History of Heathcliff
North Jersey has some history of the Heathcliff comic strip's late creator, George Gately, who created the rowdy kitty 5 years before Jim Davis did Garfield (and the latter's popularity soon overtook the former's):
Two rows of fresh fish chill on ice outside the Elite Fish Market in the colorful port town of Westfinster. From behind the counter, the fishmonger, Mr. Schultz, looks on incredulously. “Geo Gately,” in faultless looping script, is written on the wall above his head. His ire seems focused on a striped feline, who stands upright in swim fins atop the fish-filled rack. The cat is wearing goggles on his head and a delightedly devilish look on his face. He's holding a spear.That Heathcliff had a voice in the cartoons is surely the oddest part of adapting to cartoons, in contrast to how Snoopy's animated counterpart in the Peanuts cartoons usually didn't speak. Ruby-Spears and DIC, who oversaw the 2 productions, must've decided it was the best way to compete with Garfield, whose own cartoons began just 4 years after Davis launched the strip in 1978, while Heathcliff took at least 7 years to be adapted. And Marvel published a series in the mid-1980s, originally under their Star imprint. Much like Garfield, I also read Heathcliff in my youth, and found it amusing in its own way, even if it's idea of surreal comedy differs from that of Garfield's (and unlike the latter, the former's daily strips were often single panel, in contrast to Garfield's 3). And I sure hope that, as a strip that may still be in publication via Gately's nephew, it still retains a decent sense of humor that isn't tarnished by the political correctness that's become a sad staple today.
The image, from the cover of a 1989 Heathcliff comic book, is a classic take on the original fat cartoon cat. Unlike his portly peer Garfield, who arrived after him on the comic strip scene, Heathcliff chose raw fish over lasagna, milkman over postman, street over house. Gruff, sarcastic and adorable, the hellion-turned-icon found joy in mischief, pain in baths and satisfaction in thwarting the boisterous neighborhood bulldog, Spike.
All of it was conceived by George Gately, a former Bergen County resident of rare talent. Born on Dec. 21, 1928, George Gately Gallagher was raised in Bergenfield. After graduating from the town's high school, he attended the Pratt Institute in New York City with a view to profiting off his creativity through advertising.
His fate had long been sealed, however. For Gately, ad work proved far too stifling. Gately would later say he wanted to be a cartoonist from the first time he picked up a pencil.
Doodling was encouraged by his parents. Arguably, it was in his blood. His older brother, John Gallagher, was also a well-known cartoonist and would help him pen “Heathcliff” in its heyday (George may have dropped his last name professionally to avoid confusion). After Gately’s 1998 retirement, his nephew, Peter Gallagher, picked up the pencil and ensured the strip’s survival. [...]
Named for the character in Emily Bronte’s Wuthering Heights, "Heathcliff" premiered in print in 1973. The tabby quickly gained a following. In Gately’s 2001 obituary in The Los Angeles Times, the newspaper said 900 protest letters forced the paper to reinstate the strip after “Heathcliff” was pulled in 1974.
After capturing the 1970s, the street-smart cat peaked in the '80s. Two separate animated series had Mel Blanc voicing the cat. An incomparable legend in voice acting, who powered Bugs Bunny, Porky Pig and Barney Rubble, Blanc solidified Heathcliff’s status as an endearing wise guy.
Ever relatable, the rotund cat steals, but he also stands for workers' rights. He has a loyal best friend in innocent Iggy, an ever-out-of-reach crush in sleek Sonja and a less-than-ideal role model in convict "Pops" Heathcliff.
Labels: animation, comic strips, good artists, history
