'Hi & Lois'.
Chance Browne is a Connecticut-based cartoonist and musician. As the eldest son of legendary cartoonist Dik Browne, he largely took over his father's family comic 'Hi and Lois' in the early 1980s.
Early life and career
Robert AKA Bob Browne, nicknamed 'Chance', was born in 1948 in New York City and raised in Wilton, Connecticut. He attended Park College in Missouri and The School of Visual Arts in New York City, focusing on painting. Browne initially worked as a graphic illustrator and musician, playing in a band called The Twinkies and serving as jingle writer, composer and studio player for an advertising agency. He was also art director and musician for the folk music label Philo Records.
Assistance of Dik Browne
Moving first to Cambridge and then to Burlington, Vermont, in the late 1970s Browne joined his father in the production of 'Hi and Lois'. The comic was created in 1954 by Dik Browne and Mort Walker as a spin-off of 'Beetle Bailey'. It centers on the life of the middle-class Flagston family in a suburban neighborhood. Mother Lois is Beetle Bailey's sister. She is married to Hi, with whom she has a teenage son Chip, the twins Dot and Ditto and baby girl Trixie. They also have a family dog: Dawg.
'Hi and Lois' (2 February 2015).
In the early 1980s Chance became the primary artist of 'Hi & Lois' and after his father's death in 1989 the official artist. Nowadays, 'Hi and Lois' is continued by the sons of both the original authors, as Brian and Greg Walker have succeeded their father in writing the comic. Chance's brother Chris Browne took over his father's other comic, 'Hägar the Horrible'. Chance Browne also worked on episodes of 'Hägar the Horrible' when it was still drawn by his father. Selection of the newly written gags was a democratic affair in the Browne household, and each member had a vote. Chance later helped his brother as an editor for the 'Hägar' strip. For the artwork of 'Hi and Lois', Browne has received assistance from Madeline Brogan, Warren Sattler and Eric Reaves.
King Features distributes 'Hi and Lois' to about 1,100 newspapers worldwide. As the syndicate reads on its website: "Whether it's busy parents juggling jobs and raising a family, a teen coping with his self-image, sibling rivalry among the youngsters, or a toddler learning about the world and her place in it, Hi and Lois has kept pace with mainstream life and found the gentle humor in familiar situations." Chance Browne is additionally active as a painter, freelance graphic designer and jazz and blues musician. Browne's daughters Rachel and Robin are also active as musicians/singers. Rachel Browne is singer/songwriter and musician for the band Field Mouse.
Chance Browne has received strong praise from fellow cartoonist Guy Gilchrist.
'Hi and Lois' (24 March 2014).