Darrin Bell facts for kids
| Born | January 27, 1975 Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
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| Area(s) | Editorial cartoonist, comic strip writer/artist |
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Notable works
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Candorville Rudy Park |
| Spouse(s) | Makeda Rashidi |
Darrin Lawrence Bell (born January 27, 1975) is a famous American cartoonist. He creates comic strips and editorial cartoons. He is known for his popular comic strips Candorville and Rudy Park. Bell won a Pulitzer Prize, which is a very important award for journalists and artists.
He is the first African American to have two comic strips shown all over the country. He is also the first African American to win a Pulitzer Prize for his editorial cartoons. Darrin Bell also works as a storyboard artist, helping to plan out scenes for movies or TV shows. His work often talks about important topics like civil rights and pop culture. He likes to show his characters in roles that are not always seen.
About Darrin Bell
Darrin Bell was born in Los Angeles, California. He is both black and Jewish. He started drawing when he was only three years old! He loved art from a very young age.
He went to the University of California, Berkeley. There, he studied political science and graduated in 1999. While in college, Bell became the main cartoonist for the student newspaper, The Daily Californian.
Bell started his career as a freelance cartoonist in 1995. He was only 20 years old. His first cartoon was sold to the Los Angeles Times. He also sold his drawings to other big newspapers.
His Comic Strips
Bell's comic strip Candorville started in September 2003. It features young black and Latino characters. They live in a big city. The strip uses humor to share ideas about society and politics. It also tells the stories of its main characters.
Candorville grew from an earlier comic strip called Lemont Brown. This strip appeared in his college newspaper for many years. Today, Candorville is in over 100 newspapers across America.
Darrin Bell also drew Rudy Park. This comic strip was created by Theron Heir (also known as Matt Richtel) and Bell. Bell took over writing and drawing Rudy Park in 2012. The strip stopped being printed in newspapers in 2018. However, it still appears online sometimes.
In 2023, Bell wrote and drew a graphic novel called The Talk. This book tells his own life story. It also connects to important parts of the American civil rights movement.
Personal Life
Darrin Bell lives in Sacramento County, California.
Awards and Honors
Darrin Bell has won many important awards for his work. In 2019, he won the Pulitzer Prize for Editorial Cartooning. This is one of the highest honors for cartoonists.
He has also won other awards, including:
- 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 Medal, finalist for The Talk
