Krazy, man, krazy

 

The details of George Herriman's life―his Creole background, his connection to New Orleans―have become better known than they once were, which is as it should be. But they don't fully explain Krazy Kat. It's simply its own thing.

Born in 1870, Herriman was of the generation that basically invented daily comic strips. And if you look at samples from Baron Bean, a strip he actually created after Krazy Kat, you see accomplished art, but in the style of turn-of-the-century comics like Mutt and Jeff.

Krazy Kat had some basis in that old style as well, but it also incorporated methods from outside the mediums established rules. It was strange then and it's strange now. Funny and poignant as well, if that need be pointed out.