The New Yorker covers: November 25, 1991

Over the years, there have been many magazines whose covers have featured the work of highly talented artists and illustrators. But probably no magazine has had more varied and memorable covers, over a longer period of time, than The New Yorker, which was founded in 1925.

Kathy Osborn
(covers untitled until February 1993)

And now, a few words from . . . Bob Newhart

No matter what hyenas sound like, they are not actually laughing.

"What is art but a way of seeing?" Saul Bellow

"Fast Food," 2001, Lizzie Riches

Movie Posters, 1998: Two adults, please, and a large popcorn!

Today in the history of the American comic strip: March 30

American cartoonists and writers may not have invented the comic strip, but some argue that the comics, as we know them today, are an American creation. Clearly, the United States has played an outsize role in the development of this underappreciated art form.

3.30.1888: J. R. Williams, the creator of Out Our Way, is born in Nova Scotia, Canada. The strip ran from 1922 to 1977 and was known for its depiction of American rural life.

3.30.1920: Tex Blaisdell is born in Houston, Texas. He worked on 22 syndicated features, including Little Orphan Annie, which he drew for five years, and Prince Valiant.

3.30.1930: Bucks Rogers in the 25th Century A.D. expands from a daily strip by adding a Sunday feature. The comic was popular enough to inspire other science-fiction strips, including Flash Gordon.

3.30.1969: Edgar Martin's long-running Boots and Her Buddies (launched in 1924) finally ends its run.

3.30.1997: Frank Cho begins syndicating Liberty Meadows in newspapers. Set in an animal rehabilitation clinic, the comic starred assorted human staffers and anthropomorphic animals.

3.30.2015: Dana Simpson’s web comic, Heavenly Nostrils, begins appearing in newspapers under a new name, Phoebe and Her Unicorn.

3.30.2019:  Ballard Street, a comic introduced by Jerry Van Amerongen in 1991, comes to an end. It initially ran in strip format before switching to a single-panel format.

Liberty Meadows

Most of the information listed here from one day to the next comes from two online sites -- Wikipedia, and Don Markstein's Toonopedia -- as well as 100 Years of American Newspaper Comics, edited by Maurice Horn. Note that my focus is on American newspaper comic strips (and the occasional foreign strip that gained popularity in the United States). Thus, comic books and exclusively online comics are not included here.

The New Yorker covers: November 6, 1989

The New Yorker isn’t Sports Illustrated, of course. But a fair number of sports, from basketball and baseball to golf and hockey, have graced the magazine's covers in one form or another since its founding in 1925. 

John O'Brien
(covers untitled until February 1993)

And now, a few words from . . . Jerry Seinfeld

Sometimes the road less traveled is less traveled for a reason.