Requiescat in pace, Johnny Hart

The creator of “The Wizard of Id” and more controversially “B.C.” passed away today. He died at his drawing board at age 76.

Although I wouldn’t describe myself as ever having been a big fan, I did own most of his paperback collections as a kid (along with MAD magazine and Peanuts® paperbacks) and his work influenced my outlook as a kid, and as a one-time budding cartoonist.

I know he caught a lot of flak for introducing Christian themes into his work (some might say shoving them down his readers’ throats), especially in his later years (according to press reports, since he stopped drinking), but art is supposed to provoke a reaction, and by this metric at least, Johnny Hart was an unqualified success.

Now it’s showtime. Either Johnny Hart stands before the Pearly Gates and finds himself and his belief system delightfully vindicated, or he’s dissipated into the ether and is beyond such pedestrian concerns. I’m in no hurry to find out which, personally.

Godspeed, Mr. Hart. Thanks for the smiles as well as the outrage. Mission accomplished, good and faithful friend.