Giles, Carl Ronald

▪ 1996

      British cartoonist (b. Sept. 29, 1916, London, England—d. Aug. 27, 1995, Ipswich, Suffolk, England), for some 50 years created cartoons that made political or social statements by showing the impact of events on ordinary people. His cartoon family, especially the indomitable Grandma with her ever-present umbrella, became part of British folklore. After working as an office boy for a London film company, Giles became a cartoon animator and was a principal animator on Britain's first full-length animated colour cartoon with sound, Fox Hunt (1936). Giles continued producing animated films even after becoming a newspaper cartoonist, first for Reynolds News (1937-43) and from 1943 for the Daily Express and Sunday Express. Giles's work was treasured for its richness of detail in both characters and backgrounds and for its affection for human foibles. His cartoons were internationally syndicated and used in advertisements and reproduced on posters. Beginning in 1946 collections of his cartoons were issued annually. In 1993 London's National Museum of Cartoon Art presented a one-man exhibition of his work. Giles was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire in 1959.

* * *