Bil Keane
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For people with a similar name, see
. For the Los Angeles broadcaster, see
.
Bil Keane
Keane at work in his studio in 1990
Born
William Aloysius Keane
October 5, 1922
, U.S.
Died
November 8, 2011
(aged 89)
,
U.S.
Area
Notable works
Awards
Spouse
(
m.
1948; died 2008)
Children
5, including
and
Relatives
(granddaughter)
William Aloysius Keane
(October 5, 1922 – November 8, 2011) was an American
best known for the newspaper comic strip
. He
began it in 1960 and his son
continues to produce it.
Early life and education
[
]
Keane was born in
, a neighborhood in
, and attended
at
and
.
While a schoolboy, he taught himself to draw by mimicking the
style of the cartoons published in
.
His first cartoon was
published on May 21, 1936, on the amateur page of the
.
While in high school, he signed his work "Bill Keane",
but omitted
the second L from his first name early in his career, in order "to be
distinctive".
Career
[
]
Keane served in the
from 1942 to 1945, during which he drew for
and created the feature "At Ease with the Japanese" for the Pacific
edition of
.
From 1946 to 1959 Keane worked as a staff artist for the
, where he launched his first regular comic strip
. His
first syndicated strip,
, a series of jokes about television,
premiered in 1954 and ran until 1977.
In 1959, the Keane family moved to
. Keane's daily newspaper panel
The Family Circus
premiered on February 29, 1960.
He was president of the
from 1981 to 1983 and was the master of ceremonies at the
Society's annual awards banquet for 16 years.
From 1981 to 1983, Keane published the gag strip
Eggheads
in collaboration
with his son Jeff, who now draws and writes
The Family Circus
. Like his father, Jeff Keane has been president of the
National Cartoonists Society, serving four years thereat.
Personal life
[
]
While stationed in Australia he met
.
They were married in
, in 1948
and
settled in
. They had five children: Gayle, Neal,
, Christopher and
. Glen is an
and has drawn much notice for his work for
. Jeff is a cartoonist and took over his
father's comic strip upon the latter's death.
Thel, the inspiration for Mommy in
The Family Circus
, died on May 23,
2008, from complications of
.
Keane and his wife owned a second residence in
.
Bil Keane died on November 8, 2011, at his home in
, near
, at age 89.
The cause of
death was given as
. A
, he was buried beside his wife in the Holy Redeemer Cemetery
of Phoenix, Arizona.
Awards
[
]
Keane received the National Cartoonists Society's Award for Best Syndicated Panel four times, in 1967, 1971, 1973 and
1974.
In 1981, he was awarded the
.
In 1982, he was named the Society's Cartoonist of the Year and
received the
, the Society's top honor.
That year he also received the
for his unique
contribution to the cartooning profession.
In 1998, Keane became the tenth recipient of the Arizona Heritage Award, joining—among others—
,
,
and
.
In 2002 Keane was honored with the
from the
National Cartoonist Society for "outstanding dedication" to the Society and the cartooning profession.
In 2008, he
received the Sergio Award from the
.
Friends
[
]
Keane was close friends with humorist and newspaper columnist
. He provided illustrations for Bombeck's
book
Just Wait Until You Have Children of Your Own!
(1972), and considered himself instrumental in convincing Bombeck
and her family to move to Arizona near his home.
He was a pallbearer at Bombeck's funeral in 1996.
, creator of
, acknowledged he was good friends with Keane and Keane's son, Jeff.
Pastis has parodied
The Family Circus
in his own strip several times, and Keane wrote a satirical "attack" on these
jokes as a foreword for Pastis'
Pearls
collection
.
In the
of 1997, Keane switched strips with
of
.
Adams said, "Bil was a
misunderstood creative genius who knew how to write for his target audience. He was also a great guy. I was a big
fan."
Keane also counted fellow cartoonists
(
) and
(
,
) as close
friends.
In 1994, the characters from
The Family Circus
made a "guest appearance" in
's
comic
strip. Griffith said, "I remembered Bil's affection for Zippy, so I decided to bite the bullet and call him to ask if,
instead of me parodying his strip, he'd agree to jam with me..."
Keane drew his characters in Griffith's strip,
with dialogue written for them by Griffith. Then, on March 7, 1995, Zippy made an appearance, drawn by Griffith, in a
Family Circus
panel. Griffith said that
Family Circus
was "the last remaining folk art strip"
and that "It's
supposed to be the epitome of squareness, but it turns the corner into a hip zone."
