The New Yorker covers: August 5, 1950

Most of the earth’s surface is covered in water, hence the planet’s nickname as the blue planet. Water, its uses and its relationship to land have held a special appeal for cover artists whose work has appeared in The New Yorker.

Charles  E. Martin
(covers untitled until February 1993)

And now, a few words from . . . Thomas Jefferson

I have sworn upon the altar of God, eternal hostility against every form of tyranny over the mind of man.

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

"St. Martin-in-the-Fields," 1888, William Logsdail

Movie Posters, 1976: Two adults, please, and a large popcorn!

Today in the history of the American comic strip: April 28

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.

4.28.1887: Charles Voight, the creator of Betty (1920-1943), a glamour-girl comic, is born in Brooklyn, New York.
 
4.28.1911: Lee Falk is born in St. Louis, Missouri. He gave comics fans Mandrake the Magician (1934-2013) and The Phantom (1936-present).

4.28.1966: Gladys Parker, the creator of Mopsy, dies of lung cancer. She was 56. A strip about an independent, witty woman, Mopsy debuted in 1939 and remained in print until 1965.
 
4.28.1990: Edwina Dumm dies in Santa Rosa, California, at 96 or 97. She created Cap Stubbs and Tippie, a comic about the adventures of a boy and his dog that ran from 1918 to 1966. Dumm is a member of the National Cartoonists Society Hall of Fame.

Cap Stubbs and Tippie

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: August 3, 1940

Most of the earth’s surface is covered in water, hence the planet’s nickname as the blue planet. Water, its uses and its relationship to land have held a special appeal for cover artists whose work has appeared in The New Yorker.

Roger Duvoisin
(covers untitled untilFebruary 1993)

And now,, a few words from . . . Rachel Carson

Those who contemplate the beauty of the earth find reserves of strength that will endure as long as life lasts.

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

"La Blanchisseuse" (The Washerwoman), 1886, Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec

Movie Posters, 1989: Two adults, please, and a large popcorn!