14 Nov, 2011
Family
'Family Circus' creator Bil Keane dies at 89
Bil Keane's "Family Circus" comics entertained readers with a simple but sublime mix of humor and traditional family values for more than a half century. The appeal endured, the author thought, because the American public needed the consistency.
Keane, who started drawing the one-panel cartoon featuring Billy, Jeffy, Dolly, P.J. and their parents in February 1960, died Tuesday at age 89 at his longtime home in Paradise Valley, near Phoenix. His comic strip is featured in nearly 1,500 newspapers across the country.
Jeff Keane, Keane's son who lives in Laguna Hills, Calif., said that his father died of congestive heart failure with one of his other sons by his side after his conditioned worsened during the last month. All of Keane's five children, nine grandchildren and great-granddaughter were able to visit him last week, Jeff Keane said.
"He said, 'I love you' and that's what I said to him, which is a great way to go out," Jeff Keane said of the last conversation he had with his father. "The great thing is Dad loved the family so much, so the fact that we all saw him, I think that gave him great comfort and made his passing easy. Luckily he didn't suffer through a lot of things."
Jeff Keane has been drawing "Family Circus" in the last few years as his father enjoyed retirement.
Keane said in a 1995 interview with The Associated Press that the cartoon had staying power because of its consistency and simplicity.
"It's reassuring, I think, to the American public to see the same family," he said.
Although Keane kept the strip current with references to pop culture movies and songs, the context of his comic was timeless. The ghost-like "Ida Know" and "Not Me" who deferred blame for household accidents were staples of the strip. The family's pets were dogs Barfy and Sam, and the cat, Kittycat.
"We are, in the comics, the last frontier of good, wholesome family humor and entertainment," Keane said. "On radio and television, magazines and the movies, you can't tell what you're going to get. When you look at the comic page, you can usually depend on something acceptable by the entire family."
Jeff Keane shared the sentiment, saying "Family Circus" had flourished through the decades because readers continue to relate to its values of family moments.
"It was a different type of comic, and I think that was my dad's genius — creating something that people could really relate to and wasn't necessarily meant to get a laugh," he said. "It was more of a warm feeling or a lump in the throat."
Story found at news.yahoo.com.
Image courtesy of images.google.com.
Deuteronomy 6:1-9 (ESV)
1"Now this is the commandment, the statutes and the rules that the LORD your God commanded me to teach you, that you may do them in the land to which you are going over, to possess it, 2that you may fear the LORD your God, you and your son and your son’s son, by keeping all his statutes and his commandments, which I command you, all the days of your life, and that your days may be long. 3Hear therefore, O Israel, and be careful to do them, that it may go well with you, and that you may multiply greatly, as the LORD, the God of your fathers, has promised you, in a land flowing with milk and honey.
4"Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. 5You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. 6And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. 7 You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. 8 You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. 9 You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.
What Does God's Story scripture Teach Us About Family?
One of the things I always loved about "Family Circus" was the various conversations that would take place between the kids and their parents, and at times, their grandmother. What a great family it is. It seemed like the whole world knew what the Keane family was like. This week, on the first Sunday after the death of Bil Keane, the setting for the family was a church service. As the offering basket reaches the dad, young Dolly reminds him, "Remember Daddy, you don't hafta pay for Jeffy or PJ. Children 3 and under get in free." I can't help but think that this had been a real life experience for the Keane family.
So what is your family like? For some reading this today it may be a whole lot like the family from the comic strip. For others it may be totally different. Many of you reading this may be in a home with only one parent because of a death or divorce. Regardless of what family situation you find yourself in, the points of today's God's Story scripture still fit. God says we are to talk about Him at home. So do you? Do you talk about God's Story when you sit at home and when you go out? Do you talk about it as you go to bed at night and as you get up in the morning? It's not too late to start. And you don't have to wait for your parents to lead the way. You can begin today.
And if you haven't ever enjoyed a laugh with "Family Circus," you can see recent comic strips at www.FamilyCircus.com.
How can I connect today's God's Story Scripture to My Life?
- Read Deuteronomy 6 a few times today.
- Ask God to show you ways you might apply His Story to your life today as you abide in Jesus.
- Today's God's Story scripture tells us we should love the Lord our God with all our heart, sould, and might. How are you doing in this area?
How can I connect Today's Story, God's Story, and My Story with Others?
- Read today's God's Story scripture with someone in your family.
- Do you have a younger brother or sister? How might you be involved in teaching them the truths of God's Story each day?
- Today's God's Story scripture teaches us that we should talk about God's Story with our families when we sit at home, when we go out, when we go to bed and night and when we wake up. Talk to your family today and come up with a list of how you might put this into action in your home.
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