National Cartoonists Society
Encyclopedia
The National Cartoonists Society (NCS) is an organization of professional cartoonist
s in the United States
. It presents the National Cartoonists Society Awards. The Society was born in 1946 when groups of cartoonists got together to entertain the troops. They enjoyed each other's company and decided to meet on a regular basis.
NCS members work in many branches of the profession, including advertising, animation, newspaper comic strip
s and syndicated single-panel cartoons
, comic book
s, editorial cartoon
s, gag cartoons, graphic novel
s, greeting cards
, magazine and book illustration. Notably, they have not embraced web comics. Membership is limited to established professional cartoonists, with a few exceptions of outstanding persons in affiliated fields. The NCS is not a guild
or labor union.
The organization's stated primary purposes are "to advance the ideals and standards of professional cartooning in its many forms", "to promote and foster a social, cultural and intellectual interchange among professional cartoonists of all types" and "to stimulate and encourage interest in and acceptance of the art of cartooning by aspiring cartoonists, students and the general public."
when cartoonists Gus Edson
, Otto Soglow
, Clarence D. Russell
, Bob Dunn
and others did chalk talks at hospitals for the USO in 1943. Edson recalled, “We played two spots. Fort Hamilton and Governor’s Island. And then we quit the USO.” They were lured away by choreographer and former Rockette
Toni Mendez. When she learned of these chalk talks, she recruited the cartoonists to do shows for the Hospital Committee of the American Theatre Wing
. Beginning with a performance emceed by humor columnist Bugs Baer at Halloran Hospital on Staten Island
, these shows were produced and directed by Mendez. The group expanded to junkets on military transport planes, flying to military bases along the southeastern seaboard. On one of those flights, Russell proposed a club to Rube Goldberg
and others so the group could still get together after WWII ended. Mendez recalled:
The Society was organized on a Friday evening, March 1, 1946, when 26 cartoonists gathered at 7pm in the Barberry Room on East 52nd Street in Manhattan. After drinks and dinner, they voted to determine officers and a name for their new organization. It was initially known as The Cartoonists Society. Goldberg was elected president with Russell Patterson
as vice president, C. D. Russell as secretary and Milton Caniff
, treasurer. Soglow was later added as second vice president (“to follow the first vice president around”). Mendez functioned as the Society's trouble-shooter and later became an agent representing more than 50 cartoonists.
The 26 founding members came from the group of 32 members who had paid dues by March 13, including strip cartoonists Wally Bishop
(Muggs and Skeeter), Martin Branner
(Winnie Winkle
), Ernie Bushmiller
(Nancy
), Milton Caniff, Gus Edson
(The Gumps
), Ham Fisher
(Joe Palooka
), Harry Haenigsen (Penny
), Fred Harman
(Red Ryder
), Bill Holman
(Smokey Stover
), Jay Irving
(Willie Doodle), Stan MacGovern
(Silly Milly), Al Posen
(Sweeney and Son), Clarence Russell (Pete the Tramp
), Otto Soglow (The Little King
), Jack Sparling (Claire Voyant), Raeburn van Buren
(Abbie an' Slats
), Dow Walling (Skeets) and Frank Willard
(Moon Mullins
).
Also among the early 32 members were syndicated panel cartoonists Dave Breger (Mister Breger), George Clark (The Neighbors), Bob Dunn
(Just the Type) and Jimmy Hatlo
(They'll Do It Every Time
); freelance magazine cartoonists Abner Dean
and Mischa Richter
, editorial cartoonists Rube Goldberg (New York Sun
), Burris Jenkins (New York Journal American
), C. D. Batchelor
(Daily News) and Richard Q. Yardley (The Baltimore Sun
); sports cartoonist Lou Hanlon; illustrator Russell Patterson and comic book
artists Joe Shuster
and Joe Musial.
More members joined by mid-May of 1946, including Harold Gray (Little Orphan Annie
) and the Society’s first animator, Paul Terry
, followed in the summer by letterer Frank Engli, Bela Zaboly (Popeye
), Al Capp
(Li’l Abner) and Ray Bailey (Bruce Gentry
). By March 1947, the NCS had 112 members, including Bud Fisher
(Mutt and Jeff
), Don Flowers
(Glamor Girls), Bob Kane
(Batman
), Fred Lasswell
(Barney Google and Snuffy Smith
), George Lichty
(Grin and Bear It
), Zack Mosley
(The Adventures of Smilin' Jack
), Alex Raymond
(Rip Kirby
), Cliff Sterrett
(Polly and Her Pals
) and Chic Young
(Blondie
), plus editorial cartoonists Reg Manning
and Fred O. Seibel and sports cartoonist Willard Mullin
.
Marge Devine Duffy, a secretary in King Features public relations department, had been helping Russell handle correspondence to the NCS, and in 1948, she was installed as the official NCS secretary and later given the title Scribe of the Society. Her name was on all the Society’s publications, and her address was the permanent mailing address of the NCS for more than 30 years. As the organizing secretary, she handled agendas, organization and publicity. “She practically ran the damn thing,” Caniff recalled. “A real autocrat, and everyone was delighted to have her be an autocrat because that’s what we needed.”
In the fall of 1949, the NCS cooperated with Treasury Department to sell savings bonds, engaging in a nationwide tour to 17 major cities with a team of 10 to 12 cartoonists and a traveling display, 20,000 Years of Comics, a 95-foot pictorial history of the comic strip.
Despite the contributions of Duffy and Mendez, there were no female members, as stipulated in the NCS' constitution which specified that “any cartoonist (male) who signs his name to his published work” could apply for membership. In 1949, Hilda Terry wrote a letter challenging that rule, and after more than six months of debates and votes, three women were finally admitted for membership in 1950—Terry, Edwina Dumm
and gag cartoonist Barbara Shermund.
On November 6, 1951, 49 members of the NCS arrived at Washington's Carlton Hotel for breakfast with Harry S. Truman
. Gathered in Washington to help the Treasury Department sell Defense Stamps, the group presented Truman with a bound volume of their comic strip characters, some interacting with caricatures of Truman.
plane from Westover Air Force Base
in Massachusetts and landing at Rhein-Main Air Base
. On the tour, the cartoonists engaged models in each country to join in their Laff Time show of audience participation stunts and gags. The cartoonists were Posen, Charles Biro
, Bob Dunn, Gus Edson, Bill Holman, Bob Montana, Russell Patterson, Clarence Russell and Dick Wingert (Hubert). The comic strip Dondi
came about because of a friendship that developed between Edson and Irwin Hasen
during a USO trip to Korea.
During the 1960s, cartoonists of military comic strips went to the White House and met with Lyndon B. Johnson
in the Oval Office
. The group included Caniff, Bill Mauldin
and Mort Walker
.
In 1977-78, the National Cartoonists Society released The National Cartoonists Society Portfolio of Fine Comic Art, published by Collector's Press. The portfolio featured a total of 34 art prints. Each 12" x 16" print was printed on archival fine art paper.
In 2011, to memorialize and commemorate the 10th anniversary of 9/11, many NCS cartoonists auctioned off art that gave commentary to the tragedy and raised money for families victimized by the event in a reflective homage called, Cartoonists Remember. These cartoon tributes raised over $50,000 to benefit the 9/11 families.The art was featured and displayed in both nationally syndicated newspapers and museums across America, including the Newseum in Washington, DC, the Cartoon Art Museum in San Francisco and the Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art in New York City.
In 2005, the Society formed a Foundation to continue the charitable works of its fund for indigent cartoonists, the Milt Gross
Fund.
The Society's offices are in Winter Park, Florida
. In addition, the NCS has chartered 16 regional chapters throughout the United States and one in Canada. Chapter Chairpersons sit on the NCS Regional Council and are represented by a National Representative, who is a voting member of the Board of Directors. As NCS president for two consecutive terms, Jeff Keane
, cartoonist for the Family Circus and son of comic creator, Bil Keane
, returned to the charter and spirit of the NCS by extending the society's outreach to the military by visiting and cartooning for vets who served in the Iraq War and Afghanistan War, during the years 2007-2011.
In 2008, NCS joined over 60 other art licensing businesses (including the Artists Rights Society
, Association of American Editorial Cartoonists
, Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators
, the Stock Artists Alliance
, Illustrator's Partnership of America and the Advertising Photographers of America) in opposing both The Orphan Works Act of 2008 and The Shawn Bentley Orphan Works Act of 2008. Known collectively as "Artists United Against the U.S. Orphan Works Acts", the diverse organizations joined forces to oppose the bills, which the groups believe "permits, and even encourages, wide-scale infringements while depriving creators of protections currently available under the Copyright Act."
