The creator of the comic strip B.C., Johnny Hart, passed away yesterday. He died at his storyboard. I remember reading this comic strip as a kid and I didn’t remember if I liked it or not until I just looked up some of the strips and I realized that B.C. always made me smile. It never took itself seriously, they were all cave people with knowledge of everyday things.
Its sad when someone like this who touched your heart, in that unknown way (like someone who wrote or voiced a character from a cartoon or something like that) passes away.
Thank you for all the comic strips that I was able to read.
Here are some that I found just in case you never saw them, click the pics to make them bigger:
I also just read that he was the co-creator of the Wizard of Id comic strip.
The following article is from yahoo.com:
Johnny Hart, ‘B.C.’ creator, dies at 76
By MARY ESCH, Associated Press Writer 55 minutes ago
Cartoonist Johnny Hart, whose award-winning “B.C.” comic strip appeared in more than 1,300 newspapers worldwide, has died. He was 76.
Hart died Saturday while working at his home in Endicott.
“He had a stroke,” his wife, Bobby, said Sunday. “He died at his storyboard.”
“B.C.,” populated by prehistoric cavemen and dinosaurs, was launched in 1958 and eventually appeared in more than 1,300 newspapers with an audience of 100 million, according to Creators Syndicate Inc., which distributes it.
“He was generally regarded as one of the best cartoonists we’ve ever had,” Hart’s friend Mell Lazarus, creator of the “Momma” and “Miss Peach” comic strips, said from his California home. “He was totally original. ‘B.C’ broke ground and led the way for a number of imitators, none of which ever came close.”
After he graduated from Union-Endicott High School, Hart met Brant Parker, a young cartoonist who became a prime influence and co-creator with Hart of the “Wizard of Id” comic strip.
Hart enlisted in the Air Force and began producing cartoons for Pacific Stars and Stripes. He sold his first freelance cartoon to the Saturday Evening Post after his discharge from the military in 1954.
He won numerous awards for his work, including the National Cartoonist Society’s prestigious Reuben Award twice for Cartoonist of the Year.
Later in his career, some of Hart’s cartoons had religious themes, a reflection of his own Christian faith. That sometimes led to controversy.
A strip published on Easter in 2001 drew protests from Jewish groups and led several newspapers to drop the strip. The cartoon depicted a menorah transforming into a cross, with accompanying text quoting some of Jesus Christ’s dying words. Critics said it implied that Christianity supersedes Judaism.
Hart said he intended the strip as a tribute to both faiths.
“He had such an emphasis on kindness, generosity, and patience,” said Richard Newcombe, founder and president of Creators Syndicate in Los Angeles.
Newcombe said Hart was the first cartoonist to sign on when the syndicate was created 20 years ago. “Traditionally, comic strips were owned by syndicates,” Newcombe said. “We were different because we allowed cartoonists to own their own work. It was because of Johnny’s commitment to this idea that made us a success.”
Newcombe said “B.C.” and “Wizard of Id” would continue. Family members have been helping produce the strips for years, and they have an extensive computer archive of Hart’s drawings to work with, he said.
When “Peanuts” creator Charles Schulz died in 2000, United Media, which held the rights to the strip featuring Charlie Brown and Snoopy, started running old panels of the cartoon.
Besides his wife, Hart is survived by two daughters, Patti and Perri. He was a native of Endicott, about 135 miles northwest of New York City, and drew his comic strip at a studio in his home there until the day he died.
A funeral will be held at 11 a.m. Friday at the Nineveh Presbyterian Church.
Oh man. I kind of knew he was old, but didn’t know how old…sad news.
I enjoyed his comics in the same way…sort of in the background.
Yeah, so you understand what I mean. It wasn’t a Garfield or Peanuts or Far Side, but it was always there and you just need to look at it and rememeber the good days.