Don Markstein's Toonopedia: The Chicago Tribune Syndicate (original) (raw)
| … comic strips. In many cases, the papers would syndicate the strips to others around the country, for extra revenue. In running a syndicate of that sort, The Chicago Tribune was not at all exceptional. What made it stand out was its editor, Joseph Medill Patterson. Captain Patterson (he achieved the rank during World War I and was known by it for the rest of his life) inherited his office as the Tribune's editor — his family owned the paper. But before taking it over, he proved he could make it on his own, working in a variety of areas, from dairy farming to politics. He also proved his creativity by writing novels and plays; in fact, three of his plays were performed on Broadway. Patterson took a populist point of view as editor. His idea of news had lots of scandal and pictures and lurid sex in it. He also believed in the power of comics to attract an audience, and he had definite ideas on what kind of comics people would find attractive. He apparently had good instincts, as the nationwide demand for just one of them, The Gumps, turned him from a mere publisher/editor to head of one of America's most prominent newspaper syndicates. It was Patterson who suggested adding a baby to the cast of Gasoline Alley, Patterson who gave Dick Tracy his name, Patterson who changed "Little Orphan Otto" into Little Orphan Annie … From Smilin' Jack to Moon Mullins to Winnie Winkle, the Tribune comics all bore the mark of Captain Joe Patterson — and an astonishing number of them became classics. Patterson died in 1946, but by then, he'd established The Chicago Tribune Syndicate as one of America's top sources of comics. Its post-Patterson strips include Broom-Hilda, Mother Goose & Grimm, Shoe and many of today's other top comics. The company's name is now Tribune Media Services. Besides comics, it handles editorial cartoons, newspaper columns, Internet databases, and a broad and expanding variety of other entertainment and information products. But its origins lie in the toon world, and in Captain Joe Patterson's appreciation of good comics.— DDMChicago Tribune Syndicate articles in Don Markstein's Toonopedia™: • Aggie Mack• Beyond Mars• Bobby Make-Believe• The Breadwinner• Brenda Starr• Broom-Hilda• Ching Chow• Deathless Deer• Dick Tracy• Dondi• Lyonel Feininger• Fred Basset• Friday Foster• Gasoline Alley• Gil Thorp• Green Berets• The Gumps• Harold Teen• The Kin-Der-Kids• Kudzu• Little Joe• Little Lulu• Little Orphan Annie• Lolly• Louie• Love Is …• Mary Perkins On Stage• Moon Mullins• Mother Goose and Grimm• Motley's Crew• Old Doc Yak• On Stage• Rick O'Shay• Shoe• Skull Valley• Smilin' Jack• Smitty• Smokey Stover• Spy vs. Spy• Tales of the Green Berets• The Teenie Weenies• Terry & the Pirates• Texas Slim• Tiny Tim• Wee Willie Winkie's World• White Boy• Winnie Winkle the Breadwinner BACK to Don Markstein's Toonopedia™ Home PageToday in Toons: Every day's an anniversary! | Purchase Toon-related Merchandise Online |
|---|