Today in the history of the American comic strip: May 3

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.

5.3.1919: John Cullen Murphy, who worked on Prince Valiant for three decades and on Big Ben Bolt for more than 25 years, is born in New York City. He received a Newspaper Comic Strip award from the National Cartoonists Society in 1971, 1974, 1976, 1978, and 1984.

5.3.1927: Mell Lazarus, the creator of Miss Peach and Momma, is born in New York City. He was named 1981 Outstanding Cartoonist of the Year by the National Cartoonists Society. The same society honored him with Newspaper Comic Strip awards in 1973 and 1979.

5.3.1965: Bud Blake’s Tiger, a strip about a group of boyhood pals, debuts. It ran until 2003. The National Cartoonists Society honored Blake in 1970, 1978 and 2000 with its Newspaper Comic Strip award. 

5.3.1966: Russ Westover, the creator of Tillie the Toiler, dies in San Rafael, California. He was 80 years old.

5.3.2003:  Rugrats ends its run. It was based on the animated TV series of the same name, and remained in print for five years.

5.3.2008: Ted Kay, the creator of Hazel, dies in Tredyffrin, Pennsylvania, at 95. His cartoon about a live-in maid first appeared in The Saturday Evening Post and found its way into newspapers after that magazine folded in 1969.
 
5.3.2015: Grin and Bear It, created by George Lichty in 1932, is discontinued after more than 80 years in print. Lichty, who died in 1983, worked on the comic until 1974.
 

 

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.