Here is one origin story for Crockett Johnson’s classic Barnaby. At some point in early 1942, PM‘s Art Editor Charles Martin visited Crockett Johnson at his home in Darien Connecticut.  There, he saw a half-page color Sunday Barnaby strip.  Johnson had been unable to sell it.  Martin liked the strip, took it back to New York,
As comics scholars know, Crockett Johnson’s Barnaby made its debut in New York’s Popular Front newspaper PM on April 20, 1942. Â But Barnaby and his fairy godfather Mr. O’Malley actually appeared in PM the week before. Â All during the week of April 13th, the newspaper ran ads for Crockett Johnson‘s then upcoming comic strip, Barnaby.
104 years ago, David Johnson Leisk was born in New York City. Â For his pseudonym, he would later add his childhood nickname “Crockett” to his middle name… becoming “Crockett Johnson.” Â Below is an ad for the second collection of the comic strip that made him famous: Barnaby (1942-1952). After this volume (published 1944), Johnson planned
Though they had lived together since 1940 and married in 1943, this 1944 photograph is the first one to include both Crockett Johnson and Ruth Krauss. Â Taken by Frank Gerratana, it appeared in the Sunday Herald (Bridgeport, Conn.) of October 1, 1944. Â In my biography of Johnson and Krauss, I’m using a print of the