Jim Davis (cartoonist)
The creator of Garfield, the lasagna-loving cat who became a global comic strip phenomenon and a merchandising empire.
Born 1945 (age 81)·American cartoonist·Birthday: July 28·The Silent Generation
Biography
Jim Davis turned a childhood of allergies and a love for farm animals into one of the most recognizable characters on the planet. Growing up on an Indiana farm in the 1940s and 50s, he was surrounded by cats but suffered from asthma, observing them from a distance—a perspective that perhaps fueled his detached, amused take on feline nature. After art school and a stint assisting on the 'Tumbleweeds' comic, he struck gold in 1978 with 'Garfield', a cynical, Monday-hating orange tabby named after his grandfather. Davis's genius was in universalizing the cat's lazy, food-obsessed, owner-tolerating personality, crafting gags that required no complex setup. He built a studio system in his home state to manage the strip's explosive growth, overseeing its path into thousands of newspapers and an avalanche of merchandise that made Garfield a cultural fixture far beyond the funny pages.
The Silent Generation
1928–1945
Born between the Depression and the end of WWII. Too young to fight, old enough to remember. They became the conformist middle managers of the 1950s — and the civil rights leaders who quietly dismantled Jim Crow.
Jim was born in 1945, placing them squarely in The Silent Generation. The events that shaped this generation — world wars, depression, and rapid industrialization — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Jim Was Born
The biggest hits of 1945
#1 Movie
The Bells of St. Mary's
Best Picture
The Lost Weekend
Jim's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1945Born
WWII ends; atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki
Gas: $0.21/galHome: $4,600Min wage: $0.40/hrPresident: Harry S. Truman"Sentimental Journey" — Les Brown & Doris DayBest Picture: The Lost Weekend
1950Started school
Korean War begins
Gas: $0.27/galHome: $7,354Min wage: $0.75/hrPresident: Harry S. Truman"Goodnight Irene" — Gordon Jenkins & The WeaversBest Picture: All About Eve
1958Became a teenager
NASA founded
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $11,050Min wage: $1.00/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Volare" — Domenico ModugnoBest Picture: Gigi
1961Could drive
Yuri Gagarin becomes the first human in space
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $12,500Min wage: $1.15/hrPresident: John F. Kennedy"Tossin' and Turnin'" — Bobby LewisBest Picture: West Side Story
1963Could vote
JFK assassinated in Dallas; Martin Luther King's 'I Have a Dream' speech
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $13,100Min wage: $1.25/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"Sugar Shack" — Jimmy Gilmer & The FireballsBest Picture: Tom Jones
1966Turned 21
Star Trek premieres on television
Gas: $0.32/galHome: $14,200Min wage: $1.25/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"The Ballad of the Green Berets" — SSgt Barry SadlerBest Picture: A Man for All Seasons
1975Turned 30
Fall of Saigon ends the Vietnam War
Gas: $0.57/galHome: $27,600Min wage: $2.10/hrPresident: Gerald Ford"Love Will Keep Us Together" — Captain & TennilleBest Picture: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
1985Turned 40
Live Aid concerts raise money for Ethiopian famine
Gas: $1.12/galHome: $62,900Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Careless Whisper" — Wham!Best Picture: Out of Africa
1995Turned 50
Oklahoma City bombing; Windows 95 released
Gas: $1.15/galHome: $96,500Min wage: $4.25/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"Gangsta's Paradise" — CoolioBest Picture: Braveheart
2005Turned 60
Hurricane Katrina devastates New Orleans; YouTube launches
Gas: $2.30/galHome: $167,500Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: George W. Bush"We Belong Together" — Mariah CareyBest Picture: Crash
2015Turned 70
Paris climate agreement; same-sex marriage legalized in the US
Gas: $2.43/galHome: $171,900Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Uptown Funk" — Mark Ronson ft. Bruno MarsBest Picture: Spotlight
2025Turned 80
AI agents go mainstream
Gas: $3.10/galHome: $385,000Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Donald Trump"APT." — Rose & Bruno Mars
2026Age 81 today
Gas: $3.91/galPresident: Donald Trump
Key Achievements
- Created 'Garfield', which holds the Guinness World Record for the world's most widely syndicated comic strip.
- Built Paws, Inc., a studio and licensing empire that managed all Garfield merchandise directly, a rare model for cartoonists.
- Expanded the brand into successful animated TV specials and series, most notably 'Garfield and Friends'.
- Authored countless comic strip collections that have sold hundreds of millions of copies worldwide.
Did You Know?
He named Garfield after his grandfather, James A. Garfield Davis.
Davis's first comic strip was 'Gnorm Gnat', which a syndicate editor told him would never succeed because 'nobody can identify with bugs.'
He was inducted into the National Cartoonists Society's Hall of Fame in 2019.
The Paws, Inc. headquarters is located in Muncie, Indiana, and features a large Garfield statue.
“I'm not a cartoonist who writes. I'm a writer who draws.”
