B.C. (comic strip)
| B.C. | |
|---|---|
B.C. Logo
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| Author(s) |
Johnny Hart (1958–2007) Mason Mastroianni (2007–present) |
| Website | Creators.com: B.C. |
| Current status / schedule | Running |
| Launch date | February 17, 1958 |
| Syndicate(s) | Creators Syndicate |
| Genre(s) | Gag-a-day, Humor |
B.C. is a daily American comic strip created by cartoonist Johnny Hart. Set in prehistoric times, it features a group of cavemen and anthropomorphic animals from various geologic eras. B.C. made its newspaper debut on February 17, 1958, and was among the longest-running strips still written and drawn by its original creator when Hart died at his drawing board in Nineveh, New York, on April 7, 2007.
Now, the strip is produced by Hart's grandsons Mason Mastroianni (head writer and cartoonist) and Mick Mastroianni (writer for both B.C. and Hart's other creation, The Wizard of Id), and Hart's daughter Perri (letterer and colorist). The Mastroianni Brothers also created an original strip, The Dogs of C Kennel, in 2009. It is syndicated by Creators Syndicate.
For a visual glossary, see Meet The Actors at John Hart Studios.
Hart was inspired to draw cavemen (and many other creatures) through the chance suggestion of one of his coworkers at General Electric, and took to the idea "because they are a combination of simplicity and the origin of ideas." The name for the strip "may have been suggested by my wife, Bobby," Johnny recalls.
Hart describes the title character as similar to himself, playing the "patsy." The other major characters — Peter, Wiley, Clumsy Carp, Curls, and Thor — were patterned after friends and co-workers. The animal characters include dinosaurs, ants and an anteater, clams, a snake, a turtle and bird duo, and an apteryx (presented in the strip as being the sole surviving specimen, and hence self-aware of its being doomed to extinction).
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