Remaining Years
Although the Library of Congress' collection of Mauldin cartoon stops in 1965, Mauldin produced cartoons for the Chicago Sun-Times until his retirement in 1991. Already disenchanted with newspapers and cartooning, it was the collapse of a vehicle on his drawing hand that forced Mauldin to retire from a profession that he had shaped for five decades. In 2002, Mauldin had nearly forgotten the world due to advanced Alzheimer's Disease. However, the world remembered him. Jay Gruenfeld, another World War II veteran, located Mauldin in his California nursing home and began a campaign to get other veterans to share their memories with the creator of Willie and Joe. Over 10,000 veterans responded, sending letters and personal effects. As a result of Gruenfeld's campaign, a whole new generation of readers was introduced to the work of Bill Mauldin. Bill Mauldin died on January 22, 2003. He was buried at Arlington National Cemetery six days later, on January 29. |
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