'Donald Duck', 1976.
Frank Smith was an American animator and cartoonist. Between 1976 and 1986, he was the third artist to draw the 'Donald Duck' newspaper strip. With writer Jim Smart, he was also the original creator of a celebrity comic based on comedian W.C. Fields, which ran between 1982 and 1983. He should not be confused with Frank A. Smith (1911-1975), who was an animator on 'Mr. Magoo' and 'Gerald McBoing-Boing' for UPA and for several TV specials based on Charles M. Schulz' 'Peanuts' for Lee Mendelsohn in the 1950s and 1960s.
Early life and career
Charles Francis Smith was born in 1908. According to comic historian Alberto Becattini, he worked for various animation studios from 1935 to 1972, including Harman-Ising, before joining the comics department of the Disney Studios.
Donald Duck
Between 1973 and 1976, Frank Smith drew 'Donald Duck' comic book stories in collaboration with inker Steve Steere, produced for foreign Disney licensees (the so-called S-coded studio program stories). On 24 May 1976, he took over the 'Donald Duck' newspaper strip from Frank Grundeen, and continued it until his death in November 1986. During Smith's run, the gags were written by Greg Crosby (1976-1979) and Bob Foster (1980-1986). He was succeeded as the strip's artist by Frank Smith (1976-1986), Jim Franzen (1986), Daan Jippes (1986-1987), Ulrich Schröder (1986), Jørgen Klubien (1986), Tony Strobl (1986-1987), Bill Langley (1987), Pete Alvarado & Larry Mayer (1987-1989) and Larry Knighton (1990-1995).
Cover artwork for Marvel's Hanna-Barbera books (art by Smith, lay-outs by Mark Evanier).
Hanna-Barbera comics
At Marvel Comics, Smith also did art on Hanna-Barbera comic books like 'The Funtastic World of Hanna-Barbera' (1977-1978), 'Laff-a-Lympics' (1978-1979) and 'TV Stars' (1978-1979).
W.C. Fields
On 31 October 1982, Frank Smith and writer Jim Smart launched the newspaper strip 'W.C. Fields', based on classic film comedian W.C. Fields (1880-1946) for the L.A. Times Syndicate. While the actor was known for his misanthropic nature, heavy drinking and many other bad habits, the comics version was a rather toned-down version. The initiative was additionally remarkable since Fields had been dead for over 35 years and was largely gone from the public's attention. By June 1983, Smith and Smart were removed from the project, after which Fred Fredericks became the new artist, while W.C. Fields' grandson Ronald J. Fields took care of the gags. However, the strip presumably ended somewhere in August 1983.
Death
Frank Smith died in 1986.
'W.C. Fields', 1983.