- Hal Foster
Harold ("Hal") Rudolf Foster (
August 18 ,1892 in Halifax,Nova Scotia –July 25 ,1982 ) was a Canadian-Americancartoonist most famous as the creator of thecomic strip "Prince Valiant ". He worked as a staff artist for theHudson's Bay Company inWinnipeg and moved toChicago in 1919 where he studied at theChicago Academy of Fine Arts . He subsequently worked as an illustrator before getting involved with "Tarzan ", an adaptation ofEdgar Rice Burroughs 's novels. His impact on the comic was huge and is of great importance in the history of the field for his painstakingly realistic and exact drawings.Fact|date=July 2007 After a while, he grew tired of adaptation and wished for something he had truly created himself.William Randolph Hearst long wanted Foster to do a comic for his papers. Hearst was so impressed with Foster's pitch for "Prince Valiant" that he promised Foster the ownership of the strip if he would start the series, a very rare offer in those days. The strip began in 1936.Hal Foster was recognized for his work with the
National Cartoonist Society with theReuben Award in 1957, the Story Comic Strip Award in 1964, the Special Features Award in 1966 and 1967, all for "Prince Valiant ", the Elzie Segar Award in 1978, and the Gold Key Award (their Hall of Fame) in 1977. Foster was inducted into the Will Eisner Award Hall of Fame in 1996, and the Joe Shuster Canadian Comic Book Creators Hall of Fame for his contributions to comic books in 2005 (The latter award was accepted on behalf of the family by an emotionalDave Sim , a modern comic writer and longtime fan of Foster's work). Foster was inducted into theSociety of Illustrators Hall of Fame in 2006.References
*"Hal Foster: Prince of Illustrators" by Brian M. Kane, Vanguard Productions, 2001, ISBN 1-887591-25-7. IPPY Award-winning biography of Hal Foster.
External links
* [http://www.bpib.com/illustra2/foster.htm Illustrated biography by Brian Kane]
* [http://www.reuben.org/ncs/awards.asp NCS Awards]
* [http://www.toonopedia.com/val.htm Toonopedia on Prince Valiant]
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