. After DeBeck died on Veteran's Day, 1942, Mary DeBeck remarried (as Mary Bergman) and created the DeBeck Award in 1946. She also made the annual presentation of engraved silver cigarette cases (with DeBeck's characters etched on the cover) to the eight winners spanning the years 1946 to 1953.
Mary Bergman died February 14, 1953, aboard a National Airlines DC-6 which went down in the Gulf of Mexico during a thunderstorm on a flight from Tampa to New Orleans. In 1954, following her death, the DeBeck Award was renamed the Reuben Award. When the award name was changed in 1954, all of the prior eight winners were given Reuben statuettes designed by and named after the NCS' first president, Rube Goldberg. The Reuben Award was executed in bronze by sculptor and editorial cartoonist Bill Crawford
.
Prior to 1983, the Reuben Awards Dinner was held in New York City
, usually at the Plaza Hotel. Since then, the event has expanded into a full weekend and is held in a different city each year. Recent Reuben locations have included New York City; Boca Raton, Florida
; San Francisco, California
; Cancún, Mexico and Kansas City, Missouri
.
Each year, during the NCS Annual Reuben Awards Weekend, the Society honors the year's outstanding achievements in all walks of the profession. Excellence in the fields of newspaper strips, newspaper panels, TV animation, feature animation, newspaper illustration, gag cartoons, book illustration, greeting cards, comic books, magazine feature/magazine illustration and editorial cartoons, is honored in the NCS Division Awards, which are chosen by specially-convened juries at the chapter level. The recipient of the profession's highest honor, the Reuben Award for Outstanding Cartoonist of the Year, is chosen by a secret ballot of the members. As part of the presentations and general frivolity, the NCS has produced videos to initiate the festivities, some of which have been parodies of iconic entertainment.
Reuben Award
The winner was selected by the NCS Board and later by King Features Syndicate, in honor of "Popeye" creator, Elzie Segar.
Cartoonist
A cartoonist is a person who specializes in drawing cartoons. This work is usually humorous, mainly created for entertainment, political commentary or advertising...
s in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It presents the National Cartoonists Society Awards. The Society was born in 1946 when groups of cartoonists got together to entertain the troops. They enjoyed each other's company and decided to meet on a regular basis.
NCS members work in many branches of the profession, including advertising, animation, newspaper 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....
s and syndicated single-panel cartoons
Cartoon
A cartoon is a form of two-dimensional illustrated visual art. While the specific definition has changed over time, modern usage refers to a typically non-realistic or semi-realistic drawing or painting intended for satire, caricature, or humor, or to the artistic style of such works...
, comic book
Comic book
A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...
s, editorial cartoon
Editorial cartoon
An editorial cartoon, also known as a political cartoon, is an illustration containing a commentary that usually relates to current events or personalities....
s, gag cartoons, graphic novel
Graphic novel
A graphic novel is a narrative work in which the story is conveyed to the reader using sequential art in either an experimental design or in a traditional comics format...
s, greeting cards
Studio cards
Studio cards were tall, narrow humorous greeting cards which became popular during the 1950s. The approach was sometimes cutting or caustic, a distinct alternative to the type of mild humor previously employed by the major greeting card companies....
, magazine and book illustration. Notably, they have not embraced web comics. Membership is limited to established professional cartoonists, with a few exceptions of outstanding persons in affiliated fields. The NCS is not a guild
Guild
A guild is an association of craftsmen in a particular trade. The earliest types of guild were formed as confraternities of workers. They were organized in a manner something between a trade union, a cartel, and a secret society...
or labor union.
The organization's stated primary purposes are "to advance the ideals and standards of professional cartooning in its many forms", "to promote and foster a social, cultural and intellectual interchange among professional cartoonists of all types" and "to stimulate and encourage interest in and acceptance of the art of cartooning by aspiring cartoonists, students and the general public."
History
The National Cartoonists Society had its origins during World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
when cartoonists Gus Edson
Gus Edson
Gus Edson was an American cartoonist known for two popular, long running comic strips, The Gumps and Dondi....
, Otto Soglow
Otto Soglow
Otto Soglow was an American cartoonist best known for his comic strip The Little King.Born in Yorkville, Manhattan, Soglow grew up in New York City, where he held various jobs as a teenager and made an unsuccessful effort to become an actor. His first job was painting designs on baby rattles...
, Clarence D. Russell
Clarence D. Russell
Clarence D. Russell was an American cartoonist best known for his syndicated comic strip Pete the Tramp.Born in Buffalo, New York, Russell studied at the Chicago Art Institute and began working as a freelance artist...
, Bob Dunn
Bob Dunn (cartoonist)
Bob Dunn was an American cartoonist, entertainer and gagwriter who drew several comic strips.In addition to his own strips, Dunn was known for his work on Jimmy Hatlo's Little Iodine and They'll Do It Every Time.King Features syndicated Dunn's Just the Type from May 5, 1946 to November 24, 1963...
and others did chalk talks at hospitals for the USO in 1943. Edson recalled, “We played two spots. Fort Hamilton and Governor’s Island. And then we quit the USO.” They were lured away by choreographer and former Rockette
The Rockettes
The Rockettes are a precision dance company performing out of the Radio City Music Hall in Manhattan, New York City. During the Christmas season, the Rockettes have performed five shows a day, seven days a week, for 77 years...
Toni Mendez. When she learned of these chalk talks, she recruited the cartoonists to do shows for the Hospital Committee of the American Theatre Wing
American Theatre Wing
The American Theatre Wing is a New York City-based organization "dedicated to supporting excellence and education in theatre," according to its mission statement...
. Beginning with a performance emceed by humor columnist Bugs Baer at Halloran Hospital on Staten Island
Staten Island
Staten Island is a borough of New York City, New York, United States, located in the southwest part of the city. Staten Island is separated from New Jersey by the Arthur Kill and the Kill Van Kull, and from the rest of New York by New York Bay...
, these shows were produced and directed by Mendez. The group expanded to junkets on military transport planes, flying to military bases along the southeastern seaboard. On one of those flights, Russell proposed a club to Rube Goldberg
Rube Goldberg
Reuben Garrett Lucius Goldberg was an American cartoonist, sculptor, author, engineer and inventor.He is best known for a series of popular cartoons depicting complex gadgets that perform simple tasks in indirect, convoluted ways. These devices, now known as Rube Goldberg machines, are similar to...
and others so the group could still get together after WWII ended. Mendez recalled:
- He said, "Everybody has a club or an association or some kind—lumber jacks, undertakers, rug weavers, even garbage collectors—so I don’t see why we can’t have one, too." All during the flight, Rube kept saying, "No—leave us alone; we’re doing fine." C.D. turned to me and he said, "And no girls. Only boys." And he went up and down the aisle of the plane, repeating that this club would be just for boys.
The Society was organized on a Friday evening, March 1, 1946, when 26 cartoonists gathered at 7pm in the Barberry Room on East 52nd Street in Manhattan. After drinks and dinner, they voted to determine officers and a name for their new organization. It was initially known as The Cartoonists Society. Goldberg was elected president with Russell Patterson
Russell Patterson
Russell Patterson was a celebrated and prolific American cartoonist, illustrator and scenic designer. Patterson’s art deco magazine illustrations helped promote the idea of the 1920s and 1930s fashion style known as the flapper.Patterson was born in Omaha, Nebraska...
as vice president, C. D. Russell as secretary and Milton Caniff
Milton Caniff
Milton Arthur Paul Caniff was an American cartoonist famous for the Terry and the Pirates and Steve Canyon comic strips.-Biography:...
, treasurer. Soglow was later added as second vice president (“to follow the first vice president around”). Mendez functioned as the Society's trouble-shooter and later became an agent representing more than 50 cartoonists.
The 26 founding members came from the group of 32 members who had paid dues by March 13, including strip cartoonists Wally Bishop
Wally Bishop
Wallace Bond Bishop , better known as Wally Bishop, was an American cartoonist who drew his syndicated Muggs and Skeeter comic strip for 49 years....
(Muggs and Skeeter), Martin Branner
Martin Branner
Martin Michael Branner , known to his friends as Mike Branner, was a cartoonist who created the popular comic strip Winnie Winkle...
(Winnie Winkle
Winnie Winkle
Winnie Winkle was an American comic strip which appeared over a 76-year span . Created by Martin Branner, who wrote the strip for over 40 years, Winnie Winkle was one of the first comic strips about working women. It was titled Winnie Winkle the Breadwinner until 1943...
), Ernie Bushmiller
Ernie Bushmiller
Ernest Paul Bushmiller, Jr. was an American cartoonist, best known for creating the long-running daily comic strip Nancy....
(Nancy
Nancy (comic strip)
Nancy is an American daily and Sunday comic strip, originally written and drawn by Ernie Bushmiller and distributed by United Feature Syndicate....
