Belvedere (comic strip)#George Crenshaw
{{Short description|American comic strip by George Crenshaw}}
{{infobox comic strip
| title = Belvedere
| author = George Webster Crenshaw
| status = Concluded gag panel
| first = June 18, 1962
| last = 1995
| syndicate = Johansen International Features
| publisher = Tor Books
| genre = Humor, Dogs
}}
Belvedere was a single panel comic strip created by George Webster Crenshaw which ran from June 18, 1962 to 1995.{{cite book |last1=Holtz |first1=Allan |title=American Newspaper Comics: An Encyclopedic Reference Guide |date=2012 |publisher=The University of Michigan Press |location=Ann Arbor |isbn=9780472117567 |page=68}} The star of the strip is a white dog with black spots. As of at least 2009, reprints of the strip were distributed by Johansen International Features.{{cite web|url=http://www.stus.com/2b.htm|title=Comics Strips Starting with the Letter "B"|website=Stus.com|accessdate=26 October 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171027024809/http://www.stus.com/2b.htm|archive-date=27 October 2017|url-status=dead}}
Characters and story
Belvedere is one of three pets who belong to a married couple, Orville and Emma. The others are Jezebel, a cat, and Chi-Chi, a talking bird. Belvedere never talks, but he is very intelligent and somehow makes his thoughts and desires known.{{cite book |last1=Rovin |first1=Jeff |title=The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Cartoon Animals |date=1991 |publisher=Prentice Hall Press |isbn=0-13-275561-0 |accessdate=8 April 2020 |url=https://archive.org/details/illustratedencyc00rovi/page/22/mode/2up/ |page=23}} He is spoiled and causes many problems for his family, the dogcatcher, and the butcher. Belvedere also makes trouble for the local museum (which displays dinosaur bones), and the veterinarian.
Al Wiseman, who co-wrote the Dennis the Menace comic book based on the daily comic strip (on which Crenshaw worked at one time), also contributed to the Belvedere strip.{{cite web|url=http://lambiek.net/artists/w/wiseman_al.htm|title=Al Wiseman|website=Lambiek.net|accessdate=26 October 2017}}
Books
Crenshaw's books include Belvedere & Friend (1982), All Dogs Must Be on Leash (1982), The Odds Are (1982), Now Just One Minute! (1983) Don't Push Your Luck (1984), Purpose of Loan: One Carload of Crunchie-Munchies, Hot Dog! (1987), Flapjacks (1990), Beware ... Obedience School Dropout (1991), How Was That for a Karate Chop? (1991), I Said I'm Not Ready to Get Up Yet (1991), Next Time I'll Pack the Food (1991) and Bone Pie (1992).{{Cite web |url=http://www.lib.msu.edu/comics/rri/brri/belmont.htm |title=Archived copy |access-date=2009-04-30 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090309040420/http://www.lib.msu.edu/comics/rri/brri/belmont.htm |archive-date=2009-03-09 |url-status=dead }}{{Cite web |url=http://www.lib.msu.edu/comics/rri/crri/creh.htm |title=Archived copy |access-date=2009-04-30 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080719165328/http://www.lib.msu.edu/comics/rri/crri/creh.htm |archive-date=2008-07-19 |url-status=dead }}{{cite web|url=http://www.tonystrading.co.uk/galleries/comicstrips/belvedere.htm|title=Belvedere Comic Strip Books Gallery|website=Tonystrading.co.uk|accessdate=26 October 2017}}
Crenshaw used the pseudonym Nat Greenwood on some books, including Belvedere (1965) and Belvedere: A Pooch Full of Tricks (1975).
George Crenshaw
{{infobox person
| name = George Crenshaw
| birth_name = George Webster Crenshaw
| birth_date = {{Birth date|1913|10|23}}
| birth_place = Los Angeles, California, U.S.
| death_date = {{death date and age|2007|09|06|1917|10|23}}
| death_place = Sequim, Washington, U.S.
| parents = Charles Robert Lafayette Crenshaw and Alpha A. Allen
| resting_place = Tahoma National Cemetery, Kent, Washington
| spouse = {{plainlist|
- {{marriage|Eleanor Louise Arge| |7 Apr 1968|end=divorce}}
- {{marriage|Betty Jean Sedam|07 Mar 1980|1992|end=d}}; former wife of Richard B. Chapeta
}}
| children = 2
| occupation = Animator, Cartoonist
| alias = Nat Greenwood
George Crandall
| notable works = The Muffins (1957-1959)
Gumdrop (1977-1978)
}}
George Webster Crenshaw went to UCLA and Harvard. He was an animator for Walt Disney, having worked on Fantasia, Pinocchio, and Donald Duck cartoons, as well as MGM Tom and Jerry shorts and Speaking of Animals for Paramount. He created the comic strips The Muffins (1957-1959), Nubbin (1958–1972), McGirk's Works (1959), Simpkins aka Nerdly (1971-1974) and Gumdrop (1977-1978) in addition to Belvedere.For most of these titles, dates given are the dates of Crenshaw's involvement, as seen in Allan Holtz's 2012 American Newspaper Comics: An Encyclopedic Reference Guide. Full run dates for the following strips are: The Muffins (Nov 11, 1957 - May 9, 1959), Nubbin (March 24, 1958 - June 20, 1987), Simpkins (1971-1984), and Gumdrop (Aug 1, 1977 - July 25, 1988). McGirk's Works and Nerdly are not listed in Holtz's guide. McGirk's Works is listed on [https://www.lambiek.net/artists/c/crenshaw_george.htm Lambiek's Comiclopedia]'s George Crenshaw entry as 1959. The "About" page on the [https://belvederecartoon.wordpress.com/about-2/ Belvedere Cartoon Magazine Site] says that Nerdly is another name for Simpkins.
His work appeared in such publications as The National Enquirer, The New Yorker, Woman's World and Reader's Digest. As a comic book artist, he drew Woody Woodpecker, Bugs Bunny and Disney characters.{{Cite web |url=http://www.animationart.com.au/about.html |title=Cartoonist George Crenshaw - an Artist with an Impressive Background |access-date=2009-04-30 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090105203616/http://www.animationart.com.au/about.html |archive-date=2009-01-05 |url-status=dead }}
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20120923231210/http://ydtalk.com/jdispatch/comics/ Daily Belvedere panel]