On Strips: 1963 James Swinnerton Interview

Though not often discussed in even the niche circles within popular comics press, James Swinnerton was one of the early pioneers of newspaper comics. The cartoons (alternately called "California Bears", "The Little Bears" and "Little Bears and Tykes") he did for the San Francisco Examiner began in 1892, three years before "The Yellow Kid." He continued working in comics until 1958, and spent the next decade and half painting landscapes before his death in 1974.

In 1963, MSgt. Percy Brown Jr. interviewed Swinnerton for Armed Forces Radio. Comics fan Milt Kagen, who helped arrange the interview in the first place, saved a tape of the program. It's the only known public audio recording of Swinnerton.

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