If you grew up in South Carolina, you might remember Jak Smyrl, the first staff cartoon for The State in Columbia, SC. His life and career played out against the backdrop of the 20th century, and is now the subject of a biography, “The World of Jak Smyrl: South Carolina Artist, Journalist, Cartoonist.” The book “presents a remarkable slice of small-town and rural southern life in the 1920s and 30s, moving on to the wider world and the turmoil of World War II through the turn of the millennium,” according to the press release. It also showcases a local talent during a time when local newspapers were the main conduit for news and held great sway over public opinion.
The bio is out now from the University of South Carolina Press: https://muse.jhu.edu/book/72370/
