Today in the history of the American comic strip: March 14

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.

3.14.1920: Hank Ketcham, the "father" of Dennis the Menace, is born in Seattle, Washington. He was named 1952 Outstanding Cartoonist of the Year by the National Cartoonists Society.

3.14.1947: Tom Batiuk, creator of Funky Winkerbean and Crankshaft, is born in Akron, Ohio.

3.14.1973: Chic Young, who gave us Blondie, dies in St. Petersburg, Florida. He was 72. His strip remains a staple of the comics.

3.14.1996: Jack Berrill, creator of the sports-themed strip Gil Thorp, dies of cancer three years after he relinquished control of the comic, which remains in print.

3.14.1999: Tex Blaisdell dies in New York City, at 78. He worked on 22 syndicated features, including Little Orphan Annie, which he drew for five years, and Prince Valiant. 

3.14.2019: Public radio station KQED in San Francisco, California, reports on the rediscovery of a letter that Joel Lipton of Beverly Hills, California, received from Peanuts creator Charles Schulz in 1970, after Lipton, then 10 years old, wrote to Schulz asking what makes a good citizen. Schulz’s response reads in part: “I believe that our greatest strength lies always in the protection of our smallest minorities.”
 

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.