Wednesday, January 7, 2015

1/7/1912 Charles Addams is born

January 7, 1912.  This date saw the birth of Charles Addams, one of the most unusual artists of the twentieth century.  If you search Google for "cartoonist Charles Addams" about 25% of the entries have the word "macabre."

Does he really belong on a page about mystery fiction?  He's more in the horror camp, I suppose.  But if the Mystery Writers of America thought he deserved a special Edgar Award in 1961 (and they did) that's good enough for me. 

Besides the creepy characters who inspired The Addams Family he drew plenty of crime-related cartoons.  Remember the gangster firing his machine gun out the window at the police while his long-suffering wife sweeps up the spent cartridges?

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