[Deathwatch] Johnny Hart, cartoonist, 76

[Deathwatch Central <cdw@slick.org>]

'B.C.' cartoonist Johnny Hart dies at 76

ENDICOTT, N.Y. (AP) ? 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.

Many thanks to Deathwatch Central for posting this obituary