John R. Neill did his first illustration work for the Philadelphia's Central High School newspaper in 1894-95. He then turned to advertising art for the Wanamaker department store in Philadelphia. He became a staff artist of the North American in 1904, for which he produced features like 'Life Among the Macaronis', 'The Fate of a Crown' (based on a book by L. Frank Baum), 'Children's Stories That Never Grow Old' and the Sunday page 'The Little Journeys of Nip and Tuck', with verses by W.R. Bradford (1909-1910).