), Milton Caniff, Gus Edson
Gus Edson
Gus Edson was an American cartoonist known for two popular, long running comic strips, The Gumps and Dondi....
(The Gumps
The Gumps
The Gumps, a popular comic strip about a middle-class family, was created by Sidney Smith in 1917, launching a 42-year run in newspapers from February 12, 1917 until October 17, 1959....
), Ham Fisher
Ham Fisher
Hammond Edward Fisher was an American comic strip writer and cartoonist who signed his work Ham Fisher...
(Joe Palooka
Joe Palooka
Joe Palooka was an American comic strip about a heavyweight boxing champion, created by cartoonist Ham Fisher in 1921. The strip debuted in 1930 and was carried at its peak by 900 newspapers....
), Harry Haenigsen (Penny
Penny (comic strip)
Penny was a comic strip about a teenage girl by Harry Haenigsen which maintained its popularity for almost three decades. It was distributed by the New York Herald Tribune Syndicate from 1943 to 1970....
), Fred Harman
Fred Harman
Fred Harman was an American artist, best known for his popular Red Ryder comic strip, which he drew for 25 years, reaching 40 million readers through 750 newspapers. Harman sometimes used the pseudonym Ted Horn....
(Red Ryder
Red Ryder
Red Ryder was a popular long-running Western comic strip created by Stephen Slesinger and artist Fred Harman. Beginning Sunday, November 6, 1938, Red Ryder was syndicated by Newspaper Enterprise Association, expanding over the following decade to 750 newspapers, translations into ten languages and...
), Bill Holman
Bill Holman (cartoonist)
Bill Holman was an American cartoonist who drew the classic comic strip Smokey Stover from 1935 until he retired in 1973. Distributed through the Chicago Tribune, it had the longest run of any strip in the screwball genre...
(Smokey Stover
Smokey Stover
Smokey Stover is an American comic strip written and drawn by cartoonist Bill Holman, from 1935 until he retired in 1973. Distributed through the Chicago Tribune, it features the wacky misadventures of the titular fireman, and had the longest run of any comic strip in the "screwball comics"...
), Jay Irving
Jay Irving
Irving Joel Rafsky , known as Jay Irving, was a cartoonist notable for his syndicated strip Pottsy about a good-natured, dutiful New York police officer, Pottsy, who sometimes came in conflict with his sergeant....
(Willie Doodle), Stan MacGovern
Stan MacGovern
Stan MacGovern was a cartoonist best known for his comic strip Silly Milly which ran in the New York Post from the 1930s into the 1950s....
(Silly Milly), Al Posen
Al Posen
Alvah Posen was an American cartoonist on several comic strips, but he is best known for his strip Sweeney & Son and as co-producer of the now-lost Marx Brothers film, Humor Risk ....
(Sweeney and Son), Clarence Russell (Pete the Tramp
Pete the Tramp
Pete the Tramp was a comic strip by Clarence D. Russell which was distributed by King Features Syndicate for more than three decades. Howard Eugene Wilson, in the Harvard Educational Review, described the strip's title character as "a hobo with a gentleman's instincts."Russell studied at the...
), Otto Soglow (The Little King
The Little King
The Little King was a comic strip created by Otto Soglow, famously telling its stories in a style using images and very few words, as in pantomime.-Publication history:...
), Jack Sparling (Claire Voyant), Raeburn van Buren
Raeburn van Buren
Raeburn Van Buren was an American magazine and comic strip illustrator best known for his work on the syndicated Abbie an' Slats. He was familiarly known in the professional comics community as Ray Van Buren....
(Abbie an' Slats
Abbie an' Slats
Abbie an' Slats is an American comic strip which ran from July 12, 1937 to January 30, 1971, initially written by Al Capp and drawn by Raeburn Van Buren. It was distributed by United Feature Syndicate....
), Dow Walling (Skeets) and Frank Willard
Frank Willard
Frank Henry Willard was a cartoonist best known for his comic strip Moon Mullins which ran from 1923 to 1991. He sometimes went by the nickname Dok Willard....
(Moon Mullins
Moon Mullins
Moon Mullins, created by cartoonist Frank Willard , was a popular American comic strip which had a long run as both a daily and Sunday feature from June 19, 1923 to June 2, 1991. Syndicated by the Chicago Tribune/New York News Syndicate, the strip depicts the lives of diverse lowbrow characters who...
).
Also among the early 32 members were syndicated panel cartoonists Dave Breger (Mister Breger), George Clark (The Neighbors), Bob Dunn
Bob Dunn (cartoonist)
Bob Dunn was an American cartoonist, entertainer and gagwriter who drew several comic strips.In addition to his own strips, Dunn was known for his work on Jimmy Hatlo's Little Iodine and They'll Do It Every Time.King Features syndicated Dunn's Just the Type from May 5, 1946 to November 24, 1963...
(Just the Type) and Jimmy Hatlo
Jimmy Hatlo
James Cecil Hatlo , better known as Jimmy Hatlo, was an American cartoonist who created in 1929 the long-running comic strip and gag panel They'll Do It Every Time, which he wrote and drew until his death in 1963...
(They'll Do It Every Time
They'll Do It Every Time
They'll Do It Every Time was a single-panel newspaper comic strip, created by Jimmy Hatlo, which had a long run over eight decades. It first appeared on February 5, 1929 and continued until February 2, 2008. The title of the strip became a popular catchphrase, still used today by many people who...
); freelance magazine cartoonists Abner Dean
Abner Dean
Abner Dean , born Abner Epstein, was an American cartoonist who was the nephew of sculptor Jacob Epstein. In allegorical or surrealist situations, Dean often depicted extremes of human behavior amid grim, decaying urban settings or barren landscapes...
and Mischa Richter
Mischa Richter
Mischa Richter was an American cartoonist best known for his numerous cartoons published in The New Yorker over decades....
, editorial cartoonists Rube Goldberg (New York Sun
New York Sun
The New York Sun was a weekday daily newspaper published in New York City from 2002 to 2008. When it debuted on April 16, 2002, adopting the name, motto, and masthead of an otherwise unrelated earlier New York paper, The Sun , it became the first general-interest broadsheet newspaper to be started...
), Burris Jenkins (New York Journal American
New York Journal American
The New York Journal American was a newspaper published from 1937 to 1966. The Journal American was the product of a merger between two New York newspapers owned by William Randolph Hearst: The New York American , a morning paper, and the New York Evening Journal, an afternoon paper...
), C. D. Batchelor
C. D. Batchelor
Clarence Daniel Batchelor was an American editorial cartoonist who was also noted for painting and sculpture.Batchelor's journalistic career began in 1911 as a staff artist for the Kansas City Star...
(Daily News) and Richard Q. Yardley (The Baltimore Sun
The Baltimore Sun
The Baltimore Sun is the U.S. state of Maryland’s largest general circulation daily newspaper and provides coverage of local and regional news, events, issues, people, and industries....
); sports cartoonist Lou Hanlon; illustrator Russell Patterson and comic book
Comic book
A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...
artists Joe Shuster
Joe Shuster
Joseph "Joe" Shuster was a Canadian-born American comic book artist. He was best known for co-creating the DC Comics character Superman, with writer Jerry Siegel, first published in Action Comics #1...
and Joe Musial.
More members joined by mid-May of 1946, including Harold Gray (Little Orphan Annie
Little Orphan Annie
Little Orphan Annie was a daily American comic strip created by Harold Gray and syndicated by Tribune Media Services. The strip took its name from the 1885 poem "Little Orphant Annie" by James Whitcomb Riley, and made its debut on August 5, 1924 in the New York Daily News...
) and the Society’s first animator, Paul Terry
Paul Terry (cartoonist)
Paul Houlton Terry was an American cartoonist, screenwriter, film director and one of the most prolific film producers in history...
, followed in the summer by letterer Frank Engli, Bela Zaboly (Popeye
Popeye
Popeye the Sailor is a cartoon fictional character created by Elzie Crisler Segar, who has appeared in comic strips and animated cartoons in the cinema as well as on television. He first appeared in the daily King Features comic strip Thimble Theatre on January 17, 1929...
), Al Capp
Al Capp
Alfred Gerald Caplin , better known as Al Capp, was an American cartoonist and humorist best known for the satirical comic strip Li'l Abner. He also wrote the comic strips Abbie an' Slats and Long Sam...
(Li’l Abner) and Ray Bailey (Bruce Gentry
Bruce Gentry
Bruce Gentry is a Columbia movie serial based on the Bruce Gentry comic strip created by Ray Bailey. It may contain the first cinematic appearance of a Flying Saucer, here the secret weapon of the villainous Recorder.-Plot:...
). By March 1947, the NCS had 112 members, including Bud Fisher
Bud Fisher
Harry Conway "Bud" Fisher was an American cartoonist who created Mutt and Jeff, the first successful daily comic strip in the United States....
