Robert LeRoy Ripley (December 25, 1890 – May 27, 1949)

Cartoonist, and armature anthropologist Robert Ripley first called his cartoon
feature, originally involving sports feats, Champs and Chumps, and it premiered
on December 19, 1918, in the New York Globe (above). He began adding items not related to sports, and in October 1919 he changed the title to Believe It or Not. When
the Globe folded in 1923, Ripley moved to the New York Evening Post. The popular franchise was later adapted into a wide variety of formats, including radio, television,
a chain of museums, and a book series.

August 1, 2003

First issue, 1941

(AP) – Joe Simon, the co-creator of star-spangled comic book hero Captain
America, has died at 98, his family announced. Simon, a writer, editor and
artist, passed away late Wednesday in New York after a short illness.

Li’l Abner is a comic strip that was distributed by United Feature Syndicate and
appeared in many newspapers in the U.S., Canada and Europe. It featured a
clan of hillbillies in the town of Dogpatch. It was the creation of Al Capp (below)
and ran for 43 years, from Monday August 13, 1934 through Sunday November
13, 1977. The strip was so popular during its run that Al Capp was featured on
the covers of both Time and Life magazines.

Al Capp

Last Sunday strip, 11-13-77

William Aloysius Keane (October 5, 1922 – November 8, 2011) 

Bil Keane was a cartoonist most noted for his work on the long-running
newspaper comic The Family Circus, which began its run in 1960 and
continues in syndication today. He died Tuesday at his home in Paradise
Valley, Arizona from congestive heart failure.

Actor Carl Frank in a publicity photo

Matt Crowley

BUCK ROGERS (Carl Frank) AND WILMA DEERING (Adele Ronson)

Three years after bringing science fiction to the world of comic strips, Buck
Rogers in the 25th Century was brought to CBS radio on November 7, 1932. It
Originally aired from New York and broadcast four times weekly, initially at 7:15
P.M. and later moved to an earlier "children’s hour". Actors Matt Crowley and
Carl Frank (above) along with Curtis Arnall and John Larkin all voiced Buck
Rogers at various times. The beautiful and strong-willed Wilma Deering was
portrayed by Adele Ronson, and the brilliant scientist-inventor Dr. Huer
was played by Edgar Stehli.