Cartoonist Bil Keane, creator of ‘Family Circus,’ dies

Catholic cartoonist Bil Keane, pictured in an undated publicity photograph, died Nov. 8 at age 89 of congestive heart failure at his home in Paradise Valley, Ariz. His kid-friendly comic strip "The Family Circus" gave readers a funny version of his own life at home and became one of the most widely syndicated cartoon panels in the world. (CNS photo/King Features Syndicate, handout via Reuters) (Nov. 10, 2011)

WASHINGTON (CNS) — Bil Keane, the Catholic cartoonist who originated the comic strip “The Family Circus” more than 50 years ago, died Nov. 8 at age 89 in Paradise Valley, Ariz., near Phoenix. The cause of death was given as congestive heart failure.
Born William Aloysius Keane in Philadelphia, he taught himself to draw while a student at Northeast Catholic High School in Philadelphia. He got his first cartoon published in 1936 on the amateur page of the Philadelphia Daily News.
But the urge to do cartoons started even earlier. While a sixth grader at St. William School in Philadelphia, Keane drew a picture of his teacher, an Immaculate Heart of Mary sister named Sister Ann. When she caught a glimpse of his art, though, she responded in a way no one expected: She decided the class needed its own newspaper and Keane should be editor.
Sister Ann also told Keane that she’d pray for his future success as a cartoonist.
Keane served in the Army 1942-45, drawing for Yank magazine and later for the Army’s newspaper, Stars and Stripes. While serving in Australia, he met his future wife, Thelma, the inspiration for “Thel” in “The Family Circus.”
Returning to Philadelphia after his military service, he got a job with the Philadelphia Bulletin. After the Keanes moved to Arizona, Bil Keane came up with the idea for “The Family Circus.”