(Mutt and Jeff
Mutt and Jeff
Mutt and Jeff was a long-popular American newspaper comic strip created by cartoonist Bud Fisher in 1907 about "two mismatched tinhorns." It is commonly regarded as the first daily comic strip. The concept of a newspaper strip featuring recurring characters in multiple panels on a six-day-a-week...
), Don Flowers
Don Flowers
Don Flowers was an American cartoonist best known for his syndicated panel Glamor Girls. Flowers was noted for his fluid ink work, prompting Coulton Waugh to write that Flowers displayed "about the finest line ever bequeathed to a cartoonist...
(Glamor Girls), Bob Kane
Bob Kane
Bob Kane was an American comic book artist and writer, credited as the creator of the DC Comics superhero Batman...
(Batman
Batman
Batman is a fictional character created by the artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger. A comic book superhero, Batman first appeared in Detective Comics #27 , and since then has appeared primarily in publications by DC Comics...
), Fred Lasswell
Fred Lasswell
Fred Lasswell was an American cartoonist best known for his decades of work on the comic strip Barney Google and Snuffy Smith.Born in Kennett, Missouri, he got his start as a sports cartoonist for the Tampa Daily Times...
(Barney Google and Snuffy Smith
Barney Google and Snuffy Smith
Barney Google and Snuffy Smith, originally Barney Google, is a long-running American comic strip created by cartoonist Billy DeBeck . Since its debut on June 17, 1919, the strip has gained a huge international readership, appearing in 900 newspapers in 21 countries...
), George Lichty
George Lichty
George Lichty was an American cartoonist, creator of the daily and Sunday cartoon series Grin and Bear It. His work was signed Lichty and often ran without mention of his first name....
(Grin and Bear It
Grin and Bear It
Grin and Bear It is a daily panel created by George Lichtenstein under the penname George Lichty. Initially distributed by United Feature Syndicate, it was syndicated by Field Enterprises beginning in 1940. Field Enterprises was sold in 1986 to King Features Syndicate which continues to distribute...
), Zack Mosley
Zack Mosley
Zack Terrell Mosley was an American comic strip artist best known for the aviation adventures in his long-running The Adventures of Smilin' Jack which ran in more than 300 newspapers from 1933 to 1973....
(The Adventures of Smilin' Jack
The Adventures of Smilin' Jack
The Adventures of Smilin' Jack was an aviation comic strip that first appeared October 1, 1933 in the Chicago Tribune and ended April 1, 1973....
), Alex Raymond
Alex Raymond
Alexander Gillespie "Alex" Raymond was an American cartoonist, best known for creating Flash Gordon for King Features in 1934...
(Rip Kirby
Rip Kirby
Rip Kirby was a popular comic strip featuring the adventures of the eponymous lead character, a private detective created by Alex Raymond in 1946...
), Cliff Sterrett
Cliff Sterrett
Clifford Sterrett , was an innovative comic strip cartoonist who created the influential Polly and Her Pals....
(Polly and Her Pals
Polly and Her Pals
Polly and Her Pals is an American comic strip created by cartoonist Cliff Sterrett, which ran from 1912 until 1958. It is regarded as one of the most graphically innovative strips of the 20th century...
) and Chic Young
Chic Young
Murat Bernard Young , better known as Chic Young, was an American cartoonist who created the popular, long-running comic strip Blondie. His 1919 William McKinley High School Yearbook cites his nickname as Chicken, source of his familiar pen name and signature...
(Blondie
Blondie (comic strip)
Blondie is an American comic strip created by cartoonist Chic Young. Distributed by King Features Syndicate, the strip has been published in newspapers since September 8, 1930...
), plus editorial cartoonists Reg Manning
Reg Manning
Reginald W. Manning , better known as Reg Manning, was an American artist and illustrator, best known for his editorial cartoons....
and Fred O. Seibel and sports cartoonist Willard Mullin
Willard Mullin
Willard Mullin was an American sports cartoonist. He is most famous for his creation of the "Brooklyn Bum", the personification of the Brooklyn Dodgers baseball team...
.
Marge Devine Duffy, a secretary in King Features public relations department, had been helping Russell handle correspondence to the NCS, and in 1948, she was installed as the official NCS secretary and later given the title Scribe of the Society. Her name was on all the Society’s publications, and her address was the permanent mailing address of the NCS for more than 30 years. As the organizing secretary, she handled agendas, organization and publicity. “She practically ran the damn thing,” Caniff recalled. “A real autocrat, and everyone was delighted to have her be an autocrat because that’s what we needed.”
In the fall of 1949, the NCS cooperated with Treasury Department to sell savings bonds, engaging in a nationwide tour to 17 major cities with a team of 10 to 12 cartoonists and a traveling display, 20,000 Years of Comics, a 95-foot pictorial history of the comic strip.
Despite the contributions of Duffy and Mendez, there were no female members, as stipulated in the NCS' constitution which specified that “any cartoonist (male) who signs his name to his published work” could apply for membership. In 1949, Hilda Terry wrote a letter challenging that rule, and after more than six months of debates and votes, three women were finally admitted for membership in 1950—Terry, Edwina Dumm
Edwina Dumm
Frances Edwina Dumm was a writer-artist who drew the comic strip Cap Stubbs and Tippie for six decades and is also notable as the nation’s first full-time female editorial cartoonist, She used her middle name for the signature on her comic strip, signed simply Edwina.One of the earliest female...
and gag cartoonist Barbara Shermund.
On November 6, 1951, 49 members of the NCS arrived at Washington's Carlton Hotel for breakfast with Harry S. Truman
Harry S. Truman
Harry S. Truman was the 33rd President of the United States . As President Franklin D. Roosevelt's third vice president and the 34th Vice President of the United States , he succeeded to the presidency on April 12, 1945, when President Roosevelt died less than three months after beginning his...
. Gathered in Washington to help the Treasury Department sell Defense Stamps, the group presented Truman with a bound volume of their comic strip characters, some interacting with caricatures of Truman.
USO Tour and charitable causes
When Al Posen originated the idea of National Cartoonists Society tours to entertain American servicemen, he became the NCS Director of Overseas Shows. On October 4, 1952, nine cartoonists left on a USO-Camp Shows tour of U.S. Armed Forces installations in Europe, traveling via a Military Air Transport ServiceMilitary Air Transport Service
The Military Air Transport Service is an inactive Department of Defense Unified Command. Activated on 1 June 1948, MATS was a consolidation of the United States Navy Naval Air Transport Service and the United States Air Force Air Transport Command into a single, joint, unified command...
plane from Westover Air Force Base
Westover Joint Air Reserve Base
Westover Air Reserve Base is an Air Force Reserve Command installation located in the Massachusetts communities of Chicopee and Ludlow, near the city of Springfield, Massachusetts. Westover hosts the largest Air Reserve Base in the world in terms of area...
in Massachusetts and landing at Rhein-Main Air Base
Rhein-Main Air Base
Rhein-Main Air Base was a U.S. Air Force / NATO military airbase near the city of Frankfurt am Main, Germany. It occupied the south side of Frankfurt International Airport. Its airport codes are discontinued....
. On the tour, the cartoonists engaged models in each country to join in their Laff Time show of audience participation stunts and gags. The cartoonists were Posen, Charles Biro
Charles Biro
Charles Biro was an American comic book creator and cartoonist. He is today chiefly known for creating the comic book characters Airboy and Steel Sterling, and for his 16-year run on the acclaimed 1940s series Daredevil Comics for Lev Gleason Publications.-Biography:Charles Biro studied art at...
, Bob Dunn, Gus Edson, Bill Holman, Bob Montana, Russell Patterson, Clarence Russell and Dick Wingert (Hubert). The comic strip Dondi
Dondi
Dondi was a daily comic strip about a large-eyed war orphan of the same name. Created by Gus Edson and Irwin Hasen, it ran in more than 100 newspapers for three decades .-Interview:...
came about because of a friendship that developed between Edson and Irwin Hasen
Irwin Hasen
Irwin Hasen is an American cartoonist, best known as the co-creator of the Dondi comic strip.-Early life:...
during a USO trip to Korea.
During the 1960s, cartoonists of military comic strips went to the White House and met with Lyndon B. Johnson
Lyndon B. Johnson
Lyndon Baines Johnson , often referred to as LBJ, was the 36th President of the United States after his service as the 37th Vice President of the United States...
in the Oval Office
Oval Office
The Oval Office, located in the West Wing of the White House, is the official office of the President of the United States.The room features three large south-facing windows behind the president's desk, and a fireplace at the north end...
