Johnny Hart
Johnny Hart | |
---|---|
Born | John Lewis Hart February 18, 1931 Endicott, New York, U.S. |
Died | April 7, 2007 Nineveh, New York, U.S. | (aged 76)
Nationality | American |
Area(s) | artist, writer |
Notable works | B.C. The Wizard of Id |
Awards | full list |
Spouse(s) | Ida Jane "Bobby" Hatcher (1932 – 2018) |
John Lewis Hart (February 18, 1931 – April 7, 2007) was an American cartoonist noted as the creator of the comic strips B.C. and The Wizard of Id. Brant Parker co-produced and illustrated The Wizard of Id. Hart was recognized with several awards, including the Swedish Adamson Award and five from the National Cartoonists Society. In his later years, he was known (and sometimes criticized) for incorporating Christian themes and messages into his strips.[1] Hart was referred to by Chuck Colson in a Breakpoint column as "the most widely read Christian of our time," over C. S. Lewis, Frank E. Peretti, and Billy Graham.[2]
Biography
Born in
According to Hanna-Barbera animator Ed Benedict, the animation powerhouses approached Hart in 1960 pitching a prime time animated B.C. series. Talks fell through with HB retooling the concept into what eventually became The Flintstones.[citation needed]
Hart died of a stroke on April 7, 2007. According to his wife Bobby, he was working at his drawing table at the time of his death.[5][6] His co-creator for The Wizard of Id, Brant Parker, died just eight days later, on April 15, 2007.
Religious convictions
Hart was raised in a casually religious family, and he attended Christian Sunday School regularly. Although his formal education ended with high school, he was fascinated by the Bible from a young age.[7] In 1984 there was a distinguishable shift in Hart's spirituality, and Hart and wife Bobby began attending a congregation of the Presbyterian Church in Nineveh, New York. Hart attributed his religious awakening to a father-son team of contractors who installed a satellite dish at his home.[7] Hart's increasingly deep religious faith, and the staunch theological and political
Controversial strips
Two strips in particular were controversial. The B.C. strip for April 15, 2001, which was
Another B.C. strip, which ran November 10, 2003, showed an outhouse with a traditional
Personal life
Hart was an active member of his local community — the area of
- B.C. Transit— Caveman on Wheel
- Broome County Parks — Dinosaur
- Broome County Meals on Wheels — Caveman on Wheel with Food
- Southern Tier Red Cross — Caveman building Red Cross with Bricks
- Broome County Celtic Pipes and Drums — Caveman wearing Kilt and playing Bagpipes
- Broome County Celtic Kazoos — Irish Caveman with Kazoo
- B.C. Open PGA Tour Event (1971–2006) — Caveman golfing
- NAHLHockey Club — Caveman with hockey stick
- B.C. Icemen UHL Hockey Club — Brute Cavemen playing hockey
- Southern Tier Independence Center — Caveman in stone wheelchair stuck in cave doorway, "Wiley" character navigating a landscape full of holes
Hart's involvement with the B.C. Open dated back to the early 1970s, and characters from B.C. were used extensively in advertising and marketing materials for the event, including the winner's trophy, which was a bronzed version of a hapless B.C. Caveman golfing, a light-hearted trophy when compared to many others, leading it to have earned the designation of being "voted by the players on Tour as the best trophy on Tour; the one that they would love to have."[13]
Additionally, Hart contributed original panels of B.C. strips for charity auctions with the
Tribute
Hart was memorialized in a May 14, 2007, strip of the comic strip
There was also a tribute in The Wizard of Id strip. In the February 14, 2008, strip, two peasant women are talking. One who has just bought some flowers says: "How come you don't celebrate Valentine's Day?" and the other answers: "My Hart isn't in it this year."
Mastroianni Poems
Traditionally, every December 3, Johnny Hart would draw a B.C. cartoon with his wife Ida "Bobby" Hart portrayed as the queen of the ant colony, to celebrate her birthday. On December 3, 2007, his grandson Mason Mastroianni carried on the tradition, a practice he would keep up yearly until 2019, the year after Bobby Hart's death.[15]
Awards
With the release of Wizard of Id in 1964, Hart became one of only four cartoonists to have two comic strips appearing in over 1000 papers each.[citation needed] He won numerous awards for his work, including the National Cartoonists Society's Reuben award for B.C. in 1968 and Wizard of Id in 1984.
- 1967 – BC – Best Humor Strip
National Cartoonists Society Newspaper Comic Strip (Humor) Award for B.C.
- 1968 – BC– Reuben Award– Outstanding Cartoonist of the Year
National Cartoonists Society
- 1970 – BC – The Yellow Kid Award] – Best Cartoonist of the Year
The International Congress of Comics – Lucca, Italy. This was the first time this award was given to an American cartoonist.
