Former Stripes cartoonist and WWII veteran honored at Comic-Con

Marilyn Newman on the shoulder of her father Ralph Newman in an undated photo. Ralph Newman drew comics and cartoons for the London edition of Stars and Stripes during World War II and later became a cartoonist for major animation studios. He will be honored with the Bill Finger Award for Excellence in Comic Book Writing at Comic-Con International in San Diego on July 26, 2024. (Photo provided by Marilyn Newman)

A World War II veteran who drew cartoons for Stars and Stripes will be honored this month at Comic-Con International in San Diego for his uncredited postwar work, including stories for the characters Richie Rich and Casper the Friendly Ghost.

Ralph Newman will receive the Bill Finger Award for Excellence in Comics Writing on July 26 at the event, which brings together more than 130,000 people each year to celebrate all things comics. The Bill Finger Award will be presented during the event to honor cartoonists who have not received recognition for their work.

“There are many people in the history of comics who created incredibly wonderful, long-lasting, legendary characters that were worth millions, if not billions, of dollars, and who received little to nothing for their efforts,” said Mark Evanier, author, historian and administrator of the annual award. “(Newman) wrote hundreds, if not thousands, of comic book stories, many of which have been reprinted over and over again, and some of them have probably been adapted for television. I don’t think even learned comic book experts even knew his name.”

Newman, who died in 1989 at age 75, spent his postwar career at Terrytoons animation studio, Timely Comics, now Marvel, and Harvey Comics. Although he worked on some of the two companies’ most famous comics, he was rarely mentioned in the print editions, Evanier said. That was common for the time.

Some of Newman’s only credited work appeared in Stars and Stripes, as he drew for the London edition of the newspaper, primarily in 1944 and 1945. His work occasionally appeared on the page alongside that of Dave Breger, who created the character of GI Joe, and Bill Mauldin, who captured the everyday experiences of war through two exhausted soldiers named Willie and Joe.

Marilyn Newman in an undated photo. She will accept the Bill Finger Award for Excellence in Comic Book Writing on July 26, 2024, at Comic-Con International in San Diego on behalf of her father. Ralph Newman drew comics and cartoons for the London edition of Stars and Stripes during World War II and later became a cartoonist for major animation studios. (Photo provided by Marilyn Newman)

Newman attended Albion College in Michigan to study art and journalism, said his daughter Marilyn Newman. After graduating, he moved to New York City, where he sold at least one cartoon to New York magazine and other publications before being drafted into the Army in June 1942.

“He thought he was going to Iceland,” said 69-year-old Marilyn. “But they ended up dumping him in London. … I know Stars and Stripes was important to him.”

Newman not only drew comic strips and cartoons for the newspaper, he also added drawings to stories. For a 1945 story about transporting supplies to the front, Newman contributed drawings showing supply soldiers delivering food, driving truck convoys, and collecting enemy scrap metal for reuse.

“He wasn’t in combat, but he somehow experienced it,” said Marilyn Newman.

Her father told her stories about how he called Paris during the war and tried to reach the artist Pablo Picasso, but ended up on the phone with the writer Gertrude Stein.

“He said he enjoyed talking to her,” she said. “I’m not sure if he was researching a story or what. It’s just a fragment of memory now.”

Newman left the Army as a corporal after the war. While stationed in London, he met his wife and the two settled in Darien, Connecticut, where he maintained a drawing studio at home.

Marilyn remembered her father asking her as a child, “What do you think Richie Rich should do now?”

“It was fun to watch,” she said.

Her father had a long career as an animator but always longed for the fame achieved by others in the industry, Newman said.

“I wish he could have lived to see (this award),” she said. “He made a lot of money for these companies and he should be recognized for that. Times are different now and I’m glad people recognize that.”

Although the Bill Finger Award is only a small part of the Comic-Con event, it is important to give these artists their big moment, Evanier said.

“I don’t know as much about Ralph Newman as I probably should, and that’s the problem,” he said. “He hasn’t been made public. His story isn’t made public. Hopefully, giving him this award will lead to people learning more about him and maybe some people who know him will come forward or evidence will be found.”