. The group included Caniff, Bill Mauldin
Bill Mauldin
William Henry "Bill" Mauldin was a two-time Pulitzer Prize-winning editorial cartoonist from the United States...
and Mort Walker
Mort Walker
Addison Morton Walker , popularly known as Mort Walker, is an American comic artist best known for creating the newspaper comic strips Beetle Bailey in 1950 and Hi and Lois in 1954. He has signed Addison to some of his strips.Born in El Dorado, Kansas, he grew up in Kansas City, Missouri...
.
In 1977-78, the National Cartoonists Society released The National Cartoonists Society Portfolio of Fine Comic Art, published by Collector's Press. The portfolio featured a total of 34 art prints. Each 12" x 16" print was printed on archival fine art paper.
In 2011, to memorialize and commemorate the 10th anniversary of 9/11, many NCS cartoonists auctioned off art that gave commentary to the tragedy and raised money for families victimized by the event in a reflective homage called, Cartoonists Remember. These cartoon tributes raised over $50,000 to benefit the 9/11 families.The art was featured and displayed in both nationally syndicated newspapers and museums across America, including the Newseum in Washington, DC, the Cartoon Art Museum in San Francisco and the Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art in New York City.
In 2005, the Society formed a Foundation to continue the charitable works of its fund for indigent cartoonists, the Milt Gross
Milt Gross
Milt Gross , was an American comic strip and comic book writer, illustrator and animator. He wrote his comics in a Yiddish-inflected English. He originated the non-sequitur "Banana Oil!" as a phrase deflating pomposity and posing. His character Count Screwloose's admonition, "Iggy, keep an eye on...
Fund.
The Society's offices are in Winter Park, Florida
Winter Park, Florida
Winter Park is a suburban city in Orange County, Florida, United States. The population was 24,090 at the 2000 census. According to the U.S. Census Bureau's 2006 estimates, the city had a population of 28,083. It is part of the Orlando–Kissimmee Metropolitan Statistical Area...
. In addition, the NCS has chartered 16 regional chapters throughout the United States and one in Canada. Chapter Chairpersons sit on the NCS Regional Council and are represented by a National Representative, who is a voting member of the Board of Directors. As NCS president for two consecutive terms, Jeff Keane
Jeff Keane
Jeff Keane is the youngest son of Bil Keane, and currently inks and colors the syndicated comic strip The Family Circus.The character Jeffy from The Family Circus was based on Jeff when he was growing up. Jeff was a theater major in college, but gradually grew in to the family business...
, cartoonist for the Family Circus and son of comic creator, Bil Keane
Bil Keane
William Aloysius Keane , better known as Bil Keane, was an American cartoonist. He is most notable for his work on the long-running newspaper comic The Family Circus, which began its run in 1960 and continues in syndication, drawn by his son Jeff Keane.-Biography:Born in Philadelphia,...
, returned to the charter and spirit of the NCS by extending the society's outreach to the military by visiting and cartooning for vets who served in the Iraq War and Afghanistan War, during the years 2007-2011.
In 2008, NCS joined over 60 other art licensing businesses (including the Artists Rights Society
Artists Rights Society
Artists Rights Society is a copyright, licensing, and monitoring organization for visual artists in the United States. Founded in 1987, ARS represents the intellectual property rights interests of over 50,000 visual artists and estates of visual artists from around the world .- Member Artists &...
, Association of American Editorial Cartoonists
Association of American Editorial Cartoonists
The Association of American Editorial Cartoonists is a professional association concerned with promoting the interests of staff, freelance and student editorial cartoonists in the United States, Canada and Mexico...
, Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators
Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators
The Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators is a nonprofit, 5013 organization that acts as a network for the exchange of knowledge between writers, illustrators, editors, publishers, agents, librarians, educators, booksellers and others involved with literature for young people.The...
, the Stock Artists Alliance
Stock Artists Alliance
Founded in 2001, the Stock Artists Alliance is an international trade association of photographers who produce images for stock photography. The mission of SAA is to support and protect the business interests of professional stock photographers with regard to the worldwide distribution of their...
, Illustrator's Partnership of America and the Advertising Photographers of America) in opposing both The Orphan Works Act of 2008 and The Shawn Bentley Orphan Works Act of 2008. Known collectively as "Artists United Against the U.S. Orphan Works Acts", the diverse organizations joined forces to oppose the bills, which the groups believe "permits, and even encourages, wide-scale infringements while depriving creators of protections currently available under the Copyright Act."
Billy DeBeck Memorial Award
The earliest NCS award was the Billy DeBeck Memorial Award, known as the Barney from the character in DeBeck's popular comic strip Barney Google and Snuffy SmithBarney Google and Snuffy Smith
Barney Google and Snuffy Smith, originally Barney Google, is a long-running American comic strip created by cartoonist Billy DeBeck . Since its debut on June 17, 1919, the strip has gained a huge international readership, appearing in 900 newspapers in 21 countries...
. After DeBeck died on Veteran's Day, 1942, Mary DeBeck remarried (as Mary Bergman) and created the DeBeck Award in 1946. She also made the annual presentation of engraved silver cigarette cases (with DeBeck's characters etched on the cover) to the eight winners spanning the years 1946 to 1953.
Mary Bergman died February 14, 1953, aboard a National Airlines DC-6 which went down in the Gulf of Mexico during a thunderstorm on a flight from Tampa to New Orleans. In 1954, following her death, the DeBeck Award was renamed the Reuben Award. When the award name was changed in 1954, all of the prior eight winners were given Reuben statuettes designed by and named after the NCS' first president, Rube Goldberg. The Reuben Award was executed in bronze by sculptor and editorial cartoonist Bill Crawford
Bill Crawford (cartoonist)
Bill Crawford was an American editorial cartoonist.Crawford grew up in Hammond, Indiana and graduated from Ohio State University with a degree in Fine Arts and studied for a time in Paris at the Grand Chaumiere...
.
Reuben Award
The National Cartoonists Society's Reuben Awards weekend is an annual gala event which takes place at a site selected by the President. During the formal, black-tie banquet evening, the Reuben Award (determined by secret ballot) is presented to the Outstanding Cartoonist of the Year. Cartoonists in various professional divisions are also honored with special plaques for excellence. These awards are voted by a combination of the general membership (by secret ballot) and specially-formed juries overseen by various NCS Regional Chapters. A cartoonist does not need to be a member of the NCS to receive one of the Society's awards.Prior to 1983, the Reuben Awards Dinner was held in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, usually at the Plaza Hotel. Since then, the event has expanded into a full weekend and is held in a different city each year. Recent Reuben locations have included New York City; Boca Raton, Florida
Boca Raton, Florida
Boca Raton is a city in Palm Beach County, Florida, USA, incorporated in May 1925. In the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 74,764; the 2006 population recorded by the U.S. Census Bureau was 86,396. However, the majority of the people under the postal address of Boca Raton, about...
; San Francisco, California
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
; Cancún, Mexico and Kansas City, Missouri
Kansas City, Missouri
Kansas City, Missouri is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and is the anchor city of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area, the second largest metropolitan area in Missouri. It encompasses in parts of Jackson, Clay, Cass, and Platte counties...
.
Each year, during the NCS Annual Reuben Awards Weekend, the Society honors the year's outstanding achievements in all walks of the profession. Excellence in the fields of newspaper strips, newspaper panels, TV animation, feature animation, newspaper illustration, gag cartoons, book illustration, greeting cards, comic books, magazine feature/magazine illustration and editorial cartoons, is honored in the NCS Division Awards, which are chosen by specially-convened juries at the chapter level. The recipient of the profession's highest honor, the Reuben Award for Outstanding Cartoonist of the Year, is chosen by a secret ballot of the members. As part of the presentations and general frivolity, the NCS has produced videos to initiate the festivities, some of which have been parodies of iconic entertainment.
Award winners
Billy DeBeck Memorial Award- 1946: Milton CaniffMilton CaniffMilton Arthur Paul Caniff was an American cartoonist famous for the Terry and the Pirates and Steve Canyon comic strips.-Biography:...
, Terry and the PiratesTerry and the Pirates (comic strip)Terry and the Pirates was an action-adventure comic strip created by cartoonist Milton Caniff. Captain Joseph Patterson, editor for the Chicago Tribune New York News Syndicate, had admired Caniff’s work on the children's adventure strip Dickie Dare and hired him to create the new adventure strip,... - 1947: Al CappAl CappAlfred Gerald Caplin , better known as Al Capp, was an American cartoonist and humorist best known for the satirical comic strip Li'l Abner. He also wrote the comic strips Abbie an' Slats and Long Sam...
