Franklin Osborne Alexander (November 3, 1897 – January 17, 1993), known professionally as F. O. Alexander, was a comic strip

Comic strip

A comic strip is a sequence of drawings arranged in interrelated panels to display brief humor or form a narrative, often serialized, with text in balloons and captions....

 artist and editorial cartoonist

Editorial cartoonist

An editorial cartoonist, also known as a political cartoonist, is an artist who draws editorial cartoons that contain some level of political or social commentary....

.
A native of St. Louis, Missouri

St. Louis, Missouri

St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...

, Alexander studied at the Chicago Academy of Fine Arts, taking several courses in cartooning and also attended Northwestern

Northwestern University

Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston and Chicago, Illinois, USA. Northwestern has eleven undergraduate, graduate, and professional schools offering 124 undergraduate degrees and 145 graduate and professional degrees....

. In World War I

World War I

World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...

 he served with the Camouflage Engineers in Europe.

Comic strips

During the mid-1920s, Alexander launched two comic strips, Finney of the Force (1925-31) and The Featherheads (1926-36), but he is best known for the comic strip Hairbreadth Harry, which he took over in 1931 after the death of its creator, C. W. Kahles

C. W. Kahles

Charles William Kahles was a prolific cartoonist responsible for numerous comic strips, notably Hairbreadth Harry...

. Alexander did this strip for eight years and then dropped it in 1939.

Editorial cartoons

Alexander also drew editorial cartoons for United Features Syndicate, and in 1941, he became the staff political cartoonist for the Philadelphia Bulletin

Philadelphia Bulletin

For the 2004 resurrection of the Bulletin, see The Bulletin .The Philadelphia Bulletin was a daily evening newspaper published from 1847 to 1982 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was the largest circulation newspaper in Philadelphia for 76 years and was once the largest evening newspaper in the...

. Alexander's career at the Bulletin spanned 26 years.

His work was recognized by the Freedoms Foundation and the National Safety Council

National Safety Council

The National Safety Council is a 501 nonprofit, nongovernmental public service organization dedicated to protecting life and promoting health. Headquartered in Itasca, Illinois, NSC is a member organization, founded in 1913 and granted a congressional charter in 1953...

. In 1945 he received a National Headliners Award.

Archives

In 1966, Alexander donated more than 1000 of his cartoon originals to Syracuse University

Syracuse University

Syracuse University is a private research university located in Syracuse, New York, United States. Its roots can be traced back to Genesee Wesleyan Seminary, founded by the Methodist Episcopal Church in 1832, which also later founded Genesee College...

. The art is housed in the University's Special Collections Research Center.

F. O. Alexander retired in 1967.