Here’s the latest installment of Maggie Thompson’s ongoing look at important beginnings, middles, and ends, this time for September 4-10, 2026…

270 years ago September 7, 1756 Dutch poet, historian, teacher, and creator of the comic Hanenpoot Willem Bilderdijk is born.

155 years ago September 4, 1871 French writer-artist Georges Delau is born. He signs his work “Georges Delaw” and is known for Les Mille et un Tours de Placide Serprolet.

150 years ago September 6, 1876 Teacher and New Yorker and editorial cartoonist Boardman Robinson is born.

140 years ago September 5, 1886 Pioneering artist Nell Brinkley is born. She’s especially known for her “Brinkley Girl” art.

120 years ago September 4, 1906 Art director, editor, gag cartoonist, and David McKay comics artist Rodlow Willard is born.

110 years ago September 9, 1916 The last issue of Ally Sloper’s Half Holiday is published (although it does come back now and then).

100 years ago September 4, 1926 Israeli editor, journalist, and writer-artist Yaakov Ashman is born.

100 years ago September 7, 1926 Voice artist Don Messick is born. His characters include Scooby-Doo, Papa Smurf, and Dr. Benton Quest.

85 years ago September 7, 1941 Comic strip Biff Baker begins, written by Ernest Lynn and drawn by Henry Schlensker.

85 years ago September 9, 1941 The cartoonist of Love Is …, Kim Casali, is born as Marilyn Judith Grove.

80 years ago September 9, 1946 Bernard Segal’s Honey and Hank (also known as Elsworth) begins.

80 years ago September 10, 1946 Convention organizer, editor, publisher, photographer, and Eisner Awards administrator Jackie Estrada is born.

75 years ago September 4, 1951 Writer-artist, underground comix cartoonist, and comics and animation historian and critic Scott Shaw! is born.

75 years ago September 9, 1951 Michael Keaton is born. The actor plays many comics-connected roles including Batman, Birdman, and The Vulture.

70 years ago September 6, 1956 Flash Gordon, Jungle Jim, Secret Agent X-9, and Rip Kirby creator Alex Raymond dies in a car crash at age 46.

70 years ago September 10, 1956 Carol Day by David Wright and Peter Meriton begins.

60 years ago September 8, 1966 Tarzan begins as a weekly NBC hour-long prime time series starring Ron Ely. The Gold Key series will now and then put the subtitle “TV Adventures” on the cover, starting with #165 (March 1967), which features Ely.

60 years ago September 8, 1966 Following previews of “The Cage” and “Where No Man Has Gone Before” at the 24th World Science Fiction Convention over Labor Day Weekend, NBC begins to broadcast Star Trek. The Gold Key series will begin with a photo cover on the October 1967 issue.

60 years ago September 9, 1966 Time Tunnel (also previewed at that convention) begins on ABC-TV. It only gets a couple of issues from Gold Key (starting with the February 1967 issue), and the cover just features a small black and white photo insert from the show itself.

60 years ago September 10, 1966 The Hanna-Barbera series Space Ghost begins on CBS Saturday morning TV. The series features the voice of Gary Owens, and Alex Toth provides concepts and design.

55 years ago September 6, 1971 The 75 Years of the Comics exhibition opens at the New York Cultural Center. The display contains more than 300 items, and Maurice Horn is a consultant on the event.

55 years ago September 9, 1971 Simpsons writer-producer Matt Selman is born.

50 years ago September 6, 1976 Dutch artist Hans Ducro dies at age 52.

45 years ago September 4, 1981 Filming wraps on John Huston’s Annie movie.

40 years ago September 4, 1986 Golden Age artist Edd Ashe dies at age 78. He drew such characters as The Human Torch, Mike Shayne, and Don Winslow of the Navy.

40 years ago September 10, 1986 Evangelist Bob Larson calls comics “children’s pornography” in his daily Talk Back show.

35 years ago September 4, 1991 Canadian artist Bing Coughlin dies at age 85. He was known for his Herbie military comic strip and was made a Member of the Order of the British Empire for his cartoon work.

35 years ago September 5, 1991 Influential Marvel Vice-President – New Product Development Carol Kalish dies of a brain aneurysm at age 36. She worked as a writer, editor, retailer, and sales manager in the course of her career.

20 years ago September 4, 2006 Argentina celebrates its first “Dia de la Historieta.”

20 years ago September 5, 2006 Teacher, artist, and puppeteer John McLusky dies at age 83. He was the first artist of Ian Fleming’s James Bond comic strip.

20 years ago September 6, 2006 The pop culture oriented Geppi’s Entertainment Museum is established at Camden Yards in Baltimore. With exhibits focusing on the evolution of American popular entertainment, the facility takes visitors from era to era and includes a focus on comic books. When it closes June 3, 2018, many of its exhibits are donated to The Library of Congress.

15 years ago September 4, 2011 Animator and artist Dave Hoover dies at age 56. Known for his work on Captain America and Starman, he co-created Wilde Knight with Gary Petras.

15 years ago September 6, 2011 Film maker, teacher, and underground comix creator George Kuchar dies of complications related to prostate cancer at age 69.

10 years ago September 7, 2016 Animator and artist Richard Thomas “Sparky” Moore dies at age 91. He worked on many Western Publishing comic books (many of them licensed Disney stories) as well as on Disney newspaper strips.