, Li'l AbnerLi'l AbnerLi'l Abner is a satirical American comic strip that appeared in many newspapers in the United States, Canada and Europe, featuring a fictional clan of hillbillies in the impoverished town of Dogpatch, Kentucky. Written and drawn by Al Capp , the strip ran for 43 years, from August 13, 1934 through... - 1948: Chic YoungChic YoungMurat Bernard Young , better known as Chic Young, was an American cartoonist who created the popular, long-running comic strip Blondie. His 1919 William McKinley High School Yearbook cites his nickname as Chicken, source of his familiar pen name and signature...
, BlondieBlondie (comic strip)Blondie is an American comic strip created by cartoonist Chic Young. Distributed by King Features Syndicate, the strip has been published in newspapers since September 8, 1930... - 1949: Alex RaymondAlex RaymondAlexander Gillespie "Alex" Raymond was an American cartoonist, best known for creating Flash Gordon for King Features in 1934...
, Rip KirbyRip KirbyRip Kirby was a popular comic strip featuring the adventures of the eponymous lead character, a private detective created by Alex Raymond in 1946... - 1950: Roy CraneRoy CraneRoyston Campbell Crane , who signed his work Roy Crane, was an influential American cartoonist who created the comic strip characters Wash Tubbs, Captain Easy and Buz Sawyer. He pioneered the adventure comic strip, establishing the conventions and artistic approach of that genre. Comics historian...
, Buz SawyerBuz SawyerBuz Sawyer was a popular comic strip created by Roy Crane and highly regarded by comic strip historians. Distributed by King Features Syndicate, it had a long run from November 1, 1943 to 1989. The last strip signed by Crane was dated 21 April 1979.... - 1951: Walt KellyWalt KellyWalter Crawford Kelly, Jr. , or Walt Kelly, was an American animator and cartoonist, best known for the comic strip, Pogo. He began his animation career in 1936 at Walt Disney Studios, contributing to Pinocchio and Fantasia. Kelly resigned in 1941 at the age of 28 to work at Post-Hall Syndicate,...
, Pogo - 1952: Hank KetchamHank KetchamHenry King "Hank" Ketcham was an American cartoonist who created the Dennis the Menace comic strip, writing and drawing it from 1951 to 1994, when he retired from drawing the daily page and took up painting full time in his studio at his home. He received the Reuben Award for the strip in 1953...
, Dennis the MenaceDennis the Menace (U.S.)Dennis the Menace is a daily syndicated newspaper comic strip originally created, written and illustrated by Hank Ketcham. It debuted on March 12, 1951 in 16 newspapers and was originally distributed by Post-Hall Syndicate... - 1953: Mort WalkerMort WalkerAddison Morton Walker , popularly known as Mort Walker, is an American comic artist best known for creating the newspaper comic strips Beetle Bailey in 1950 and Hi and Lois in 1954. He has signed Addison to some of his strips.Born in El Dorado, Kansas, he grew up in Kansas City, Missouri...
, Beetle BaileyBeetle BaileyBeetle Bailey is an American comic strip set in a fictional United States Army military post, created by cartoonist Mort Walker. It is among the oldest comic strips still being produced by the original creator...
Reuben Award
- 1954: Willard MullinWillard MullinWillard Mullin was an American sports cartoonist. He is most famous for his creation of the "Brooklyn Bum", the personification of the Brooklyn Dodgers baseball team...
, Sports - 1955: Charles Schulz, PeanutsPeanutsPeanuts is a syndicated daily and Sunday American comic strip written and illustrated by Charles M. Schulz, which ran from October 2, 1950, to February 13, 2000, continuing in reruns afterward...
- 1956: Herbert L. Block (HerblockHerblockHerbert Lawrence Block, commonly known as Herblock , was an American editorial cartoonist and author best known for his commentary on national domestic and foreign policy from a liberal perspective.-Career:...
), Editorial - 1957: Hal Foster, Prince ValiantPrince ValiantPrince Valiant in the Days of King Arthur, or simply Prince Valiant, is a long-run comic strip created by Hal Foster in 1937. It is an epic adventure that has told a continuous story during its entire history, and the full stretch of that story now totals more than 3700 Sunday strips...
- 1958: Frank King, Gasoline AlleyGasoline AlleyGasoline Alley is a comic strip created by Frank King and currently distributed by Tribune Media Services. First published November 24, 1918, it is the second longest running comic strip in the US and has received critical accolades for its influential innovations...
- 1959: Chester Gould, Dick TracyDick TracyDick Tracy is a comic strip featuring Dick Tracy, a hard-hitting, fast-shooting and intelligent police detective. Created by Chester Gould, the strip made its debut on October 4, 1931, in the Detroit Mirror. It was distributed by the Chicago Tribune New York News Syndicate...
- 1960: Ronald SearleRonald SearleRonald William Fordham Searle, CBE, RDI, is a British artist and cartoonist, best known as the creator of St Trinian's School. He is also the co-author of the Molesworth series....
, AdvertisingAdvertisingAdvertising is a form of communication used to persuade an audience to take some action with respect to products, ideas, or services. Most commonly, the desired result is to drive consumer behavior with respect to a commercial offering, although political and ideological advertising is also common...
and IllustrationIllustrationAn illustration is a displayed visualization form presented as a drawing, painting, photograph or other work of art that is created to elucidate or dictate sensual information by providing a visual representation graphically.- Early history :The earliest forms of illustration were prehistoric... - 1961: Bill MauldinBill MauldinWilliam Henry "Bill" Mauldin was a two-time Pulitzer Prize-winning editorial cartoonist from the United States...
, Editorial - 1962: Dik Browne, Hi and LoisHi and LoisHi and Lois is a comic strip about a suburban family. Created by Mort Walker and illustrated by Dik Browne, it debuted on October 18, 1954, distributed by King Features Syndicate.-Characters:...
- 1963: Fred LasswellFred LasswellFred Lasswell was an American cartoonist best known for his decades of work on the comic strip Barney Google and Snuffy Smith.Born in Kennett, Missouri, he got his start as a sports cartoonist for the Tampa Daily Times...
, Barney GoogleBarney Google and Snuffy SmithBarney Google and Snuffy Smith, originally Barney Google, is a long-running American comic strip created by cartoonist Billy DeBeck . Since its debut on June 17, 1919, the strip has gained a huge international readership, appearing in 900 newspapers in 21 countries... - 1964: Charles Schulz, Peanuts (First Repeat Winner)
- 1965: Leonard StarrLeonard StarrLeonard Starr is a Golden Age comic book artist, an advertising artist and award-winning cartoonist, notable for creating the newspaper strip On Stage and reviving Little Orphan Annie.-Early life:...
, Mary Perkins, On StageMary Perkins, On StageMary Perkins, On Stage is an American newspaper comic strip by Leonard Starr for the Chicago-Tribune-New York News Syndicate. It ran from February, 1957 to September 9, 1979, with the switch to the longer title in 1961... - 1966: Otto SoglowOtto SoglowOtto Soglow was an American cartoonist best known for his comic strip The Little King.Born in Yorkville, Manhattan, Soglow grew up in New York City, where he held various jobs as a teenager and made an unsuccessful effort to become an actor. His first job was painting designs on baby rattles...
, The Little KingThe Little KingThe Little King was a comic strip created by Otto Soglow, famously telling its stories in a style using images and very few words, as in pantomime.-Publication history:... - 1967: Rube GoldbergRube GoldbergReuben Garrett Lucius Goldberg was an American cartoonist, sculptor, author, engineer and inventor.He is best known for a series of popular cartoons depicting complex gadgets that perform simple tasks in indirect, convoluted ways. These devices, now known as Rube Goldberg machines, are similar to...
, Humor in Sculpture - 1968: Pat OliphantPat OliphantPatrick Bruce "Pat" Oliphant is the most widely syndicated political cartoonist in the world, described by the New York Times as "the most influential cartoonist now working"...
, Editorial - 1968: Johnny HartJohnny HartJohnny Hart was an American cartoonist noted as the creator of the comic strip B.C. and co-creator of the strip The Wizard of Id. Hart was recognized with several awards, including the Swedish Adamson Award and five from the National Cartoonists Society...
, B.C. and The Wizard of IdThe Wizard of IdThe Wizard of Id is a daily newspaper comic strip created by American cartoonists Brant Parker and Johnny Hart. Beginning in 1964, the strip follows the antics of a large cast of characters in a shabby medieval kingdom called "Id". From time to time, the king refers to his subjects as "Idiots"... - 1969: Walter BerndtWalter BerndtWalter Berndt was a cartoonist known for his long-run comic strip, Smitty, which he drew for 50 years....
, SmittySmitty (comic strip)Smitty was a popular newspaper comic strip created in the early 1920s by Walter Berndt. Syndicated nationally by the Chicago Tribune New York News Syndicate, it ran from November 29, 1922 to 1973 and brought Berndt a Reuben Award in 1969.... - 1970: Alfred AndriolaAlfred AndriolaAlfred James Andriola was an American cartoonist best known for the comic strip Kerry Drake, for which he won a Reuben Award in 1970. His work sometimes appeared under the pseudonym Alfred James....
