Today in the history of the American comic strip: December 29

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.

12.29.1913: Walter C. Hoban debuts Jerry on the Job in the New York Journal. The strip ran until 1932, was revived in 1947, and finally bit the dust in 1954.

12.29.1946: Milton Caniff leaves Terry and the Pirates, which he created in 1934. George Wunder picked it up and continued it for more than 25 years.

12.29.1962: Long Sam comes to an end after a mere eight years. It was created by Al Capp and illustrated by Bob Lubber.

12.29.1987: Raeburn Van Buren, who worked on Abbie an’ Slats, dies in Manhasset, New York, at 96. Van Buren is a member of the National Cartoonists Society Hall of Fame.

12.29.2002: The final Sunday strip of Mandrake the Magician runs. Lee Falk created it before he launched The Phantom.

Jerry on the Job

 

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.