Oswald Ragan Black

AKA: "Oz"

Published as Oz Black.

Born 1898-10-29 Neoga, IL (USA)

Died 1977-12-28
Denver, CO (USA)

Oz came to Lincoln with his family in 1907 and spent his childhood years in the capitol city. He attended Prescott and Lincoln High, took a correspondence course in cartooning and joined the Lincoln Star in 1919. He became the paper's editorial cartoonist and art director in 1920. He worked for the Lincoln Star from 1920 to 1927, when he moved to the Nebraska State Journal. In 1940, Oz joined the Minneapolis Star-Journal where he worked for 17 years. After retirement he moved to Denver, where he worked as a freelance artist and taught cartooning. In the 1920s, he often appeared in vaudeville as a "chalk talker."

Places Lived

Lincoln, NE
Minnesota
Colorado

Author Of

Journalism
Visual Work

Keywords

Political and Editorial Cartoons; Columnist; Newspapers

Education

Lincoln High School
University of Nebraska, Lincoln

Occupation

Journalist
Cartoonist
Public Relations
Cartooning Instructor

Places Worked

Lincoln Star, 1922-30
Lincoln Journal, 1930-40
Star-Journal, 1940-1957
Denver Area Council of Churches
Cartooning Instructor, University of Colorado Institute of Adult Learning, Denver, CO

Associations

YMCA
Lincoln Peoples City Mission
Westminister Presbyterian Church elder

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