Ben Wicks

Ben Wicks, CM, (October 1, 1926–September 10, 2000) was a British-born Canadian cartoonist, illustrator, journalist and author.

Wicks was a Cockney born into a poor, working class family in London's East End near London Bridge. He learned to play the saxophone in the British Army and toured Europe with a band. He emigrated to Canada in 1957 with his wife Doreen Wicks with just $25. He found work as a milkman in Calgary and then joined the Canadian Army as a musician and began studying cartooning from books. Wicks came across a list in a library of magazines willing to purchase cartoons and began trying his hand—his first major success was being published by the "Saturday Evening Post".

In 1963, Wicks moved to Toronto to work for the "Toronto Telegram" and his cartoon, "The Outcasts", was soon syndicated in over 50 newspapers. His cartoons were simply drawn but were very topical and witty and became popular with readers and were picked up by the "Toronto Star" after the Telegram ceased operations in 1971. At its height, his daily cartoon, now called "Wicks" was carried by 84 Canadian and more than 100 American newspapers.

Wicks had a self-effacing but charming personalityFact|date=February 2008 and became a popular guest on television and radio shows and had his own television show on the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation in the 1970s. He also illustrated a series of children's books written by his daughter which were turned into an animated television program for PBS in the United States.

He also opened a pub in Toronto's Cabbagetown district named "The Ben Wicks". The Parliament Street pub was in operation for many years. The location still exists and operates as a pub as of 2007.

Wicks was also known for his humanitarian work. He used his illustrations to publicize the plight of civilian sufferers of the Biafran War in Nigeria, and became a supporter of Oxfam. During the 1984 - 1985 famine in Ethiopia, he organized Cartoonists for Africa raising money and awareness. Wicks spent much time in his later decades promoting literacy among children.

In 1986, he was made a member of the Order of Canada.

In 1997, he donated material to the Ryerson University archives.

Wicks died of cancer in 2000 at age 73.

In May 2007, Wicks was the subject of a court case, as his children tried to reclaim 2,408 vintage drawings left behind in a 1992 move. [ [http://www.thestar.com/News/article/213899 Who owns Wicks cartoons?] , by John Goddard, The Toronto Star, Published May 15, 2007.]

Works

* "Waiting for the All Clear", Bloomsbury, London, 1990, ISBN 0-7475-0667-1
* "No Time to Wave Goodbye", Stoddart, Toronto, 1988, ISBN 0-7737-2215-7

References