Today in the history of the American comic strip: February 28

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.

2.28.1907: Milton Caniff is born in Hillsboro, Ohio. Best known for creating Terry and the Pirates and Steve Canyon, he was named 1946 Outstanding Cartoonist of the Year by the National Cartoonists Society. Caniff also received a Newspaper Comic Strip award from the National Cartoonists Society in 1979.

2.28.1962: Jef Mallett, the creator of Frazz, is born in Lansing, Michigan. Ostensibly, Frazz is about school custodian Edwin "Frazz" Frazier, but Mallett has said it's really about discovery.

Frazz

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.

Today in the history of the American comic strip: February 27

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.

2.27.1938: Johnny Gruelle’s Brutus, which launched in 1929, ends its run. A domestic strip, Brutus starred Brutus Dudd, his wife Cleo, their dog Julius Caesar and a cat named Marc Antony.

2.27.1987: Bill Holman, creator of the screwball comedy strip Smokey Stover, dies in New York City at 83. He once described himself as "always inclined to humor and acting silly."

2.27.1987: Darrell McClure, who worked on Little Annie Rooney from 1930 to 1966, dies in Talmage, California. He was 84.

2.27.2020: The Bangor Daily News in Bangor, Maine, apologizes for running what the newspaper calls a racist Close to Home cartoon on February 21 “which showed an especially ugly version of the bigoted Lone-Ranger-and-Tonto imagery” that offended many readers and the newspaper itself. The apology comes after some newspapers in Canada stopped publishing Close to Home, for the same reasons. Cartoonist John McPherson and the syndicate that distributes the strip apologized.

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.

Today in the history of the American comic strip: February 26

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.

2.26.1877: Rudolph Dirks, creator of The Katzenjammer Kids (later known as The Captain and the Kids) is born in Heide, Germany. His family moved to Chicago, Illinois, when he was seven years old.

2.26.1905: Queer Visitors from the Marvelous Land of Oz, a strip written by L. Frak Baum and illustrated by Walt McDougall, is discontinued. It debuted in 1904 to promote one of Baum’s books in the Oz series.
 
2.26.2013: Michael Schumacher and Denis Kitchen release Al Capp: A Life to the Contrary, a biography of the legendary cartoonist who created Li'l Abner.

2.26.2013: Stephan Pastis, the creator of Pearls Before Swine, publishes the first of several Timmy Failure children’s books.
 
2.26.2020: The California auction house Profiles in History announces that the original artwork for Alex Raymond’s Flash Gordon is going on the auction block. The pencil-and-ink drawing was first published in January 1934.

 

2.26.2023: The New York Times reports that hundreds of newspapers across the country are dropping Dilbert because creator  Scott Adams said on a YouTube live stream that Black people are “a hate group” and white people should “just get the hell away” from them.
 

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.

Today in the history of the American comic strip: February 25

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.

2.25.1903: Darrell McClure, who worked on Little Annie Rooney from 1930 to 1966, is born in Ukiah, California. The strip about a young orphaned girl and her dog Zero was launched in 1927, after Little Orphan Annie became a hit.

2.25.1929: Illustrator and cartoonist Arnold Roth is born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. In 1959, he introduced Poor Arnold’s Almanac, which ran until 1961, and again from 1989 to 1990. John Updike once wrote: “All cartoonists are geniuses, but Arnold Roth is especially so.” Roth is a member of the National Cartoonists Society Hall of Fame.

2.25.1973: Terry and the Pirates ends its run of close to 40 years. Creator Milton Caniff launched the adventure strip in 1934 and left it in 1946, but successor George Wunder kept it going until 1973.

2.25. 2013: Stephan Pastis, the creator of Pearls Before Swine, releases his first children’s book: Timmy Failure: Mistakes Were Made.
 

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.

Today in the history of the American comic strip: February 24

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.

2.24.1954: Jim Borgman, the co-creator of Zits (with Jerry Scott), is born in Cincinnati, Ohio. Borgman was the editorial cartoonist at The Cincinnati Enquirer from 1976 to 2008. Launched in 1997, Zits stars high schooler Jeremy Duncan as he copes with family, friends, romance and school.

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.

Today in the history of the American comic strip: February 23

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.

2.23.1913: Gus Mager’s Hawkshaw the Detective debuts in the New York World.  The strip ran from 1913 to 1922, and again from 1931 to 1952. The name of Mager's character was derived from common American slang of the time, in which "hawkshaw" was a synonym for detective.

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.

Today in the history of the American comic strip: February 22

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.

2.22.1919: Pete Hoffman is born in Toledo, Ohio. He became a ghost artist on Steve Roper (later titled Steve Roper and Mike Nomad) for almost nine years. During that time, his name only appeared on the strip over the course of several days in 1947.

2.22.1920: Animator and comic book artist Pete Alvarado is born in Raton, New Mexico. He collaborated with Charles Edson “Chuck” McKimson Jr. and brother Thomas McKimson on the Roy Rogers comic strip, which ran from 1949 to 1953.
 
2.22.2020: Cartoonist Norm Feuti’s strip Retail closed its doors for good today, ending a 14-year run. The strip focused on employees of Grumbel’s department store, which went into bankruptcy protection shortly before the strip folded.

Steve Roper and Mike Nomad

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. 

Today in the history of the American comic strip: February 21

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.