Bil and Thel Keane's
house at 5815 E. Joshua
Tree Lane in Paradise
Valley, Arizona
Bil and Thel Keane's tomb
in the Holy Redeemer
Cemetery in Phoenix,
Arizona
Bil Keane
exhibit in
the
"Giddy-Up Daddy" plaque
dedicated to Bil Keane
located at the
in
Books
[
]
Family Circus
collections
[
]
The Family Circus
(1961)
The Family Circus Vol. 1
(1965)
The Family Circus Vol. 2
(1966)
Sunday with the Family Circus
(1966)
The Family Circus
(1967)
I Need a Hug.
(1968)
Peace, Mommy, Peace!
(1969)
Wanna Be Smiled At?
(1970)
Peekaboo! I Love You!
(1971)
Look Who's Here!
(1972)
Can I Have a Cookie?
(1973)
Hello, Grandma?
(1973)
At Home with the Family Circus
(1973)
I'm Taking a Nap
(1974)
When's Later, Daddy?
(1974)
I Can't Untie My Shoes!
(1975)
Dolly Hit Me Back!
(1975)
Mine: And Yours, Too!
(1975)
Jeffy's Lookin' at Me
(1976)
Smile!
(1976)
Not Me!
(1976)
Quiet! Mommy's Asleep!
(1977)
Sunday with the Family Circus
(1977)
For This I Went to College?
(1977)
Where's PJ?
(1978)
Any Children?
(1979)
Dolly Hit Me Back!
(1979)
Not Me.
(1980)
Daddy's Little Helpers
(1980)
Good Morning, Sunshine!
(1980)
On Vacation with the Family Circus
(1980)
Kittycat's Motor is Running!
(1981)
Who Invented Rain?
(1981)
My Turn Next!
(1981)
Pasghetti and Meat Bulbs!
(1981)
That Family Circus Feeling
(1982)
Go to Your Room!
(1982)
It's Not Easy Bein' the Littlest
(1982)
We'll Help You Get Better
(1982)
Mommy, God's Here
(1982)
PJ's Barefoot All Over!
(1989)
I'm Already Tucked In
(1983)
Pick Up What Things?
(1983)
Grandma Was Here
(1983)
My Turn Next!
(1984)
Love, The Family Circus
(1984)
The Family Circus Parade
(1984)
It's My Birthday Suit
(1984)
I Dressed Myself!
(1984)
How Do You Turn It on?
(1985)
Unquestionably the Family Circus
(1985)
Wanna Be Smiled at?
(1985)
PJ's Still Hungry
(1986)
Heart of the Family Circus
(1986)
He Followed Me Home
(1987)
The Family Circus's Colorful Life
(1987)
We're Home!
(1987)
Where Did the Summer Go?
(1987)
I Could Hear Chewing
(1988)
It's Muddy Out Today
(1988)
Oops! We're Out of Juice
(1988)
The Family Circus is Very Keane
(1988)
Granddad! It's Morning!
(1989)
We Didn't Do It!
(1989)
Baby on Board
(1989)
The Family Circus Memories
(1989)
Behold the Family Circus
(1989)
Quiet, Sam!
(1990)
I Had a Frightmare!
(1990)
I Just Dropped Grandma!
(1990)
I'm Wearin' a Zucchini!
(1991)
The Sky's All Wrinkled
(1991)
It's Up and Let 'Em at Me
(1991)
Through the Year with the Family Circus
(1992)
Look! A Flutterby!
(1992)
Are You Awake, Daddy?
(1992)
I'll Shovel the Cards
(1992)
Sam's Takin' a Catnap!
(1992)
Enjoy Yourselves!
(1993)
What Does This Say?
(1994)
Stay!
(1994)
Count Your Blessings
(1995)
Sing Me a Loveaby?
(1995)
Daddy's Cap Is on Backwards
(1996)
The Family Circus by Request
(1998)
Special compilations
[
]
The Family Circus Treasury
, foreword by Erma Bombeck (1977)
The Family Circus Album
, foreword by Charles Schulz (1984)
The Family Circus is Us
(1990)
Family Circus Library, Vol. 1
by
(2009)
Family Circus Library, Vol. 2
by
(2010)
Other cartoon collections
[
]
Channel Chuckles
(1964)
Jest in Pun
(1966)
Pun-Abridged Dictionary
(1968)
More Channel Chuckles
(1971)
It's Apparent You're a Parent
(1971)
Deuce and Don'ts of Tennis
(1975)
Eggheads
written by Bil Keane and Jeff Keane (1983)
Illustrated books
[
]
Just Wait Till You Have Children of Your Own!
