Fred Lasswell
Encyclopedia
Fred Lasswell was an American cartoonist best known for his decades of work on the comic strip
Barney Google and Snuffy Smith
.
Born in Kennett, Missouri
, he got his start as a sports cartoonist for the Tampa Daily Times
. While playing golf in the area, Barney Google
creator Billy DeBeck noticed Lasswell's work and hired the 17-year-old as an assistant. Lasswell worked closely with DeBeck for the next 18 years. DeBeck and Lasswell changed the focus of the urban-oriented strip when they introduced Google's hillbilly cousin Snuffy Smith in 1934.
After DeBeck's death from cancer in 1942, Lasswell took over Barney Google and Snuffy Smith. Under Lasswell's tenure, Google was gradually phased out (although he did reappear occasionally), and the strip's emphasis shifted to Snuffy Smith and his rural setting. Lasswell also introduced his own characters, including Tater, Elviney Barlow, Parson Tuttle and Ol' Doc Pritchart.
, Lasswell served as a flight radio operator in Africa
and was a staffer for Leatherneck Magazine
, for which he created the comic strip Sgt. Hashmark.
Lasswell was a prolific inventor and early adopter of new technology. He was one of the first cartoonists to email
his strips to his syndicate, King Features Syndicate
, and to employ computer-generated lettering. A member of the American Society of Agricultural Engineers, he patented a citrus fruit harvester. In addition to devising a hypercard
stack for computers and a bilingual laserdisc
, he developed a method of Braille
for reading comics when he created a comic book, This Is Charlie, in Braille. He also produced the video series Draw and Color with Uncle Fred.
Lasswell lived for many years in Tampa, Florida
. When he died in 2001, he was survived by his wife, Shirley, three sons and a daughter. The cartoonist John Rose then stepped in as the new Snuffy Smith artist.
Humor Comic Strip Award in 1963 and its Reuben Award, which had originally been named after DeBeck, that same year. He also received their Elzie Segar Award in 1984 and 1994.
Comic strip
A comic strip is a sequence of drawings arranged in interrelated panels to display brief humor or form a narrative, often serialized, with text in balloons and captions....
Barney Google and Snuffy Smith
Barney Google and Snuffy Smith
Barney Google and Snuffy Smith, originally Barney Google, is a long-running American comic strip created by cartoonist Billy DeBeck . Since its debut on June 17, 1919, the strip has gained a huge international readership, appearing in 900 newspapers in 21 countries...
.
Born in Kennett, Missouri
Kennett, Missouri
Kennett is a city in Dunklin County, Missouri, United States. The population was 11,260 at the 2000 census, but a 2008 estimate indicates a 4.9% decrease in population to 10,707. Kennett is the county seat of Dunklin County...
, he got his start as a sports cartoonist for the Tampa Daily Times
The Tampa Tribune
The Tampa Tribune, published in Tampa, Florida, is one of two major newspapers published in the Tampa Bay area, second in circulation and readership to the St. Petersburg Times. The paper's tagline is "Life...
. While playing golf in the area, Barney Google
Barney Google and Snuffy Smith
Barney Google and Snuffy Smith, originally Barney Google, is a long-running American comic strip created by cartoonist Billy DeBeck . Since its debut on June 17, 1919, the strip has gained a huge international readership, appearing in 900 newspapers in 21 countries...
creator Billy DeBeck noticed Lasswell's work and hired the 17-year-old as an assistant. Lasswell worked closely with DeBeck for the next 18 years. DeBeck and Lasswell changed the focus of the urban-oriented strip when they introduced Google's hillbilly cousin Snuffy Smith in 1934.
After DeBeck's death from cancer in 1942, Lasswell took over Barney Google and Snuffy Smith. Under Lasswell's tenure, Google was gradually phased out (although he did reappear occasionally), and the strip's emphasis shifted to Snuffy Smith and his rural setting. Lasswell also introduced his own characters, including Tater, Elviney Barlow, Parson Tuttle and Ol' Doc Pritchart.
WWII
During World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, Lasswell served as a flight radio operator in Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
and was a staffer for Leatherneck Magazine
Leatherneck Magazine
Leatherneck Magazine of the Marines is a magazine for United States Marines. It was first published as a newspaper by off-duty Marines at Marine Corps Base Quantico in 1917, and was originally named The Quantico Leatherneck...
, for which he created the comic strip Sgt. Hashmark.
Lasswell was a prolific inventor and early adopter of new technology. He was one of the first cartoonists to email
Email
Electronic mail, commonly known as email or e-mail, is a method of exchanging digital messages from an author to one or more recipients. Modern email operates across the Internet or other computer networks. Some early email systems required that the author and the recipient both be online at the...
his strips to his syndicate, King Features Syndicate
King Features Syndicate
King Features Syndicate, a print syndication company owned by The Hearst Corporation, distributes about 150 comic strips, newspaper columns, editorial cartoons, puzzles and games to nearly 5000 newspapers worldwide...
, and to employ computer-generated lettering. A member of the American Society of Agricultural Engineers, he patented a citrus fruit harvester. In addition to devising a hypercard
HyperCard
HyperCard is an application program created by Bill Atkinson for Apple Computer, Inc. that was among the first successful hypermedia systems before the World Wide Web. It combines database capabilities with a graphical, flexible, user-modifiable interface. HyperCard also features HyperTalk, written...
stack for computers and a bilingual laserdisc
Laserdisc
LaserDisc was a home video format and the first commercial optical disc storage medium. Initially licensed, sold, and marketed as MCA DiscoVision in North America in 1978, the technology was previously referred to interally as Optical Videodisc System, Reflective Optical Videodisc, Laser Optical...
, he developed a method of Braille
Braille
The Braille system is a method that is widely used by blind people to read and write, and was the first digital form of writing.Braille was devised in 1825 by Louis Braille, a blind Frenchman. Each Braille character, or cell, is made up of six dot positions, arranged in a rectangle containing two...
for reading comics when he created a comic book, This Is Charlie, in Braille. He also produced the video series Draw and Color with Uncle Fred.
Looking back at age 79
In 1996, Lasswell reflected on the increase of social commentary into comic strips:- Now you have all these little messages all over the page. I feel like saying, "If they'll keep this stuff off the comics page, I promise to stay off the editorial page." I just try to do what tickles me. You can't go to school and take a course in sense of humor, and if you don't love this stuff, it gets to be just like chopping wood. It can be a real chore. I've always believed that creative talent gravitates to the marketplace. Someone told me once to always remember that there's never room at the bottom. But there's always room at the top.
Lasswell lived for many years in Tampa, Florida
Tampa, Florida
Tampa is a city in the U.S. state of Florida. It serves as the county seat for Hillsborough County. Tampa is located on the west coast of Florida. The population of Tampa in 2010 was 335,709....
. When he died in 2001, he was survived by his wife, Shirley, three sons and a daughter. The cartoonist John Rose then stepped in as the new Snuffy Smith artist.
Awards
Lasswell received the National Cartoonists SocietyNational Cartoonists Society
The National Cartoonists Society is an organization of professional cartoonists in the United States. It presents the National Cartoonists Society Awards. The Society was born in 1946 when groups of cartoonists got together to entertain the troops...
Humor Comic Strip Award in 1963 and its Reuben Award, which had originally been named after DeBeck, that same year. He also received their Elzie Segar Award in 1984 and 1994.