"Life in Hell" is finally over.
The comic strip was the first brainchild of Portland native Matt Groening.
He had released it weekly since 1978. By the early nineties the strip was syndicated in almost 400 newspapers, but in recent years that number dwindled to less than 40.
Photograph of the Big Book of Hell cover.
Rebecca Roberts Galloway / OPB
The Simpsons is perhaps Groening’s most famous creation. It was born when a TV producer noticed "Life in Hell" and asked Groening to develop animated shorts based on the comic.
Sandra Gatewood, who has been Groening’s syndicator for twenty-five years, says "He always said that it kept him in touch with his roots. And he loved Life in Hell; I mean it is what started the whole thing. If it hadn’t been for Life in Hell who knows if the Simpsons ever would have even happened."
The last original "Life in Hell" strip ran on June 15. Newspapers can rerun older strips through mid-July.