written by Erma Bombeck and Bil Keane (1971)
Hey, Father!
written by Jeanne Marie Lortie, illustrated by Bil Keane (1973)
Daddy's Surprise Day
written by Gale Wiersum, illustrated by Bil Keane (1980)
Ask Any Mother
written by Jean B. Boyce, illustrated by Bil Keane (1991)
Just Ask Mom
written by Jean B. Boyce, illustrated by Bil Keane (1996)
Just Like Home
written by Jean B. Boyce, illustrated by Bil Keane (2001)
Footnotes
[
]
^
. Archived from
on 2011-11-11
.
Retrieved
2011-11-09
.
.
. 2011-11-10. Archived from
on November 10,
2011
. Retrieved
2011-11-21
.
.
. November 11, 2011
. Retrieved
20 November
2022
.
.
The Catholic Review
. November 12, 2011. Archived from
on March 4, 2016
. Retrieved
April 18,
2015
.
Nelson, Valerie J. (November 10, 2011).
.
Los Angeles Times
. Retrieved
April 18,
2015
.
. Archived from
on 2006-12-12
. Retrieved
2007-01-26
.
. Archived from
on 9 March 2012
. Retrieved
5 June
2011
.
Wolfe, Kathi (November 2003).
(PDF)
.
Baptist Life
.
87
(10): 5
. Retrieved
1 November
2010
.
[
]
(
, pp. 8–9)
(
, p. 21)
(November 9, 2011).
.
News From The NCS
. National Cartoonist Society
. Retrieved
2011-11-09
.
Gardner, Alan (June 17, 2011).
.
The Daily Cartoonist
.
Keane, Christopher,
, Cartoon Profiles, Issue No. 127, pg. 11, September 2000, Retrieved
2008-05-26
^
Meyers, Amanda Lee (May 27, 2008).
.
.
. Retrieved
2008-05-29
.
Meyers, Amanda Lee (May 25, 2008).
.
.
.
Retrieved
2008-05-26
.
Morch, Al (August 2, 1986).
.
San Francisco Examiner
. p. 9
. Retrieved
22 April
2024
.
. National Cartoonist Society Website.
from the original on 28 May 2008
. Retrieved
2008-04-30
.
. National Cartoonist Society. Archived from
on 2008-04-09
. Retrieved
2008-04-30
.
. National Cartoonist Society Website.
from the original on 30 April 2008
. Retrieved
2008-04-30
.
Grady, Michael (December 29, 1998). "Family Circus artist still draws: Arizona Heritage Award notes contributions".
.
. National Cartoonist Society Website.
from the original on 28 May 2008
. Retrieved
2008-04-30
.
.
capscentral.org
. CAPS. 17 October 2016
. Retrieved
December 21,
2021
.
Procopio, Ruben (January 18, 2009).
.
maskedavengerstudios.blogspot.com
. Masked Avenger Studios
.
Retrieved
December 21,
2021
.
.
. November 2001. Archived from
on 2008-06-25
. Retrieved
2007-01-28
.
.
. Vol. 114, no. 104.
. p. 5A
. Retrieved
September 6,
2018
– via Google Newspapers.
Pastis, Stephan
,
Official Pearls
Before Swine Blog
, stephanpastis.wordpress.com, 28 July 2009
Pastis, Stephan (April 13, 2010).
. Andrews McMeel Publishing. p. 13.
.
Zitz, Michael (April 1, 1997).
.
.
.
p. D1.
Harvey, R.C. (November 16, 2011).
.
The Comics Journal
. Retrieved
2012-11-15
.
Myers, Amanda Lee (November 9, 2011).
.
. Retrieved
2012-11-15
.
Cavna, Michael (November 21, 2012).
.
The Washington Post
. Retrieved
2012-11-15
.
Griffith, Bill (November 14, 2011).
.
The Comics Journal
. Retrieved
2008-11-15
.
Curland, Richard (December 3, 2011).
.
Norwich
Bulletin
. Retrieved
2012-11-15
.
Seremet, Pat (July 11, 2002). "Zippy and The Family Circus--Together again!!".
The Hartford Courant
.
References
[
]
Keane, Christopher (2010).
Adding to the Act
. The Family Circus: Daily and Sunday Comics. Vol.
1962–
1963. IDW
Publishing.
.
Harvey, R.C. (November 16, 2011).
.
The Comics Journal
. Retrieved
2012-11-15
.
External links
[
]
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