Origins & Early Life

Richard Felton Outcault (; January 14, 1863 – September 25, 1928) was an American cartoonist. He was the creator of the series The Yellow Kid and Buster Brown and is considered a key pioneer of the modern comic strip. Outcault was born on January 14, 1863, in Lancaster, Ohio, to Catherine Davis and Jesse P. Outcalt—spelled without the u their son later added.

Pivotal Works & Achievements

He attended the McMicken School of Design in Cincinnati from 1878 to 1881, and after graduating did commercial painting for the Hall Safe and Lock Company. Outcault painted electric light displays for Edison Laboratories for the 1888 Centennial Exposition of the Ohio Valley and Middle Atlantic States in Cincinnati. This led to full-time work with Edison in West Orange, New Jersey, doing mechanical drawings and illustrations. Edison appointed him official artist for the company's traveling exhibition in 1889–90, which included supervising the installation of Edison exhibits at the Exposition Universelle in Paris. While there, he studied art in the Latin Quarter and added the u to his surname.

Enduring Legacy & Impact

In 1890 Outcault returned to the US, married, and moved to Flushing...

Contemporary Figures & Related Historical Timelines

• Alfred de Vigny — Contemporary (Died in 1863) (1863): French poet and early Romanticist, known for his plays and novels.
• Austen Chamberlain — Contemporary (Born in 1863) (1863): Influential British statesman, Nobel Peace Prize winner, and key figure in early 20th-century politics.
• Brothers Grimm — Contemporary (Died in 1863) (1863): Pioneering German folklorists whose tales shaped global literary tradition.
• Agnès Varda — Contemporary (Born in 1928) (1928): Pioneering French filmmaker, artist, and documentarian celebrated for her unique vision.
• Alan J. Pakula — Contemporary (Born in 1928) (1928): American film director, writer, and producer known for political thrillers.
• Alexander Bogdanov — Contemporary (Died in 1928) (1928): Polymath philosopher, pioneer of blood transfusion, and key Bolshevik revolutionary.
• Albert Schweitzer — Shared historical date (01-14 · Born) (1875): German polymath renowned for theology, music, and 'Reverence for Life'
• Alfred Tarski — Shared historical date (01-14 · Born) (1901): Pioneering logician known for model theory and the formal concept of truth.
• Ambrogio Spinola — Shared historical date (09-25 · Died) (1630): Italian-Spanish nobleman and general, renowned for his military prowess in the Spanish Empire.
• Assata Shakur — Shared historical date (09-25 · Died) (2025): Black American activist, revolutionary, and fugitive known for her political militancy.
• 1863 Historical Timeline & Archive — Explore world events and figures from 1863
• January 14 (01-14) On This Day — Historical birthdays and events on January 14
• 1928 Historical Timeline & Archive — Explore world events and figures from 1928
• September 25 (09-25) On This Day — Historical events and memorials on September 25