March 24: The Catholic Cartoonist

Welcome to the American Catholic Daily Reader podcast. Today is March 24th, and our story is The Catholic Cartoonist. The first people to notice that Joseph Barbera, born March 24, 1911, had a knack for drawing were the Catholic sisters who taught him in his New York City grade school. When they needed artwork for the classroom or illustrated teaching aids, the sisters turned to him. Unfortunately for them, they turned to Barbera so often that his mother eventually asked them to stop, explaining that his other studies were suffering.

Barbera, however, never did stop. After graduating from high school, he worked at a bank by day while focusing on his artistic pursuits at night. In 1932, his persistence was rewarded with a job as a cartoonist at Van Buren Studios. Five years later, he made the move to Hollywood for a job with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, MGM. There, he found himself sharing office space with another illustrator, William Hanna, and a partnership that would last more than 60 years began.

Over the next six decades, first at MGM and later through their own studio, Hanna-Barbera, the pair produced some of the most successful cartoon series of the 20th century. Tom and Jerry, The Flintstones, The Huckleberry Hound Show, Scooby-Doo, The Jetsons, Yogi Bear, and many more.

Surprisingly, despite winning seven Academy Awards and eight Emmys for his work, Barbera claimed that the work of which he was most proud was his series of animated Bible stories. It took me 17 years to get it done, he said in a 1993 interview with Catholic News Service, explaining that the studios were convinced cartoons about salvation history would cause too many problems.

Nevertheless, every year without fail, Barbera pled his case. Finally, in 1985, with the help of Taft Broadcasting, Barbera's The Greatest Adventure, Stories of the Bible, was made for direct-to-home video release. Within seven years, it had brought in more than $20 million. Barbera died in 2006. He was 95.

Barbara's life shows that faith and creativity can coexist in professional excellence. He used his gifts to entertain, inspire, and teach, proving that dedication to both craft and conscience can leave a lasting mark. Consider a creative project you can use to inspire or teach others. Dedicate time this week to make progress.

Thank you for listening to the American Catholic Daily Reader podcast. Join us tomorrow, March 25th, for another story of faith and courage in America.