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Don Dougherty is an American cartoonist, storyboard artist, and visual development artist whose career has encompassed animation writing, storyboarding for feature films, and comic book scripting.1 In the Ghostbusters universe, he is a writer on Slimer! and the Real Ghostbusters, contributing scripts for four episodes during the show's 1988 to 1989 run.2345
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Dougherty built his early career in print cartooning and comics writing. In the mid-1980s he wrote scripts for the syndicated newspaper comic series Donald Duck, Gummi Bears, Mickey Mouse, Scamp, and Winnie the Pooh for King Features.1 Alongside that work, he produced his own original comics: Blast and The Croakers, the latter of which received a Norwegian-language edition in 1982.1 Collections of his gag cartoons were published by Fantagraphics Books and Renegade Press.1
He transitioned into television animation, writing for Disney Television Animation productions including Adventures of the Gummi Bears and The Wuzzles, and for DiC Entertainment on Slimer! and the Real Ghostbusters.1 His non-Disney television animation writing credits also include Tiny Toon Adventures, Cow and Chicken, The Pink Panther, and Garfield.1
From the mid-1990s onward, Dougherty contributed to story development and visual development across more than a decade of Walt Disney Animation Studios features:6
| Film | Year | Credit |
|---|---|---|
| Pocahontas | 1995 | Additional story development |
| Runaway Brain | 1995 | Additional storyboard artist |
| Hercules | 1997 | Story |
| Mulan | 1998 | Additional story material |
| Tarzan | 1999 | Story |
| Fantasia 2000 | 2000 | Story development |
| Atlantis: The Lost Empire | 2001 | Additional visual development artist |
| Treasure Planet | 2002 | Additional visual development artist |
| Brother Bear | 2003 | Additional story material |
| Winnie the Pooh | 2011 | Story |
Dougherty wrote four episodes of Slimer! and the Real Ghostbusters for DiC Entertainment.2345 His first credit was the very first Slimer segment to air, making him the writer of the show's premiere Slimer story.2
| Episode | Air date |
|---|---|
| Nothing to Sneeze At | September 17, 1988 |
| Slimer's Silly Symphony | November 26, 1988 |
| Tea, But Not Sympathy | February 4, 1989 |
| Slimer & the Beanstalk | February 25, 1989 |
Nothing to Sneeze At (production code 166001A) aired on ABC on September 17, 1988, as the first Slimer segment in the combined show's premiere broadcast.2 In the episode, Slimer is left to manage the firehouse while the Ghostbusters recover from illness, and must contend with a disruptive and hungry Manx ghost. Voice cast for the episode included Kath Soucie and Frank Welker.2
Lambiek Comiclopedia, "Don Dougherty," https://www.lambiek.net/artists/d/dougherty_don.htm, accessed 2026-06-13. ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6
Spook Central, "Slimer! Episode Guide: Nothing To Sneeze At" (September 17, 1988), https://www.spookcentral.us/sclib/slimer-nothing-to-sneeze-at, accessed 2026-06-13. Production #166001A, Episode 1. Aired Saturday, September 17, 1988 on ABC. Writer: Don Dougherty. Voice cast: Kath Soucie (Woman), Frank Welker (Manx). ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5
Spook Central, "Slimer! Episode Guide: Slimer's Silly Symphony" (November 26, 1988), https://www.spookcentral.us/sclib/slimer-slimers-silly-symphony, accessed 2026-06-13. Production #166014A, Episode 19. Aired Saturday, November 26, 1988 on ABC. Writer: Don Dougherty. ↩ ↩2
Spook Central, "Slimer! Episode Guide: Tea, But Not Sympathy" (February 4, 1989), https://www.spookcentral.us/sclib/slimer-tea-but-not-sympathy, accessed 2026-06-13. Production #166025A, Episode 30. Aired Saturday, February 4, 1989 on ABC. Writer: Don Dougherty. ↩ ↩2
Spook Central, "Slimer! Episode Guide: Slimer and the Beanstalk" (February 25, 1989), https://www.spookcentral.us/sclib/slimer-slimer-and-the-beanstalk, accessed 2026-06-13. Production #166028A, Episode 33. Aired Saturday, February 25, 1989 on ABC. Writer: Don Dougherty. ↩ ↩2
"Don Dougherty," IMDb, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0234837/, accessed 2026-06-13. ↩