Tony Dyson has died. Mr Dyson built R2-D2 from Ralph McQuarrie's design for filming Star Wars.
http://io9.gizmodo.com/rip-tony-dyson-the-man-who-built-r2-d2-1762882029
http://io9.gizmodo.com/rip-tony-dyson-the-man-who-built-r2-d2-1762882029