Leigh Anne Brodsky Dead: Longtime Nickelodeon Licensing Exec Was 67

Leigh Anne Brodsky , a veteran Nickelodeon licensing executive who helped lead the development and growth of such iconic characters as SpongeBob SquarePants, Dora the Explorer and Blue’s Clues, has died.

Brodsky died Friday, Oct. 3 in New York City of complications from dementia, her family revealed. She was 67.

Brodsky grew up in Glen View, IL and graduated from Holy Cross in 1978 with job offers from the Wall Street Journal and United Media, a division of Scripps Howard. She joined United Media in 1986 as VP Licensing and Merchandising, a $13,000 a year position which launched a decades-long career as a licensing exec, leading to her longtime role as President of Consumer Products for Nickelodeon.

She became the 36th inductee in the Licensing Industry Hall of Fame in 2011. Under her