Darrin Bell facts for kids

Darrin Lawrence Bell (born January 27, 1975) is an American editorial cartoonist and comic strip creator. He is famous for his syndicated satirical comic strips Candorville and Rudy Park. Bell is also a Pulitzer Prize winner. His editorial cartoons are shared by King Features.

Bell is the first African American to have two comic strips shared nationally. He is also the first to win a Pulitzer Prize for editorial cartooning. He is also a storyboard artist. Bell often explores topics like civil rights, pop culture, and family in his work. He also touches on science fiction and scriptural wisdom.

About Darrin Bell

Darrin Bell was born in Los Angeles, California. He is both Black and Jewish. Bell started drawing when he was only three years old. His parents were both public school teachers.

Bell grew up in Los Angeles during the 1980s and 1990s. He sometimes faced bullying because of his mixed heritage. He went to the University of California, Berkeley. He earned a degree in political science in 1999. While at college, Bell became the editorial cartoonist for The Daily Californian newspaper.

Bell's Early Career

Bell began his freelance cartooning career in 1995. He was only 20 years old. His first cartoon was sold to the Los Angeles Times. They then asked him to draw a cartoon every other week. Bell also sold his cartoons to the San Francisco Chronicle. He also worked with the former BANG (Bay Area News Group) papers. These included the Oakland Tribune.

Candorville Comic Strip

Bell's comic strip Candorville started in September 2003. It was launched by The Washington Post Writers Group. This strip features young Black and Latino characters. They live in the inner city.

Candorville uses humor to share social and political ideas. It also tells the stories of its main characters. Candorville grew from an earlier comic strip called Lemont Brown. That strip appeared in the student newspaper of UC Berkeley. It ran from 1993 to 2003. Candorville is now featured in over 100 newspapers across America.

Rudy Park Comic Strip

Bell also drew Rudy Park. This was a syndicated comic strip created by Theron Heir and Bell. It was first shared by United Feature Syndicate. Later, it moved to the WPWG. Theron Heir, also known as Matt Richtel, wrote the strip from 2001 to 2012.

In 2012, Heir took a break from the strip. Bell then took over both writing and drawing Rudy Park. The strip stopped its regular newspaper run in June 2018. However, it still appears sometimes. It is now shared by Counterpoint Media.

The Talk Graphic Novel

In 2023, Bell's graphic novel The Talk was published. This book tells his own life story. It also connects his experiences with important parts of the American civil rights movement.

Darrin Bell's Personal Life

Darrin Bell lives in Sacramento County, California. He lives there with his wife, Makeda Rashidi. They have four children together.

Darrin Bell's Awards

Darrin Bell won the 2019 Pulitzer Prize for Editorial Cartooning. This is a very important award for cartoonists. Besides the awards listed below, Bell's work also won several California Intercollegiate Press Association awards. He also received an SPJ Mark of Excellence Award. He was also a two-time runner-up for the Charles M. Schulz Award. He was also a runner-up for the Locher Award.

• 2015: Robert F. Kennedy Journalism Award for Editorial Cartooning
• 2016: Clifford K. & James T. Berryman Award for Editorial Cartoons
• 2019: Pulitzer Prize for Editorial Cartooning
• 2024: Andrew Carnegie Medals for Excellence, finalist for The Talk