Gordon Hunt, director and Helen Hunt's father, dies at 87

Gordon Hunt, director of live-action and animated work who was also the father of Helen Hunt and the husband of actress B.J. Ward, died Saturday. He was 87.

Helen Hunt's representative confirmed to Variety that Gordon Hunt died in his home of complications from Parkinson's disease.

Hunt won a Directors Guild award for his work on a 1996 episode of "Mad About You," and was nominated two years later by the DGA for another episode in the series. He also directed episodes of other comedy series, including "Suddenly Susan," "Frasier," "Coach," and an early Ryan Reynolds vehicle, "Two Guys, a Girl and a Pizza Place."

He also spent 20 years at Hanna-Barbera, and was recording director on hundreds of animated episodes, including "The Jetsons," "The Richie Rich/Scooby-Doo Show," "The Smurfs," "Jonny Quest," Paddington Bear," "Super Friends," "Pound Puppies," and many others.

See photos of Gordon and Helen Hunt together through the years:

He was born April 26, 1929, as Gordon Edwynn Hunt in Sherman Oaks, Calif. Hunt went to New York and was working as a freelance director before returning to Southern California, serving as the casting director for the Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles for 10 years. He was then hired by Joseph Barbera to direct animated series at Hanna-Barbera, starting as voice directing with the 1974 "Partridge Family 2200 A.D."

He also worked on numerous video games including "Pandemonium," the "God of War" series, "Lair," "Final Fantasy XIV," "Blur," the "Legacy of Kain" series, and "Uncharted." He also was motion capture director on "Uncharted: Golden Abyss."

Hunt lent his voice to many animated works, such as playing Wally in the animated adaptation of the comic strip Dilbert.

He is survived by his wife; daughters Helen Hunt and Colleen Morrison Hunt; grandchildren Makena Lei Gordon Carnahan, Emmett Carnahan and Lizze Gordon; siblings Peter Hunt, the lighting designer, and George Hunt.