, Kerry DrakeKerry DrakeKerry Drake is the title of a comic strip created for Publishers Syndicate by Alfred Andriola as artist and Allen Saunders as uncredited writer... - 1971: Milton CaniffMilton CaniffMilton Arthur Paul Caniff was an American cartoonist famous for the Terry and the Pirates and Steve Canyon comic strips.-Biography:...
, Steve CanyonSteve CanyonSteve Canyon was a long-running American adventure comic strip by writer-artist Milton Caniff. Launched shortly after Caniff retired from his previous strip, Terry and the Pirates, Steve Canyon ran from January 13, 1947 until June 4, 1988, shortly after Caniff's death... - 1972: Pat OliphantPat OliphantPatrick Bruce "Pat" Oliphant is the most widely syndicated political cartoonist in the world, described by the New York Times as "the most influential cartoonist now working"...
, Editorial - 1973: Dik Browne, Hagar the HorribleHägar the HorribleHägar the Horrible is the title and main character of an American comic strip created by cartoonist Dik Browne , and syndicated by King Features Syndicate. It first appeared in February 1973, and was an immediate success. Since Browne's retirement in 1988 , his son Chris Browne has continued the...
- 1974: Dick MooresDick MooresRichard Arnold Moores was an American cartoonist whose best known work was the comic strip Gasoline Alley, which he worked on for nearly three decades.-Early Life:...
, Gasoline Alley - 1975: Bob DunnBob Dunn (cartoonist)Bob Dunn was an American cartoonist, entertainer and gagwriter who drew several comic strips.In addition to his own strips, Dunn was known for his work on Jimmy Hatlo's Little Iodine and They'll Do It Every Time.King Features syndicated Dunn's Just the Type from May 5, 1946 to November 24, 1963...
, They'll Do It Every TimeThey'll Do It Every TimeThey'll Do It Every Time was a single-panel newspaper comic strip, created by Jimmy Hatlo, which had a long run over eight decades. It first appeared on February 5, 1929 and continued until February 2, 2008. The title of the strip became a popular catchphrase, still used today by many people who... - 1976: Ernie BushmillerErnie BushmillerErnest Paul Bushmiller, Jr. was an American cartoonist, best known for creating the long-running daily comic strip Nancy....
, NancyNancy (comic strip)Nancy is an American daily and Sunday comic strip, originally written and drawn by Ernie Bushmiller and distributed by United Feature Syndicate.... - 1977: Chester Gould, Dick Tracy
- 1978: Jeff MacNellyJeff MacNellyJeffrey Kenneth MacNelly was a three-time Pulitzer Prize-winning editorial cartoonist and the creator of the popular comic strip Shoe.-Early life:...
, Editorial - 1979: Jeff MacNelly, ShoeShoe (comic strip)Shoe is an American comic strip about a motley crew of newspapermen, all of whom are birds. It was written and drawn by its creator, cartoonist Jeff MacNelly, from 1977 until his death in 2000...
(First "back-to-back" Winner) - 1980: Charles SaxonCharles SaxonCharles David Saxon was an American cartoonist.Born in Brooklyn, he graduated from Columbia University in 1940. He worked as an editor at Dell Publishing and served as a bomber pilot in the Army Air Corps during World War II, flying 40 missions over Germany. After the war he rejoined Dell and...
, Advertising - 1981: Mel LazarusMel LazarusMell Lazarus is an American novelist and cartoonist, best known as the creator of two comic strips, Miss Peach and Momma . For his comic strip Pauline McPeril Mell Lazarus (born May 3, 1927) is an American novelist and cartoonist, best known as the creator of two comic strips, Miss Peach...
, Miss PeachMiss PeachMiss Peach was a syndicated comic strip created by American cartoonist Mell Lazarus. It ran for 45 years, from February 4, 1957 to September 8, 2002....
and MommaMommaMomma is an English language comic strip by Mell Lazarus which debuted on October 26, 1970. Initially distributed by the Publishers-Hall Syndicate, it is currently handled by Creators Syndicate and published in more than 400 newspapers worldwide.... - 1982: Bil KeaneBil KeaneWilliam Aloysius Keane , better known as Bil Keane, was an American cartoonist. He is most notable for his work on the long-running newspaper comic The Family Circus, which began its run in 1960 and continues in syndication, drawn by his son Jeff Keane.-Biography:Born in Philadelphia,...
, Family Circus - 1983: Arnold RothArnold RothArnold Roth is an American freelance cartoonist and illustrator for advertisements, album covers, books, magazines and newspapers.Novelist John Updike wrote, "All cartoonists are geniuses, but Arnold Roth is especially so."...
, Advertising - 1984: Brant Parker, The Wizard of Id
- 1985: Lynn JohnstonLynn JohnstonLynn Johnston, CM, OM is a Canadian cartoonist, well known for her comic strip For Better or For Worse, and was the first woman and first Canadian to win the National Cartoonist Society's Reuben Award.-Early life:...
, For Better or For WorseFor Better or For WorseFor Better or For Worse is a comic strip by Lynn Johnston that ran for 30 years, chronicling the lives of a Canadian family, The Pattersons, and their friends. The story is set in the fictitious Toronto-area suburban town of Milborough, Ontario. Johnston's strip began in September 1979, and ended...
(First Female (& Canadian) Winner) - 1986: Bill WattersonBill WattersonWilliam Boyd Watterson II , known as Bill Watterson, is an American cartoonist and the author of the comic strip Calvin and Hobbes...
, Calvin and HobbesCalvin and HobbesCalvin and Hobbes is a syndicated daily comic strip that was written and illustrated by American cartoonist Bill Watterson, and syndicated from November 18, 1985, to December 31, 1995. It follows the humorous antics of Calvin, a precocious and adventurous six-year-old boy, and Hobbes, his... - 1987: Mort Drucker, MadMad (magazine)Mad is an American humor magazine founded by editor Harvey Kurtzman and publisher William Gaines in 1952. Launched as a comic book before it became a magazine, it was widely imitated and influential, impacting not only satirical media but the entire cultural landscape of the 20th century.The last...
- 1988: Bill WattersonBill WattersonWilliam Boyd Watterson II , known as Bill Watterson, is an American cartoonist and the author of the comic strip Calvin and Hobbes...
, Calvin and Hobbes (Third Repeat Winner) - 1989: Jim DavisJim Davis (cartoonist)James Robert Davis is an American cartoonist, best known as the creator of the comic strip Garfield, which he signs as Jim Davis. He has also worked on other strips: Tumbleweeds, Gnorm Gnat, U.S. Acres and a strip about Mr...
, GarfieldGarfieldGarfield is a comic strip created by Jim Davis. Published since June 19, 1978, it chronicles the life of the title character, the cat Garfield ; his owner, Jon Arbuckle; and Arbuckle's dog, Odie... - 1990: Gary LarsonGary LarsonGary Larson is the creator of The Far Side, a single-panel cartoon series that was syndicated internationally to newspapers for 15 years. The series ended with Larson's retirement on January 1, 1995. His 23 books of collected cartoons have combined sales of more than 45 million...
, The Far SideThe Far SideThe Far Side is a popular single-panel comic created by Gary Larson and syndicated by Universal Press Syndicate, which ran from January 1, 1980, to January 1, 1995. Its surrealistic humor is often based on uncomfortable social situations, improbable events, an anthropomorphic view of the world,... - 1991: Mike Peters, Mother Goose & Grimm
- 1992: Cathy GuisewiteCathy GuisewiteCathy Lee Guisewite is the cartoonist who created the comic strip Cathy, about a career woman facing the issues and challenges of eating, work, relationships, and being a mother. As Cathy put it in one of her strips, "The four basic guilt groups."Born in Dayton, Ohio, Guisewite grew up in Midland,...
, CathyCathy (comic strip)Cathy was a comic strip drawn by Cathy Guisewite. It featured a woman who struggled through the "four basic guilt groups" of life — food, love, mom, and work — the strip gently poked fun at the lives and foibles of modern women. Cathy's characteristics and issues both made fun of and... - 1993: Jim BorgmanJim BorgmanJames Mark Borgman is an American cartoonist. He is known for his political cartoons and his nationally syndicated comic strip Zits.-Personal:...
, Editorial - 1994: Gary LarsonGary LarsonGary Larson is the creator of The Far Side, a single-panel cartoon series that was syndicated internationally to newspapers for 15 years. The series ended with Larson's retirement on January 1, 1995. His 23 books of collected cartoons have combined sales of more than 45 million...
