Harry Lampert

46
Harry Lampert bigraphy, stories - Comic book cartoonist; contract bridge author

Harry Lampert : biography

November 3, 1916 – November 13, 2004

Harry Lampert (November 3, 1916 – November 13, 2004) was an American cartoonist, bridge book author, and bridge teacher.

Born in New York, Lampert began cartooning when he was sixteen years old, and worked for the legendary Max Fleischer, inking and helping produce Betty Boop, Popeye, and Koko the Clown cartoons. While stationed at Drew Field in Tampa, FL, he created Droopy the Drew Field Mosquito which ran in the from 1942-1944. He began drawing comic books and he is best known in that field for being the artistic co-creator of the DC Comics superhero The Flash. Created in collaboration with writer Gardner Fox, the hero first appeared in Flash Comics #1 in 1940, but Lampert left the character after drawing only five stories, gravitating towards his preference for humorous work. He also drew the comic book characters "The King", "Red, White and Blue" and "The Atom". Lampert later went on to draw gag cartoons for Time Magazine, The New York Times, Esquire, and The Saturday Evening Post. He was also an instructor for the New York School of Visual Arts and founded the Lampert Agency, an advertising company which produced award-winning ads for clients such as Olympic Airways, Seagram, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

After his retirement in 1976, Lampert went on to write many instructional books on contract bridge. His book The Fun Way to Serious Bridge has been described as "the bible of that game" and Lampert spent years giving classes and working the cruise ship circuit teaching bridge to players. In the mid-1990s, Lampert became active in the comic book convention circuit, selling sketches and autographs and speaking about his famous comic book creation.

Lampert died on November 13, 2004 in Boca Raton, Florida of complications from prostate cancer.

Bridge publications

  • and