George Herriman and Krazy Kat, a Racial Comic Odyssey | Case File #118

He published a comic strip throughout the 20s, 30s, and 40s. Nobody knew he was actually black. In the 1920s, a cartoonist named George Herriman came on the scene. He developed a strip called Krazy Kat, which is one of the strangest, most revered newspaper comics of all time - considered by many to be the greatest comic ever made. For the entirety of Herriman's life, the public thought he was white. It wasn't until his death that we learned he hid his racial identity in order to make it in the world of comics. But in retrospect, his work is the key to understanding his complicated relationship with his own racial identity. On this episode, we explore the fascinating and heartbreaking identity, career, and secrecy of George Herriman and Krazy Kat. -- Get the Mystery Treehouse Simple Code Hybrid Album and Comic! https://bit.ly/simplecodecomic Watch the Simple Code Comic Album Video Trailer! https://bit.ly/simplecodetrailer -- Join our Discord server! https://bit.ly/deepcutsdiscord -- Pick up some Deep Cuts T-Shirts and other merch! https://bit.ly/deepcutsmerch -- Get the official Deep Cuts shoulder patch! http://bit.ly/deepcuts_patch -- Listen to our album, a 9 song rock opera about the rise and fall of Napster! https://open.spotify.com/album/6INdubx1dAEKNwuoWzs9Oo?si=z4ljoBAYTFqRXKWVzvWEfg Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices