Lynn Johnston facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Lynn Franks Johnston
Johnston at her induction into The Giants of the North: the Canadian Cartoonists Hall of Fame in August 2008
Born	Lynn Ridgway (1947-05-28) May 28, 1947 (age 78) Collingwood, Ontario, Canada
Notable works	For Better or For Worse

Lynn Johnston CM OM (born May 28, 1947) is a famous Canadian cartoonist and author. She is best known for creating the popular newspaper comic strip For Better or For Worse. Lynn Johnston was the first woman and first Canadian to win the National Cartoonist Society's top prize, the Reuben Award.

Lynn Johnston's Early Life

Lynn Ridgway was born in Collingwood, Ontario. She grew up in North Vancouver, British Columbia. As a child, she was friends with comedians Paul K. Willis and Michael Boncoeur.

She went to the Vancouver School of Art (now Emily Carr University of Art and Design). She hoped to become a professional artist. After school, she worked briefly in animation. She helped color drawings for The Abbott and Costello Cartoon Show.

In 1969, she got married and moved back to Ontario. She worked for five years as a medical artist at McMaster University. Her drawings from this time are kept in McMaster's medical archive. They show everyday hospital scenes, like a father waiting.

While expecting her first child, she drew cartoons for her doctor's office ceiling. These drawings became her first book, David, We're Pregnant!, published in 1973. It became a best seller. Later, she published a second book, Hi Mom! Hi Dad!, in 1975. Soon after, she met and married Rod Johnston.

For Better or For Worse Comic Strip

In 1978, Lynn and Rod Johnston moved to Lynn Lake, Manitoba with their two children. A company called Universal Press Syndicate asked her if she wanted to create a comic strip.

She sent them twenty comic strips called The Johnstons. These comics were based on her own family. She said, "we were the only people I knew I could draw over and over again." The company liked her comics and offered her a twenty-year contract.

After six months of preparation, the strip first appeared in newspapers. It was called For Better or For Worse. This comic strip has been in about 2000 newspapers. You can find it in Canada, the U.S., and 20 other countries.

Many of the stories in the comic strip come from her family's real life. The main characters are named after the middle names of her husband and children. Lynn Johnston herself has no middle name. So, she named the mother character Elly, after a friend who passed away young.

Her friend, Canadian comedian Michael Boncoeur, inspired a story about one character, Lawrence, coming out. Another character, Deanna, was based on her son Aaron's high school girlfriend. Johnston's niece, Stephanie, has a developmental disability. Her experiences are shared in stories about students with disabilities joining April's class.

The characters in For Better or For Worse have grown older in "real time." This means they aged just like real people. On August 31, 2008, Lynn Johnston appeared in the Sunday comic strip. She announced that the story would go back almost 30 years to its beginning. Half of the comics would be new, and the other half would be repeats. The "new" material was often older strips that were redrawn. Sometimes the dialogue was changed to use modern words.

Lynn Johnston's Personal Life

For many years, Lynn Johnston lived in Corbeil, a town in Northern Ontario. Her daughter, Katie, also lived in Corbeil. Katie worked at the For Better or For Worse studio. Her son, Aaron, works in television in Vancouver, British Columbia.

In September 2007, Lynn and Rod Johnston announced their separation. Lynn had thought about ending For Better or For Worse. She also considered letting another cartoonist take over. But she changed her mind after her separation.

In September 2015, Johnston and her daughter moved back to North Vancouver. Lynn Johnston was good friends with Charles M. Schulz. He was the creator of the famous Peanuts comic strip. She wrote the introduction for one of the The Complete Peanuts book series.

In 2014, Library and Archives Canada received many of Johnston's works. This collection includes thousands of drawings, watercolours, and photographs.

Awards and Honours

Johnston's star on Canada's Walk of Fame

Lynn Johnston has received many awards for her work:

• 1985 – Reuben Award: She was the first woman and first Canadian to win this top cartooning award.
• 1987 – Gemini Award: For Best Cartoon Series.
• 1990 – Honorary Degree: Doctor of Letters from Lakehead University.
• 1991 – National Cartoonist Society Newspaper Comic Strip Award.
• 1992 – Made a Member of the Order of Canada: This is Canada's highest award for civilians.
• 1993 – Honorary Degree: Doctor of Laws from McMaster University.
• 1994 – Finalist for the Pulitzer Prize: For a story in her comic strip about Lawrence's coming out.
• 1999 – Honorary Degree: Doctor of Laws from University of Western Ontario.
• 2000 – Honorary Degree: Doctor of Letters from Nipissing University.
• 2000 – Honorary Degree: Doctor of Letters from Emily Carr Institute of Art and Design.
• 2001 – Comic of the Year: Awarded by Editor and Publisher magazine.
• 2002 – Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal.
• 2002 – Inducted into the Women Cartoonists Hall of Fame by Friends of Lulu.
• 2003 – A star on Canada's Walk of Fame in Toronto.
• 2004 – Debwewin Citation: From the Anishinabek Nation for her excellent journalism on Aboriginal issues.
• 2007 – Made a member of the Order of Manitoba.
• 2008 – Inducted into the Canadian Cartoonist Hall of Fame.
• 2008 – Inducted into the National Cartoon Museum Hall of Fame.
• 2012 – Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal.
• 2019 – Sergio Award from the Comic Art Professional Society.