Donald Gordon Addis (September 13, 1935 – November 29, 2009) was an American

comic strip A comic strip is a sequence of drawings, often cartoons, arranged in interrelated panels to display brief humor or form a narrative, often serialized, with text in balloons and captions. Traditionally, throughout the 20th and into the 21st ...

artist. He received his

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ...

from the

University of Florida The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida, traces its origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its ...

, where he was in charge of the production lab for the student newspaper, ''The Alligator'' (later ''

The Independent Florida Alligator ''The Independent Florida Alligator'' is the daily student newspaper of the University of Florida. ''The Alligator'' is one of the largest student-run newspapers in the United States, with a daily circulation of 35,000 and readership of more tha ...

''). His work includes a self-published collection of his work at U of F, numerous freelance cartoons for ''

Playboy ''Playboy'' is an American men's lifestyle and entertainment magazine, formerly in print and currently online. It was founded in Chicago in 1953, by Hugh Hefner and his associates, and funded in part by a $1,000 loan from Hefner's mother. K ...

'' magazine, and the syndicated newspaper strips: * ''Briny Deep'' (1980–1981) * ''The Great John L.'', also known as ''Babyman'' (1982–1985) * ''Bent Offerings'' (1988–2004) Addis was a longtime member of the

Freedom From Religion Foundation The Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF) is an American nonprofit organization, which advocates for atheists, agnostics, and nontheists. Formed in 1976, FFRF promotes the separation of church and state, and challenges the legitimacy of many ...

. He received the Foundation's Freethought in the Media “Tell It Like It Is” award at the 2005 national convention in Orlando. Addis received the

National Cartoonist Society The National Cartoonists Society (NCS) is an organization of professional cartoonists in the United States. It presents the National Cartoonists Society Awards. The Society was born in 1946 when groups of cartoonists got together to entertain the ...

Newspaper Panel Cartoon Award for 1992 for his work on ''Bent Offerings''. He retired as an editorial cartoonist and columnist with the

St. Petersburg Times The ''Tampa Bay Times'', previously named the ''St. Petersburg Times'' until 2011, is an American newspaper published in St. Petersburg, Florida, United States. It has won fourteen Pulitzer Prizes since 1964, and in 2009, won two in a single ...

Publishing Company in 2004, where he had worked since 1964. Don Addis was known for creating his hugely popular "Addis rocks", particularly shaped pieces of granite with sour cartoon faces drawn on them. He never sold them although they were in great demand. He always raffled them off for charity or gave them to people as prized gifts. Addis died of

lung cancer Lung cancer, also known as lung carcinoma (since about 98–99% of all lung cancers are carcinomas), is a malignant lung tumor characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissue (biology), tissues of the lung. Lung carcinomas derive from tran ...

at the age of 74 on November 29, 2009."In Memorium: Don Addis, 1935–2009," The Perplexed Observer (blog), Thursday, December 3, 2009.
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References

Sources consulted

* Strickler, Dave. ''Syndicated Comic Strips and Artists, 1924-1995: The Complete Index.'' Cambria, CA: Comics Access, 1995. .

Notes

External links

* ttp://dailycartoonist.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/addis-cartoon.gif Don Addis editorial cartoon ''St. Petersburg Times'' (Dec. 31, 1999) American comic strip cartoonists University of Florida alumni 1935 births 2009 deaths {{Comic-strip-creator-stub