Charles Addams facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Charles Addams |
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Addams in 1975
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| Born | Charles Samuel Addams January 7, 1912 Westfield, New Jersey, United States |
| Died | September 29, 1988 (aged 76) Manhattan, New York, United States |
| Area(s) | Cartoonist |
| Pseudonym(s) | Chas Addams (pen name) |
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Notable works
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The Addams Family |
| Awards | Edgar Award 2018 Will Eisner Hall of Fame |
| Spouse(s) |
Barbara Jean Day
(m. 1942; div. 1950)Estelle Barbara Barb
(m. 1954; div. 1956)Marilyn Matthews Miller |
Charles Samuel Addams (born January 7, 1912 – died September 29, 1988) was an American cartoonist. He was famous for his funny but dark and spooky characters. He signed his cartoons as Chas Addams. Some of his most well-known characters became The Addams Family. They later became very popular through TV shows and movies.
Contents
Early Life and Inspiration
Charles Addams was born in Westfield, New Jersey. His father encouraged him to draw. As a child, Charles was known for being a bit mischievous. Friends remembered him as "something of a rascal."
He loved exploring the Presbyterian Cemetery in Westfield. He often wondered what it was like to be dead. In his cartoons, his spooky characters lived on "Cemetery Ridge" with a rather gloomy view.
Two houses in Westfield are said to have inspired the Addams Family mansion. One was on Elm Street and another on Dudley Avenue, where he was once caught exploring. College Hall at the University of Pennsylvania, where Addams studied, also helped inspire the mansion's look. One friend said his sense of humor was "a little different from everybody else's."
Addams drew cartoons for his high school yearbook, Weathervane, at Westfield High School. He later attended Colgate University and the University of Pennsylvania. He also studied art at the Grand Central School of Art in New York City.
Cartooning Career
In 1933, Charles Addams started working at True Detective magazine. His job was to edit photos for the stories. He once joked that some of the original photos were "more interesting the way they were."
His first drawing for The New Yorker magazine appeared in 1932. His cartoons were regularly featured there starting in 1937. That's when he drew the first cartoons that would become The Addams Family. He continued to draw for the magazine until he passed away.
During World War II, Addams helped the U.S. Army. He made animated training films for them in New York.
In 1952, Addams created a mural for the library at Penn State University. It showed important members of the Addams Family.
The Addams Family TV Show
A TV producer named David Levy wanted to make a show based on Addams's characters. Addams helped by giving his characters names and special traits. This helped actors bring them to life. The Addams Family TV series aired from 1964 to 1966.
Other Cartoons and Works
Besides The New Yorker, Addams also drew a comic strip called Out of This World from 1955 to 1957. He published collections of his work, like Drawn and Quartered (1942) and Monster Rally (1950).
One of his famous cartoons shows two men in an office. One points a strange gun out the window and says, "Death ray, fiddlesticks! Why, it doesn't even slow them up!"
Dear Dead Days (1959) was a special book he made. It was like a scrapbook filled with old pictures that he found interesting and a bit spooky.
Charles Addams drew over 1,300 cartoons in his lifetime. His work also appeared in magazines like Collier's and TV Guide. His art was also used in books, calendars, and other items.
In 1957, he designed the cover art for the album Ghost Ballads. It featured folk songs about supernatural themes.
The Mystery Writers of America gave Addams a special Edgar Award in 1961. This award recognized all of his amazing work. He also illustrated the opening titles for the films The Old Dark House (1963) and Murder by Death (1976).
Addams became friends with science-fiction writer Ray Bradbury in 1946. Addams had drawn an illustration for Bradbury's short story "Homecoming." This story was about a family of vampires called the Elliotts. They planned to create a book together, but it never happened. Bradbury's stories about the "Elliott Family" were later collected in a book called From the Dust Returned in 2001.
Filmmaker Alfred Hitchcock was also a friend of Addams. Hitchcock even mentioned Addams in his 1959 movie North by Northwest. In one scene, a character says, "The three of you together. Now that's a picture only Charles Addams could draw."
Personal Life
Charles Addams was known for being friendly and charming. He was well-dressed and had a gentle manner. He dated famous women like Greta Garbo and Joan Fontaine.
He married his first wife, Barbara Jean Day, in 1942. They divorced eight years later. He married his second wife, Barbara Barb, in 1954. They divorced in 1956.
His third and final wife was Marilyn Matthews Miller, known as "Tee." They got married in a pet cemetery! In 1985, the Addamses moved to Sagaponack, New York. They named their home "The Swamp."
Death
Charles Addams passed away on September 29, 1988, at age 76. He had a heart attack after parking his car in New York City. He had asked for a wake instead of a funeral. He wanted to be remembered as a "good cartoonist." His ashes were buried in the pet cemetery at "The Swamp" estate, as he wished.
Legacy
The Charles Addams Fine Arts Hall in Philadelphia was named in his honor in 2001 by the University of Pennsylvania.
On his 100th birthday, January 7, 2012, Charles Addams was celebrated with a special Google Doodle.
He was inducted into the New Jersey Hall of Fame in 2020.
In 2021, one of his holiday illustrations, "Addams and Evil" from 1947, sold for $87,500. This set a new record for his artwork at auction.
See also
In Spanish: Charles Addams para niños
Other American cartoonists with a similar spooky style include:
- Robert Crumb
- Edward Gorey
- Gary Larson
- Lorin Morgan-Richards
- Marvin Townsend
- Gahan Wilson
