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Born This Day: Blondie Creator Murat Bernard “Chic” Young

By John Freeman on January 9, 2020

American cartoonist Murat Bernard “Chic” Young, the creator of the comic strip Blondie was born today, 9th January 1901.

Chic Young’s “The Family Foursome” (15th November 1931), a topper strip which ran with “Blondie” from 21st September 1930 to 21st April 1935.

Other strips by Chic include his first regular work, the short-lived The Affairs of Jane in the 1920s, about a struggling film actress who dreamed of graduating from low-budget pictures to stardom; Dumb Dora, about brunette Dora who “wasn’t as dumb as she looked”; and The Family Foursome, which complemented Blondie, about a golf-obsessed clan by the name of Jones.

”Blondie” Sunday comic strip hand-drawn and signed by Chic Young published on Christmas, 25th December 1932, featuring Blondie, her boyfriend Hiho and a cache of children causing mayhem. From the Chic Young estate.

Originally about a jazz-age flapper who marries a playboy from a socially prominent family, Blondie, first published in 1930, soon changed its direction: two children and a dog were added to the cast, Dagwood became a (bored) working man and the strip focused on middle-class family situations and problems.

”Blondie” comic strip hand-drawn and signed by Chic Young from 11th February 1933. In this four panel strip, Blondie is late for her wedding dress fitting, so Dagwood gallantly steps in to help. From the Chic Young estate.

Blondie introduced America to the “dagwood,” an enormous sandwich made during Dagwood’s late-night forays in the refrigerator.

Murat died in Florida on 14th March 1973. Chic’s son Dean Young currently makes the Blondie strip together with John Marshall.

“‘On the job training’ in my dad’s studio was fun!”, Dean recalls. “My dad and I worked a lot and we laughed a lot; it was great production, and a great father-son relationship. Some of the fun was that our studio was right on the bay. I invented a device that would ring a bell in the studio when a fish struck a line at the end of the dock. It was pretty exciting when the bell went off, and we would race out to see what it was. Usually it was a saltwater catfish or something else that we’d have to throw back, but occasionally we were rewarded with a nice surprise. In between the fun and games, my father taught me every little nuance about running a big-time comic strip.

“I was able to work with my father for ten years before his death in 1973. The Blondie comic strip, at that time, appeared in 1,600 newspapers worldwide. In the weeks after my father’s death, however, more than 600 newspapers dropped the strip on the basis of his death alone. I was devastated in every way imaginable. The magic seemed gone and, as far as I was concerned, the strip was doomed.

“In the following weeks, more and more newspapers dropped the strip. I was near rock bottom when the last words my father had spoken came back to me. Literally on his deathbed, he said, “Listen, don’t worry about the comic strip. If it seems funny to you, do it.” And so I started doing just that. If it seemed funny to me, I did it. My dad must’ve known what was in store for me, because his foresight turned out to be a beautiful piece of wisdom.

“Suddenly the magic was back… and so were the lost newspapers!”

Today, the strip is currently drawn by David Reddick.

• Official Blondie web site: blondie.com

• Lambiek: Chic Young

• NateSanders.com has previously offered Blondie art for sale by auction

John Freeman

The founder of downthetubes, which he established in 1998. John works as a comics and magazine editor, writer, and on promotional work for the Lakes International Comic Art Festival. He is currently editor of Star Trek Explorer, published by Titan – his third tour of duty on the title originally titled Star Trek Magazine.

Working in British comics publishing since the 1980s, his credits include editor of titles such as Doctor Who Magazine, Babylon 5 Magazine, and more. He also edited the comics anthology STRIP Magazine and edited several audio comics for ROK Comics. He has also edited several comic collections, including volumes of “Charley’s War” and “Dan Dare”.

He’s the writer of “Pilgrim: Secrets and Lies” for B7 Comics; “Crucible”, a creator-owned project with 2000AD artist Smuzz; and “Death Duty” and “Skow Dogs” with Dave Hailwood.