Charley Krebs, MidWest Outdoors Cartoonist (1957-2016)

Charley Krebs, a professional freelance cartoonist who created editorial, feature cartoons and spot illustrations for a variety of publications and businesses, passed away November 10, 2016 from complications with cancer. He was 60 years old.

In 2014 and 2015, Krebs supplied MidWest Outdoors with some of the best multi-panel and collage-style, outdoor-themed cartoons the industry has seen. His final unpublished single-panel cartoon is herewith.

All the more remarkable, was that the talented Krebs was not a true sportsman, but had a wide array of interests, especially in music.

Krebs received a degree in journalism from Morton College in Cicero, Ill. where he wrote and illustrated for the student newspaper and yearbook. From 1986 to 2002 he worked for Gohagan & Company and Travel Excellence, Inc. as the manager of creative development, production and distribution of print sales and promotional materials.

In 1996 he started a very successful and high profile position as the political cartoonist for the Suburban Life newspaper chain. His cartoons were recognized with 16 state and national journalism awards including 9 Illinois Press Association, 6 Suburban Newspapers of America and 1 National Newspaper of America journalism awards for editorial cartooning.

Krebs was a lover of music—blues, jazz, rock and anything in between. His passion for music and art came together when, in 2003, he became the cartoonist for Chicago Jazz Magazine. His cartoons depicted local and national jazz and blues artists with humor and facts. His cartoons for Chicago Jazz Magazine have been shown at numerous galleries throughout the Chicagoland area most recently at the Riverside Arts Center and the Riverside Library with critical acclaim.