24 Facts About Jimmy Frise

James Llewellyn Frise was a Canadian cartoonist best known for his work on the comic strip Birdseye Center and his illustrations of humorous prose pieces by Greg Clark.

Jimmy Frise moved to the Montreal Standard in 1947, but as the Star kept publication rights to Birdseye Center, Frise continued it as Juniper Junction with strongly similar characters and situations.

James Llewellyn Jimmy Frise was born 16 October 1890 near Fingerboard in Scugog Island, Ontario.

Jimmy Frise grew up in Seagrave and Myrtle and went to school in Port Perry.

Jimmy Frise visited the Stars offices the following Monday and the Editor-in-Chief hired him immediately.

Jimmy Frise illustrated news stories and the children's feature The Old Mother Nature Club, and did political cartoons.

Jimmy Frise's cartoons appeared in publications such as the Owen Sound Sun.

Jimmy Frise was discharged after recuperating in Chelmsford, England, and arrived back in Toronto on 1 December 1917 and returned to work, first at the Star and shortly after at the Star Weekly again.

Jimmy Frise protested he could not keep up with a weekly schedule but nonetheless began At the Rink, which debuted 25 January 1919; it became Life's Little Comedies on 15 March.

Jimmy Frise turned his focus to humorous and nostalgic depictions of rural life and on 12 December 1925 renamed his strip Birdseye Center, whose setting he described as "any Canadian village"; its lead characters included bowler-hatted Pigskin Peters, Old Archie and his pet moose Foghorn, and lazy Eli Doolittle and his wife Ruby.

From about 1920 Jimmy Frise shared an office with the journalist and Vimy Ridge veteran Greg Clark.

Jimmy Frise worked at his own pace and often tore up work-in-progress in dissatisfaction and submitted his strips at the last moment.

Jimmy Frise was unconcerned with the resale value of his original artwork and pursued little licensing of his work, amongst which included product endorsements, products such as jigsaw puzzles, and a Birdseye Center Cabin Park on Lake Scugog, opened in 1940.

Jimmy Frise's work provided him well enough that he bought a home in the well-to-do Baby Point neighbourhood.

Jimmy Frise was drawn as tall and gangly, and Clark short and stout.

Jimmy Frise continued his work as a cartoonist and illustrator, and upon Clark's return, the "Greg and Jim" stories picked up where they left off.

McConnell offered the pair salaries similar to what they received at the Star, as well as the opportunity for Jimmy Frise to have his strip syndicated in the United States, which would supplement his income.

The Star maintained publication rights to Birdseye Center, so Jimmy Frise re-created the feature as Juniper Junction with strongly similar characters and situations.

Jimmy Frise provided the illustrations to Jack Hambleton's cookbook Skillet Skills for Camp and Cottage published in 1947.

Jimmy Frise enjoyed the outdoors and pursued fishing and hunting.

Jimmy Frise often returned to the Lake Scugog area and sometimes spoke about his career there.

Jimmy Frise worked at an advertising agency, and co-published with her father a magazine in braille and a braille bible.

Jimmy Frise married Frise on 21 February 1918 and the couple had four daughters, Jean, Ruth, Edythe, and Betty; and a son, John.

In 2009, Jimmy Frise was inducted into the Canadian Cartoonist Hall of Fame.