


He began developing SpongeBob SquarePants into a television series in 1996 upon the cancellation of Rocko's Modern Life, which Hillenburg directed. Many of the ideas for the show originated in an unpublished, educational comic book titled The Intertidal Zone, which Hillenburg created in the mid-1980s. SpongeBob SquarePants chronicles the adventures and endeavors of the title character and his various friends in the fictional underwater city of Bikini Bottom. In addition to the show's regular cast of voice actors, guest stars have been featured on SpongeBob SquarePants, an American animated television series created by marine biologist and animator Stephen Hillenburg for Nickelodeon. Borgnine made the most guest appearances on the show, appearing in 16 episodes before his death. McHale's Navy actors Ernest Borgnine (right) and Tim Conway (left), shown here in 1962, were the first credited guest stars.
