New York Daily News cartoonist and columnist Bill Gallo has passed away from complications to pneumonia last night according to the Daily News.
“My father is a lasting legend to New York, and to New York sports,” said Gallo’s son, Greg.
“He will be forever thought of as a great cartoonist for the Daily News, but he will also be remembered as the gentleman he was to all the people he came across, everybody in the streets of the city. People loved him because he was a special human being.”
He was recently the recipient of the Ellis Island medal which “pays homage to the immigrant experience, as well as for individual achievement, medals are awarded to U.S. citizens from various ethnic backgrounds.” He unfortunately wasn’t able to make that ceremony on the 7th of this month.
Read more at The Daily News. The News has also posted a portfolio of some of Bill’s work.
One of the nicest guys you could hope to meet. A gentleman, war hero, great cartoonist, and had the longest continuous newspaper career in American history.
RIP, Bill. We’ll miss you at the Reubens.
We have lost one of the nicest and most talented gentlemen that the newspaper and cartooning fields has ever known. He was a true icon.
That’s a third setback for cartoons/comics in the NYC Daily News this 2011 year: First it drops Beetle Bailey, then it reduces the daily comics from 3 pages to 2, and now Bill Gallo passes away.
I have to wonder if they’ll even replace him. Editorial cartoonists are already an endangered species. Are there even any other sports cartoonists? I don’t know of any.