'Charlie McCarthy' (from Quebec newspaper Le Soleil, 1939).
Ben Batsford was an early 20th-century American-Canadian newspaper comic artist, best known as the original artist behind the celebrity comic 'Mortimer Snerd & Charlie McCarthy' (1939), based on the puppet creations of ventriloquist Edgar Bergen. He also created 'Unk and Billy' ('Billy's Uncle', 1921-1924). Batsford continued other artists' newspaper comics as well, including 'Doings of the Duffs' (1925-1928), 'Little Annie Rooney' (1929-1930) and 'The Boomers' (1934-1938, retitled 'The Doodle Family' and later 'Frankie Doodle'.) He was a comic book artist for Sangor, illustrating 'Helpful Herbert' for Coo Coo Comics.
'Doings of the Duffs'.
Early life
Ben Batsford was born in 1892 in Minneapolis, Minnesota, as the son of a house painter. In March 1901 his family moved to Winnipeg, Manitoba in Canada. Seven years later Batsford sold his first cartoon to the Winnipeg Free Press. During World War I he was drafted into the Canadian Army and served in France until the end of the war.
Comics career
In 1921 Batsford published his first comic strip, 'Unk and Billy' (later retitled 'Billy's Uncle', 1921-1924) in the Winnipeg Free Press, distributed by George Matthews Adams Service. The comic featured a young boy, Billy, and his uncle who enjoyed all kinds of wacky events. Around the same time Batsford moved to the United States and became a police reporter in New York City. Under the pen name Benbee he joined the artistic staff of King Features Syndicate and continued Walter Allman's newspaper comic 'Doings of the Duffs' (1925-1928) in the Reno Evening Gazette, as well as Ed Verdier's 'Little Annie Rooney' (1929-1930). Batsford later passed the pencil of 'Little Annie Rooney' to Darrell McClure.
'Frankie Doodle' (from Sparkler Comics #9 by United Features, March 1942).
Between 1934 and 1938 Batsford took over Earl Hurd's 'The Boomers', renamed 'The Doodle Family' and later 'Frankie Doodle' (a pun on the song 'Yankee Doodle'). This comic was also published in comic books like Sparkler Comics and Tip Top Comics, syndicated by United Features. In 1939 he drew a comic strip based on ventriloquist Edgar Bergen's puppet characters 'Mortimer Snerd & Charlie McCarthy'. Batsford drew the strip from July through September 1939, and was then succeeded by Carl Buettner, who continued the feature until 1940. In the early 1940s Batsford drew comic book art through the Sangor shop, illustrating 'Helpful Herbert' for Coo Coo Comics by Better Publications.
Death
Ben Batsford passed away in 1977 in East Northport, New York.
'Helpful Herbert' (Coo Coo Comics #1, October 1942).