Today in the history of the American comic strip: September 12

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.

9.12.1908: Prolific cartoonist and illustrator Vernon Greene, whose work included The Shadow in the early 1940s, is born in Battle Ground, Washington.

9.12.1930: Don Sherwood is born in rural New York. His cartoon, Dan Flagg (1963-1967), was the first nationally syndicated strip to star a U.S. Marine.

9.12.1999: Schroeder makes his final appearance in Peanuts, which launched in 1950 and ended its run in February 2000, the month that creator Charles M. Schulz died.

9.12.2004: Michael Jantzen removes The Norm from newspaper syndication to develop it for other media. Launched in 1996, the strip starred Norman, who was portrayed as a typical everyman.

Peanuts

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.