were willing to kick him to the curb despite his show being at the absolute height of its popularity. Though the show would continue for three more years, many fans state it wasn't the same afterward, despite their personal distaste for Kricfalusi's style. In later years, Kricfalusi would work on other animated productions, while occasionally crawling out of the woodwork to criticize contemporary cartoons (sometimes in quite insulting ways). If this were the end of the story, he'd be a borderline case for the list, but of course, for him to be so high up there has to be something else, and that something else is recent accusations of sexual harassment and abuse of underage staffers on his show, along with accusations that he possessed illegal material. While these allegations haven't been formally proven, they're disturbing nonetheless, and with numerous people corroborating them, it adds a further stain on Kricfalusi's reputation, with his lawyer admitting to a brief relationship with a 16 year old girl but denying the other charges. Though he apologized for some of these transgressions, many see the apology as non-sincere, and now John Kricfalusi is known as a cautionary tale in the industry, how hubris and failure to adequately deal with one's mental issues can lead to not only damaging one's career, but the lives of those around them as well.