- 1971 – BC – Best Cartoonist of the Year – France
- 1971 – Wizard of Id – Best Humor strip – Brant Parker
National Cartoonists Society
- 1972 – NASA Public Service Award
For outstanding contributions to NASA
- 1973 – Best Animation Feature
The National Cartoonist Society "B.C. The First Thanksgiving"
- 1974 – Silver Bell Award – Best Animated Television Commercial
The Advertising Council "B.C. Tickets for ACTION"
- 1974 – Golden Spike Award – Best Animated Television Commercial
The International Society of Radio and Television Broadcasters "B.C. 'A' We're the ACTION Corps"
- 1976 – BC – Adamson Award("The Sam" Adamson Award) – Best International Comic Strip Cartoonist
The Swedish Academy of Comic Art
- 1976 - Inkpot Award[16]
- 1976 – Wizard of Id – Best Humor strip – Brant Parker
The National Cartoonist Society
- 1980 – Wizard of Id – Best Humor strip – Brant Parker
The National Cartoonist Society
- 1981 – BC – The Elzie Segar Award – Outstanding Contribution to the Profession of Cartooning
King Features Syndicate
- 1982 – Golden Sheaf Award – Spontaneous Human Category
The Yorkton Short Film and Video Festival – Canada "B.C. A Special Christmas"
- 1982 – BC – Special Jury Award
The Yorkton Short Film and Video Festival – Canada "B.C. A Special Christmas"
- 1982 – Wizard of Id – Best Humor strip – Brant Parker
The National Cartoonist Society
- 1983 – Wizard of Id – Best Humor strip – Brant Parker
The National Cartoonist Society
- 1984 – Wizard of Id – Reuben Award– Outstanding Cartoonist of the Year – Brant Parker
The National Cartoonist Society
- 1985 – Wizard of Id – "The Sam" Adamson Award – Best International Comic Strip Cartoonist – Brant Parker
The Swedish Academy of Comic Art
- 1986 – BC – Katie Award – Best Magazine Cover – "D Magazine"
The Press Club of Dallas
- 1986 – Wizard of Id – The Elzie Segar Award – Outstanding Contribution to the Profession of Cartooning – Brant Parker
King Features Syndicate
- 1988 – BC – Telly Award – Best Television Commercial – Animation
"Less filling" – Monroe Shocks
- 1989 – BC – Best Newspaper Strip
National Cartoonist Society
- 1992 – BC – Max and Moritz Award– Best Comic Strip
The Comic Salon – Erlangen, Germany
- 1995 – BC – Wilbur Award – Editorial Cartoon / Comic Strip Category
The Religious Public Relations Council Inc – Dallas Easter 1995 cartoon
References
- ^ Bernstein, Adam (April 9, 2007). "Obituary: Johnny Hart". The Washington Post.
- ^ ""Comics Quotes & Facts from The Americas (South & North)" citing "BreakPoint with Chuck Colson," July 1999". Archived from the original on 2016-05-07. Retrieved 2015-02-24.
- ^ The Johnny Hart Interview, 1995
- ^ a b Lambiek Comiclopedia. "Johnny Hart".
- ^ "Johnny Hart Dies at 76". The New York Times. April 9, 2007. Retrieved May 7, 2010.
- ^ BC cartoonist dies while drawing, BBC News
- ^ a b "At the Hart of B.C." Plain Truth Ministries. Archived from the original on 2004-06-19.
- ^ Noland, Claire (April 9, 2007). "Johnny Hart, 76; created 'B.C.' comic strip". Los Angeles Times.
- ^ a b Christian Century. "Easter Comic Strip Creates an Uproar". Archived from the original on 2007-03-06.
- ^ a b Weingarten, Gene (November 21, 2003). "Cartoon Raises a Stink: Some See Slur Against Islam in a 'B.C.' Outhouse Strip". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on September 10, 2015. Retrieved 2007-04-09.
- ^ USA Today (April 9, 2007). "'B.C.' cartoonist Johnny Hart dies at 76". Retrieved May 7, 2010.
- ^ "'B.C.' cartoonist Johnny Hart dies". CNN.com. Archived from the original on April 12, 2007.
- ^ Basler, George (April 9, 2007). "B.C. Loses Hart". Press & Sun-Bulletin. Retrieved 2007-04-09. [dead link]
- ^ "Peter's Page". University of California, Irvine. Archived from the original on 2009-08-05. Retrieved 2009-08-05.
- ^ Mastroiannni, Mason (December 3, 2019). "B.C. by Mastroianni and Hart for December 3, 2019". GoComics. Retrieved May 2, 2022.
- ^ Inkpot Award
External links
- Official Website for John Hart Studios — johnhartstudios.com
- Official B.C. Webpage by the Hart family — johnhartstudios.com/bc
- Official Wizard of Id Webpage by the Hart family — johnhartstudios.com/wizardofid
- Official Dogs of 'C' Kennel (by Johnny's grandsons Mick and Mason) Webpage johnhartstudios.com/ckennel
- Johnny Hart biography on Lambiek Comiclopedia
- Creators Syndicate: B.C.
- Creators Syndicate: The Wizard of Id
- Johnny Hart tribute art and quotations Creators Syndicate
- Johnny Hart at IMDb
- "Johnny Hart: Not Caving In" — profile in Christianity Today, March/April 1997