'Mr. Magoo' co-creator, Millard Kaufman dies

Oscar-nominated screenwriter Millard Kaufman, the co-creator of "Mr. Magoo" who waited until he was 90 to pen his first novel, has died, US media reported Tuesday. He was 92.

Kaufman, nominated for the script of the 1955 movie "Bad Day at Black Rock" starring Spencer Tracy, died of heart failure Saturday at a Los Angeles hospital, his son Frederick Kaufman told the Los Angeles Times.

After returning from his service in the US Marines in World War II, Kaufman wrote the screenplay for "Ragtime Bear," the popular 1949 cartoon short which introduced Mr. Magoo, a wealthy retiree modelled in part on Kaufman's own uncle.

Kaufman emerged as a talented script doctor for MGM, and his first screenplay for the studio, 1953's "Take the High Ground!" about army basic training, earned him the first of his two Oscar nominations.

He also famously wrote a well-reviewed novel at age 90 titled "Bowl of Cherries." His second novel, "Misadventure," is due out this fall, according to the Times.