Here’s the latest installment of Maggie Thompson’s ongoing look at important beginnings, middles, and ends, this time for February 21-27, 2025...
190 years ago February 24, 1835 French editor and writer-artist Alain Humbert is born. He creates the satirical paper La Lanterne de Boquillon.
160 years ago February 21, 1865 French writer-artist Raymond de la Nezière is born.
140 years ago February 22, 1885 Australian animator, film producer, and comics artist Pat Sullivan is born. His Sullivan Studios releases “Felix the Cat” in 1919.
140 years ago February 27, 1885 German artist and editor Erich Schilling is born.
130 years ago February 21, 1895 Artist Leon A. Beroth is born. The creator of the Kitten Kaye strip is also known for his work on the Don Winslow of the Navy strip.
120 years ago February 22, 1905 Canadian writer-artist Rodolphe Vincent is born.
120 years ago February 26, 1905 The last episode of Queer Visitors from the Marvelous Land of Oz by Frank L. Baum and Walt McDougall is published.
115 years ago February 27, 1910 The Whisk feature created by Walt Kuhn ends in New York World.
110 years ago February 24, 1915 W.L. Wells creates the Old Nicodemus Nimble comic strip.
110 years ago February 25, 1915 Italian artist Antonio Canale is born. He works for publishers in several countries including for St. John’s Authentic Police Cases in the US.
105 years ago February 22, 1920 Prolific and award-winning animator and artist Pete Alvarado is born. He works for Western on licensed comics.
105 years ago February 22, 1920 Swedish artist Ola Ericson is born. He draws “Broknäsflickorna” for Min Häst magazine.
105 years ago February 23, 1920 Raymond Reding is born. The Belgian writer-artist works on the editorial team of Tintin.
100 years ago February 21, 1925 The New Yorker begins, and “Eustace Tilley” (designed by Rea Irvin) is on the cover.
100 years ago February 22, 1925 Betty and Bill by Ruth Vickery begins.
100 years ago February 22, 1925 Edward Gorey is born. The award-winning writer-artist is especially known for The Unstrung Harp and The Gashlycrumb Tinies.
90 years ago February 21, 1935 Writer-editor Richard Lupoff is born. With his wife, Pat, he creates the award-winning science fiction fanzine Xero, which carries the groundbreaking “All in Color for a Dime” series of nostalgic articles about comic books.
90 years ago February 23, 1935 The Saturday Evening Post introduces the first Little Lulu panel cartoon, created by Marjorie Henderson Buell.
90 years ago February 23, 1935 The Italian comics magazine Intrepido begins.
85 years ago February 21, 1940 John Lewis is born. The US Georgia Representative is a Civil Rights leader and the first member of Congress to write a graphic novel. He works with Andrew Aydin and Nate Powell to create the award-winning March trilogy.
85 years ago February 23, 1940 Walt Disney’s Pinocchio opens, the second animated feature film from the studio.
85 years ago February 25, 1940 John McGeehan is born. He co-creates the fan indexing project “The House of Info” with his brother, Tom.
85 years ago February 27, 1940 Dutch political cartoonist Johan Braakensiek dies at age 81.
70 years ago February 21, 1955 Mexican artist William De La Torre dies of a heart attack at age 39. He created the Pedrito comic strip.
70 years ago February 23, 1955 Main Enterprises publisher Jim Main is born.
65 years ago February 25, 1960 Comico publisher and political cartoonist Phil LaSorda is born. He creates Az.
65 years ago February 27, 1960 Writer-artist Norm Breyfogle is born. Known for his work on Batman stories, he co-creates Prime with Bob Jacob, Gerard Jones, and Len Strazewski and creates Metaphysique for Malibu.
65 years ago February 27, 1960 Award-winning writer-artist Jeff Smith is born. He creates Bone, Rasl, Little Mouse Gets Ready, and Tuki: Save the Humans and provides an updating of Fawcett’s Captain Marvel for DC.
60 years ago February 21, 1965 The first Salone Internazionale del Comics begins in Bordighera, Italy, and runs to March 2. It will move to Lucca and become the Lucca Comics festival.
55 years ago February 21, 1970 Artist Brett Merhar is born. He creates the Free for All strip, which becomes an animated TV show.
55 years ago February 26, 1970 Natacha by François Walthéry begins.
45 years ago February 25, 1980 Dutch writer-artist Georges Mazure dies at age 60.
35 years ago February 22, 1990 South African political cartoonist Thomas Ochse Honiball dies at age 84. He created the Oom Kaspaas comic strip.
30 years ago February 21, 1995 Magazine cartoonist Dick Oldden dies of a cerebral hemorrhage at age 63. He drew the comic strip The Genius, written by Sam Gross.
30 years ago February 23, 1995 Artist Don Heck dies of lung cancer at age 66. His early work in the comic book industry was for publishers including Harvey, Quality, Hillman, Western, DC, Comic Media, and Charlton. He drew the first Iron Man story for Marvel and maintained a long run on The Avengers.
25 years ago February 26, 2000 Hungarian artist György Szitás dies at age 73.
15 years ago February 25, 2010 Italian artist Virgilio Muzzi dies at age 86.
15 years ago February 26, 2010 Artist Valerie Barclay dies at age 87. Featured in Secrets behind the Comics, she was known for her work on romance comics for a variety of publishers.
10 years ago February 27, 2015 Actor, director, and writer Leonard Nimoy dies of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease at age 83. Known for his performances as Mr. Spock in Star Trek, he was featured on covers of licensed comic books and licensed his name for Leonard Nimoy’s Primortals from Big Entertainment.
5 years ago February 21, 2020 Award-winning writer, editor, animator, producer, and artist Nick Cuti dies of cancer at age 75. He created Moonchild and co-created E-Man, Mike Mauser, and Captain Cosmos with Joe Staton.
5 years ago February 23, 2020 Another Rainbow and Gladstone publisher Russ Cochran dies at age 82. He was especially noted for his reprints of EC and Walt Disney comics.
5 years ago February 24, 2020 The writer and podcaster known as “Mr. Media,” Bob Andelman, dies of adenoid cystic carcinoma at age 59. His books included the Will Eisner: A Spirited Life biography.
