Today in the history of the American comic strip: July 4

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.

7.4.1883: Rube Goldberg, cartoonist, sculptor, author, engineer, and inventor, is born in San Francisco, California. He was named 1967 Outstanding Cartoonist of the Year by the National Cartoonists Society.

7.4.1943: Jimmy Hatlo’s Little Iodine, a spin-off from They’ll Do It Every Time, begins its run as a Sunday-only strip. It ended in July 1986.

7.4.1991: Art Sansom, creator of The Born Loser, dies at 70. The titular character is Brutus P. "Thorny" Thornapple, who simply can't catch a break.

 

The Born Loser

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.