‘Archie’ Artist Tom Moore Dies At Age 86

Moore began drawing cartoons during the Korean War when he was in the U.S. Navy.

In 1961, Mr. Moore moved back to his native El Paso, where he lived for the rest of his life. “Who knew Archie would have such universal appeal?”

Mr. Moore, the “Archie” cartoonist, poses for a photo in 2014.

Archie Comics launched in 1941, inspired in part by the Andy Hardy movies of the 1930s.

The freckle-faced Archie, called “America’s Typical Teenager”, and his Riverdale gang of friends comprising, Betty, Veronica, Jughead, Reggie, Moose, Midge and the others have made generations of comic lovers laugh with their shenanigans and innocent antics.

In an interview given to a newspaper in 1996 he said that he used to complete one comic book every month. In the past week, he was diagnosed with throat cancer, but decided not to get operated.

The signature look of the comics was defined by Moore during the years 1953 to 1988, died on Monday. As per the El Paso Times, annual sales of the comic have many times crossed half a million during the 1960s. “I did everything. We always worked six months ahead”.

Moore kept up with the Archie character even after his retirement, and was pleased when some of his work was displayed at the El Paso Museum of Art in 1996. According to El Paso Times, he was reassigned as the staff cartoonist and later attended Cartoonist and Illustrator School in New York.

He also illustrated Snuffy Smith, Mighty Mouse and Underdog. He helped with the revival of Archie’s friend Jughead and earned the praise of staffers at the company who celebrated his ability to write gags and produce special pages.

Moore is survived by his wife of 63 years, Ruth, his son and daughter, Holly Mathew.