Ken Bald facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Ken Bald |
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Bald in 2013
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| Born | Kenneth Bruce Bald August 1, 1920 New York City, US |
| Died | March 17, 2019 (aged 98) Mount Arlington, New Jersey, US |
| Area(s) | Penciller, inker |
| Pseudonym(s) | K. Bruce |
| Spouse(s) | Kaye Dowd |
| Children | 5 |
Kenneth Bruce Bald (born August 1, 1920 – died March 17, 2019) was an American illustrator and comic book artist. He was best known for drawing the Dr. Kildare and Dark Shadows newspaper comic strips. For the Dark Shadows strip, he used the name "K. Bruce" because of his contracts.
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Early Life and Art School
Ken Bald was born in New York City and grew up in Mount Vernon, New York. When he was 14, some of his fan art was published in a comic book called More Fun Comics. This was in 1936.
He went to Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, New York City, for three years until 1941. He also studied art at the Ontario College of Art in Canada.
Starting a Career in Comics
After art school, Bald joined a studio run by Jack Binder. Binder's studio created full comic books for publishers. This was during the time known as the Golden Age of Comic Books.
Bald's first professional comic book work was a story called "Justice Laughs Last." It featured a super-speedster hero named Hurricane. This story appeared in Captain America Comics #7 in 1941. He also drew characters like Golden Arrow and Bulletman for Fawcett Comics starting in 1942.
On December 7, 1942, Bald joined the United States Marine Corps. He fought in World War II in places like Cape Gloucester, Peleliu, and Okinawa. He served from 1943 to 1946 and became a captain.
In the 1940s, Bald drew many superheroes. These included Captain America, the Sub-Mariner, the Blonde Phantom, and Miss America. He also wrote and drew funny stories about characters like Millie the Model.
Bald drew the first appearance of Namora, a character related to the Sub-Mariner, in Marvel Mystery Comics #82 in 1947. He also helped create the superhero Sun Girl. She had her own three-issue comic series in 1948.
He also drew stories for other comic books. These included the character Crime Smasher in Whiz Comics. He also drew many scary or mystery stories in comics like Adventures into the Unknown and Forbidden Worlds from 1949 to 1954.
Moving to Newspaper Comic Strips
From 1947 to 1949, Bald also created art for advertisements. He worked for companies like Air France and Xerox. He also drew pictures for magazines.
In 1957, Bald started drawing comic strips for newspapers. His first strip was Judd Saxon, which was about a young business executive. This strip ran until 1963.
On October 15, 1962, Bald began drawing his most famous strip, Dr. Kildare. This strip was based on the popular television show. Bald drew the main characters to look like the actors from the TV show. He continued to draw the Dr. Kildare strip for 22 years, until 1984.
In 1971, Bald also created the comic strip Dark Shadows. This strip was based on the TV show about a vampire named Barnabas Collins. He signed this strip as "K. Bruce." The Dark Shadows strip ended in 1972.
After the Dr. Kildare strip ended in 1984, Bald retired. However, in 2017, he was named the world's oldest comic-book artist by Guinness World Records. He was 96 years old when he drew a special cover for a Marvel comic book called Contest of Champions #2 in 2016.
Personal Life
In 1941, Ken Bald moved to Englewood, New Jersey. He married actress Kaye Dowd on October 30, 1943. They had five children: Karen, Christophea, Victoria, Valerie, and Kenneth III.
Ken Bald passed away on March 17, 2019, at the age of 98. His wife, Kaye Dowd Bald, passed away on April 18, 2020, at age 96.
Many of his original artworks for the Judd Saxon and Dr. Kildare comic strips are kept at Syracuse University Libraries.
