Sam Simon, the co-creator of The Simpsons, has died age 59.

Simon had suffered from a long term illness and his foundation, the Sam Simon Foundation, confirmed he died on Monday, at home in Los Angeles.

A post on the group’s Facebook page read: “It is with much sadness that we must let you know that Sam Simon has passed over. We all miss him, and in his honor, we will continue bringing his vision to light through our work at The Sam Simon Foundation. We take comfort in knowing how many greetings he is receiving across that Rainbow Bridge. We love you Sam!”

Simon had suffered from colon cancer since 2012. At the time he was told he had just a few months to live. In 2014 he announced he had plans to donate much of his entire $100m to charity. He dedicated much of his efforts to helping animals in need.

Simon won nine Emmy awards, with eight of them coming for his work on The Simpsons. He left the show in 1993, just four years after it, although he remained listed as an executive producer.

Last year Simon paid €6,000 to help re-home a seemingly gay bull in Mayo, to save the animal from the slaughterhouse.