Dave Graue

Graue is most well known as an artist on the Alley Oop comic strip, starting out as an assistant to creator Vincent T. Hamlin in 1950. He began writing, penciling, and inking the daily Alley Oop in 1966. Graue continued increasing the amount of work he was doing and when Hamlin retired in 1973, Dave took over the full time writing, penciling, and inking duties on the Sunday comic strip. Jack Bender began to assist Graue on the Sunday strip in 1990, and then took over the art duties for the daily and Sunday strip in 1991 from Dave. Graue continued writing the daily and Sunday Alley Oop comic strip until the Summer of 2001. Alley Oop daily [Newspaper Enterprise Association], writing, 1966-07-15 - 2001-09-01. Alley Oop daily [Newspaper Enterprise Association], pencils and inks, 1966-07-15 - 1991-12-28. Alley Oop Sunday [Newspaper Enterprise Association], writing, 1973-04-08 - 2001-08-26. Alley Oop Sunday [Newspaper Enterprise Association], pencils and inks, 1973-04-08 to 1992-01-19. First professional cartoon sale to the Pacific Edition of Stars and Stripes, date unknown. Spent two years in the United States Air Force, then attended the Art Institute of Pittsburgh, and worked as a staff artist for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania) until becoming Hamlin's assistant.