Career
Hurst built his career as a television animation writer during the late 1980s and 1990s, a period of significant growth and creative ambition in American Saturday morning animation. He worked consistently across a range of prominent series, often in partnership with Pat Allee.
His credits include:1
- The New Archies (1987) -- writer on the series
- The Real Ghostbusters -- writer (episodes listed below)
- Slimer! -- writer (episodes listed below)
- Tiny Toon Adventures (1990) -- writer on 3 episodes, including co-writing work with Pat Allee that earned European royalties
- Captain Planet and the Planeteers (1991-1993) -- story editor on 21 episodes (1991-1992) and writer on 3 episodes (1992-1993)
- Sonic the Hedgehog (1993-1994) -- associate story editor on 13 episodes and writer on 10 episodes
- Sonic Underground (1999) -- writer on the series
- Machine Gun Jesus (short film, 2008) -- voice performance
Hurst's role on Captain Planet and the Planeteers as story editor gave him substantial creative oversight during the series' first two seasons, shaping the environmental-themed anthology format the show used.
Ghostbusters
Hurst wrote a small but credited set of episodes for DiC's animated Ghostbusters properties in the late 1980s. His Ghostbusters work was done in partnership with Pat Allee.
The Real Ghostbusters
Slimer!
Sonic the Hedgehog
Hurst's most sustained and celebrated work was on Sonic the Hedgehog (the ABC Saturday morning series, 1993-1994, commonly called SatAM to distinguish it from the syndicated Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog).2 He began with one episode in season one co-written with Pat Allee, then became one of only three principal writers for season two, alongside Pat Allee and series creator Len Janson.2 He wrote ten of the show's 26 episodes, including the two-part "Blast to the Past" and the series finale "The Doomsday Project."7 As associate story editor, he also had a structural role in shaping the season-long story arc.1
When the series was cancelled before a planned third season, Hurst developed detailed outlines for what that season would have contained and championed various revival proposals over the following years, including pitches for direct-to-video films and written adaptations. He engaged directly with the show's fan community from approximately 1997 until his death, participating in the alt.fan.sonic-hedgehog newsgroup, giving fan interviews, appearing on the DVD box set, and answering emails from viewers.7 He also mentored aspiring writers who reached out to him. This sustained connection to the SatAM fan community made him an unusually accessible creative figure and cemented his legacy within that fandom.
In 1999, Hurst and Allee were invited to pitch on Sonic Underground, the subsequent Sonic animated series. They wrote the pilot episode, after which Sega replaced the existing story editor with Hurst and Allee, who went on to write for the full series.2
Death
Ben Hurst died on August 10, 2010, in California.1 He was 59 years old. Those who knew him and corresponded with him described him as going "in peace, as he wished."8 The Sonic SatAM fan community published a memorial and tribute noting his graciousness toward fans throughout his life.
References
Some content on this page was researched using the Ghostbusters Wiki on Fandom.
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IMDb, "Ben Hurst" (nm0403579), accessed 2026-06-13, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0403579/
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Saturday Morning Sonic, "Who was Ben Hurst?" FAQ, accessed 2026-06-13, https://www.saturdaymorningsonic.com/faq/ben_hurst/
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IMDb, "The Real Ghostbusters: 'Til Death Do Us Part'" (TV Episode 1989), accessed 2026-06-13, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0928928/
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IMDb, "The Real Ghostbusters: 'Loose Screws'" (TV Episode 1989), accessed 2026-06-13, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0928903/
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Spook Central, "Slimer! Episode Guide: 'Slimer for Hire'" (Production #166007A, aired October 15, 1988), accessed 2026-06-13, https://www.spookcentral.us/sclib/slimer-slimer-for-hire
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IMDb, "Slimer! and the Real Ghostbusters: 'Beach Blanket Bruiser'" (TV Episode 1989), accessed 2026-06-13, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0929155/
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Saturday Morning Sonic, "Ben Hurst on SatAM," accessed 2026-06-13, https://www.saturdaymorningsonic.com/features/ben_hurst/
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Fans United for SatAM, "Ben Hurst Memorial and Tribute," accessed 2026-06-13, https://www.sonicsatam.com/information/ben-hurst-memorial-and-tribute/