, The Far Side (Fourth Repeat Winner) - 1995: Garry TrudeauGarry TrudeauGarretson Beekman "Garry" Trudeau is an American cartoonist, best known for the Doonesbury comic strip.-Background and education:...
, DoonesburyDoonesburyDoonesbury is a comic strip by American cartoonist Garry Trudeau, that chronicles the adventures and lives of an array of characters of various ages, professions, and backgrounds, from the President of the United States to the title character, Michael Doonesbury, who has progressed from a college... - 1996: Sergio AragonesSergio AragonésSergio Aragonés Domenech is a cartoonist and writer best known for his contributions to Mad Magazine and creator of the comic book Groo the Wanderer....
, Mad - 1997: Scott AdamsScott AdamsScott Raymond Adams is the American creator of the Dilbert comic strip and the author of several nonfiction works of satire, commentary, business, and general speculation....
, DilbertDilbertDilbert is an American comic strip written and drawn by Scott Adams. First published on April 16, 1989, Dilbert is known for its satirical office humor about a white-collar, micromanaged office featuring the engineer Dilbert as the title character... - 1998: Will EisnerWill EisnerWilliam Erwin "Will" Eisner was an American comics writer, artist and entrepreneur. He is considered one of the most important contributors to the development of the medium and is known for the cartooning studio he founded; for his highly influential series The Spirit; for his use of comics as an...
, The SpiritThe SpiritThe Spirit is a crime-fighting fictional character created by writer-artist Will Eisner. He first appeared June 2, 1940 in "The Spirit Section", the colloquial name given to a 16-page Sunday supplement, distributed to 20 newspapers by the Register and Tribune Syndicate and reaching five million... - 1999: Patrick McDonnellPatrick McDonnellPatrick McDonnell is the creator of the daily comic strip Mutts. He has also illustrated Russell Baker's Sunday Observer column in The New York Times magazine and created the monthly comic strip Bad Baby for Parents magazine...
, MuttsMuttsMutts is a daily comic strip created by Patrick McDonnell in 1994 based on the day-to-day adventures of two house pets: a dog named Earl and a cat named Mooch. Earl and Mooch interact with each other, their human owners and a large cast of neighborhood animals.Charles M... - 2000: Jack DavisJack Davis (cartoonist)Jack Davis is an American cartoonist and illustrator, known for his advertising art, magazine covers, film posters, record album art and numerous comic book stories...
, Mad - 2001: Jerry ScottJerry ScottJerry Scott in South Bend, Indiana. He is an American cartoonist, co-creator of Baby Blues and co-creator of Zits.-Career:...
, ZitsZits (comic strip)Zits is a comic strip written by cartoonist Jerry Scott and illustrated by Jim Borgman about the life of Jeremy Duncan, a 16-year-old high school sophomore . The comic debuted in July 1997 in over 200 newspapers and has since become popular worldwide and received multiple awards...
and Baby Blues - 2002: Matt GroeningMatt GroeningMatthew Abram "Matt" Groening is an American cartoonist, screenwriter, and producer. He is the creator of the comic strip Life in Hell as well as two successful television series, The Simpsons and Futurama....
, Life in HellLife in HellLife in Hell is a weekly comic strip by Matt Groening. The strip features anthropomorphic rabbits and a pair of gay lovers. Groening uses these characters to explore a wide range of topics about love, sex, work, and death... - 2003: Greg Evans, LuannLuann (comic strip)Luann is a syndicated newspaper comic strip distributed by United Features Syndicate since 17 March 1985. Luann is written and drawn by Greg Evans, who won the 2003 Reuben Award as Cartoonist of the Year....
- 2004: Pat BradyPat Brady (cartoonist)Pat Brady is an American cartoonist and creator of the comic strip Rose Is Rose, syndicated by United Feature Syndicate since 1983....
, Rose Is RoseRose Is RoseRose Is Rose is a syndicated comic strip, written by Pat Brady since its creation in 1984, and drawn since March 2004 by Don Wimmer. The strip revolves around Rose and Jimbo Gumbo, their son Pasquale, and the family cat Peekaboo... - 2005: Mike LuckovichMike LuckovichMichael Edward Luckovich is an editorial cartoonist who has worked for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution since 1989...
, editorial cartoonist for The Atlanta Journal-ConstitutionThe Atlanta Journal-ConstitutionThe Atlanta Journal-Constitution is the only major daily newspaper in Atlanta, Georgia, United States, and its suburbs. The AJC, as it is called, is the flagship publication of Cox Enterprises. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution is the result of the merger between The Atlanta Journal and The Atlanta... - 2006: Bill AmendBill AmendWilliam J. C. "Bill" Amend III is an American cartoonist, best known for his comic strip FoxTrot.-Early life:Amend attended high school in Burlingame, California where he was a cartoonist on his school newspaper. Amend is an Eagle Scout in the Boy Scouts of America. He attended Amherst College,...
, FoxTrot - 2007: Al JaffeeAl JaffeeAbraham Jaffee , known as Al Jaffee, is an American cartoonist. He is notable for his work in the satirical magazine Mad, including his trademark feature, the Mad Fold-in. As of 2010, Jaffee remains a regular in the magazine after 55 years and is its longest-running contributor...
, Mad - 2008: Dave CoverlyDave CoverlyDave Coverly is the creator of the single-panel comic Speed Bump.He grew up in Plainwell, Michigan and graduated from Eastern Michigan University in Ypsilanti with a degree in philosophy. At EMU, he worked for the student newspaper, the Eastern Echo...
, Speed BumpSpeed bumpA speed bump is a speed-reducing feature of road design to slow traffic or reduce through traffic, via... - 2009: Dan PiraroDan PiraroDaniel Charles Piraro is a painter, illustrator and cartoonist best known for his award-winning syndicated cartoon panel Bizarro. Piraro's cartoons have been reprinted in 15 book collections between 1986 and the present....
, BizarroBizarro (comic strip)Bizarro is a single-panel cartoon written and drawn by cartoonist Dan Piraro. Launched January 22, 1985, the panel appears daily in 350 markets throughout North and South America, Europe and Asia... - 2010: Richard ThompsonRichard Thompson (cartoonist)Richard C. Thompson is an illustrator and cartoonist best known for his syndicated comic strip Cul de Sac and the illustrated poem "Make the Pie Higher". He was given the Reuben Award for Outstanding Cartoonist of the Year in 2011....
, Cul de SacCul de Sac (comic strip)Cul de Sac is a comic strip created by Richard Thompson and distributed by Universal Press Syndicate to 150 worldwide newspapers.The central character is four-year-old Alice Otterloop, and the strip depicts her daily life at pre-school and at home...
Award of Honor
This award was for recognition of the American cartoon as an instrument in war, peace, education and in the artistic betterment of our cultural environment. On September 22, 1965, the following were honored:Milton Caniff Lifetime Achievement Award
The Milton Caniff Lifetime Achievement Award is awarded by unanimous vote of the NCS Board of Directors.Silver T-Square Award
The Silver T-Square is awarded, by unanimous vote of the NCS Board of Directors, to persons who have demonstrated outstanding dedication or service to the Society or the profession.Elzie Segar Award
This award is presented to a person who has made a unique and outstanding contribution to the profession of cartooning.The winner was selected by the NCS Board and later by King Features Syndicate, in honor of "Popeye" creator, Elzie Segar.
See also
- Allan HoltzAllan HoltzAllan Holtz is a comic strip historian who researches and writes about newspaper comics for his Stripper's Guide, launched in 2005. His research encompasses some 7,000 American comic strips and newspaper panels...
- Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & MuseumBilly Ireland Cartoon Library & MuseumThe Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum, a research library of American comic art, is affiliated with the Ohio State University library system in Columbus, Ohio...
- Daily stripDaily stripA daily strip is a newspaper comic strip format, appearing on weekdays, Monday through Saturday, as contrasted with a Sunday strip, which typically only appears on Sundays....
- Fred Waring Cartoon CollectionFred WaringFredrick Malcolm Waring was a popular musician, bandleader and radio-television personality, sometimes referred to as "America's Singing Master" and "The Man Who Taught America How to Sing." He was also a promoter, financial backer and namesake of the Waring Blendor, the first modern electric...
- List of comic strip syndicates
- List of newspaper comic strips
- Steve CottleSteve CottleSteve Cottle, Jr. , dedicated to the preservation of vintage comic strips, is also known as Mr. ilovecomix. In 2008, he founded the I Love Comix Archive and began to recruit vintage comic strip collectors as contributors, noting, "This is a collaborative effort to save and digitize old newspaper...
- Sunday stripSunday stripA Sunday strip is a newspaper comic strip format, where comic strips are printed in the Sunday newspaper, usually in a special section called the Sunday comics, and virtually always in color. Some readers called these sections the Sunday funnies...