Knecht, Karl Kae (1883 - 1972)

Karl Knecht's mother was an Irish immigrant and his father owned a clothing store and drew cartoons to use in store advertisements.

Knecht attended the Chicago Art Institute for 3 years and after publishing his first cartoon in 1905 in the Freeport (Illinois) Standard, Knecht went to work as the cartoonist at the Evansville Courier where his first cartoon appeared in 1906. He enjoyed circuses and performing as a clown. For most of Knecht’s career, his cartoons appeared seven days a week on the front page until 1954 when they were moved to the editorial page. Knecht worked for the Courier for so long that he came to be known as the “dean of editorial cartoonists”. He retired in 1960. His work was the subject of a book, The World of Karl Kae Knecht Through His Cartoons by Philip C. Ensley published in 1979.