2.21.1937: Frank Miller’s daily aviation strip, Barney Baxter in the Air, adds a Sunday page. The comic began its run in 1936, and remained in print until 1950.

2.21.2008: The University of Michigan Press releases Jackie Ormes: The First African American Woman Cartoonist, by Nancy Goldstein. Born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Ormes lived from 1911 to 1985. 

2.21.2016: The New York Times reports that Berkeley Breathed, the creator of Bloom County and related comic strips, shared a correspondence with the late Harper Lee, author of To Kill a Mockingbird. The newspaper said Lee proved to be “a witty, impish and loyal pen pal” who loved Opus the penguin.

2.21.2020: Snoopy’s Twitter account deletes a tweet showing Charlie Brown telling Franklin, an African-American character in Peanuts, “You’re one of the good ones,” which some Twitter users interpreted as racist. The account explained the deletion: “Earlier today a tweet from this account, featuring an image of two friends, was misinterpreted. As this was not the intended message of the post, it has been deleted so as not to perpetuate an inaccurate interpretation. The post was meant as a celebration of friendship.”
 

Barney Baxter in the Air

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.

Today in the history of the American comic strip: February 20

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.

2.20.1950: Big Ben Bolt, a boxing comic, debuts as a daily strip. Elliot Caplin wrote it and John Cullen Murphy drew it. The cartoon ran for 28 years.

2.20.2000: Elliot Caplin, co-creator (with Stan Drake) of The Heart of Juliet Jones and the writer on Big Ben Bolt, dies in Stockbridge, Massachusetts, at 86. Caplin was the younger brother of Al Capp, creator of Li'l Abner.

The Heart of Juliet Jones

  

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.

Today in the history of the American comic strip: February 19

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.

2.19.1914: Henry Boltinoff is born in New York City. The comic strips he worked on included Stoker the Broker, This and That, Woody Forrest and Hocus-Focus.
 

2.19.2006: Former editorial cartoonist Michael Fry discontinues Committed after 12 years. The strip focused on a suburban family.

 

2.19.2021: In an interview with The Daily Home, an Alabama newspaper, John Rose, the cartoonist who currently produces Barney Google and Snuffy Smith, says he has made some changes over the years, including the fact that characters in the legendary hillbilly strip can now read.

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.

Today in the history of the American comic strip: February 18

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.

2.18.1924: Edgar Martin transforms an earlier comic into Boots and Her Buddies, a strip about a young woman and her social life, which ran until 1969.

2.18.1931: Johnny Hart, the creator of B.C. and co-creator (with Brant Parker) of The Wizard of Id, is born in Endicott, New York. He received a Newspaper Comic Strip award from the National Cartoonists Society in 1967, and again in 1989.

  

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.

Today in the history of the American comic strip: February 17

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.

2.17.1895: The Yellow Kid makes his first newspaper appearance in Richard Outcault’s Hogan’s Alley comic strip. Mickey Dugan, the Kid's real name, was a bald, barefoot boy who wore an oversized yellow nightshirt and hung around in a slum. The Kid spoke in slang, which was printed on his shirt.

2.17.1929: Milt Gross introduces Count Screwloose of Tooloose. The title character was a resident of the Nuttycrest Sanitarium, from which he periodically escaped, only to return because folks on the outside were too wacky.

2.17.1933: Blondie Boopadoop and Dagwood Bumstead get married in the strip that still carries her name: Blondie.

2.17.1935: King of the Royal Mounted debuts as a Sunday strip whose protagonist, Dave King, is a Canadian Mountie who always gets his man. The comic ran until 1954, under various writers and artists.

2.17.1936: The Phantom, an adventure strip created by Lee Falk, debuts with a daily feature. The title character is a costumed crime-fighter who operates from the fictional African country of Bangalla.

2.17.1952: Beyond Mars, a science-fiction strip drawn by Lee Elias and written by Jack Williamson, begins its run in the New York News. The comic is set in the same universe as the Williamson novels Seetee Ship and Seetee Shock.

2.17.1958: Johnny Hart launches B.C., a strip set in prehistoric times. It was still running in 2019. Hart was named 1968 Outstanding Cartoonist of the Year (together with political cartoonist Pat Oliphant) by the National Cartoonists Society. In 1967 and again in 1989, Hart received a Newspaper Comic Strip award from the National Cartoonists Society.

B.C.

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.

Today in the history of the American comic strip: February 16

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.

2.16.1902: George Herriman creates Musical Mose, the first of many generally short-lived strips that preceded the birth of the comic that made his reputation: Krazy Kat.

2.16.1992: Wiley Miller launches Non Sequitur, which is set in Whatchacallit, Maine. The strip’s title is a Latin term meaning an inference that does not follow from a premise, or a statement that is not clearly related to anything previously said. In 1992, Miller received the Newspaper Comic Strip award from the National Cartoonists Society.

2.16.1993: Malcolm “Mal” Hancock dies, at 56. In addition to publishing cartoons in Playboy and other magazines, he drew many comic strips, including Nibbles (1961–63), Humphrey Hush (1963), Patrick (1965–69), The Fantastic Foster Fenwick (1968–72), Polly (1972-73), Fenwick (1977-1979), The Lumpits (1970–78), Pig Newton (1983), Willie (1983-85) Malfunction Junction, (1990–93), and Hi and Jinx (1991–93).

Non Sequitur

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.