Charles Samuel Addams
7 January 1912 - 29 September 1988
Biography
1912
Born January 7 to Grace M. Spear and Charles Huey Addams in Westfield, NJ
1929
Graduates from Westfield Senior High School
Attends Colgate University, Hamilton, New York
1930
Attends University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
1931
Attends Grand Central School of Art, New York City
1932
Sells his first spot sketch to The New Yorker magazine
1933
Sells his first drawing to The New Yorker magazine
1940
Illustrates But Who Wakes the Bugler? by Peter DeVries for Houghton Mifflin Company
1942
Publishes his first anthology of drawings Drawn and Quartered with Random House, Inc.
1947
Publishes his second anthology of drawings Addams and Evil with Random House, Inc.
1950
Illustrates Afternoon in the Attic by John Kobler for Dodd, Mead & Company
Publishes his third anthology of drawings Monster Rally with Simon & Schuster, Inc.
1954
Publishes his fourth anthology of drawings Homebodies with Simon & Schuster, Inc.
1957
Publishes his fifth anthology of drawings Nightcrawlers with Simon & Schuster, Inc.
1959
Publishes his compilation book Dear Dead Days with G.P. Putnam’s Sons
1960
Publishes his sixth anthology of drawings Black Maria with Simon & Schuster, Inc.
1961
Donates 39 finished and preliminary drawings to the Museum of the City of New York
1962
Donates 33 preliminary drawings to the Museum of the City of New York
Drawn and Quartered is re-released by Simon & Schuster, Inc.
1964
The Addams Family television series premiers on ABC
Publishes his seventh anthology of drawings The Groaning Board with Simon & Schuster, Inc.
1965
Monster Rally is re-released by Simon & Schuster, Inc.
1967
Publishes The Chas Addams Mother Goose with Windmill Books, Inc.
1970
Publishes his eighth anthology of drawings My Crowd with Simon & Schuster, Inc.
1976
Publishes his ninth anthology of drawings Favorite Haunts with Simon & Schuster, Inc.
1980
Receives Honorary Doctorate from University of Pennsylvania
1981
Publishes his tenth anthology of drawings Creature Comforts with Simon & Schuster, Inc.
1983
Receives Honorary Doctorate from Southampton College, Southampton, New York
1984
Participant in A Year at the New Yorker exhibition at the National Academy of Design, New York City
1988
Dies during the morning of September 29 in his car in front of his apartment at West 54th Street in New York City
POSTHUMOUS
1991
The Estate of Charles Addams publishes The World of Charles Addams with Alfred A. Knopf.
Tee Addams donates 70 Addams drawings to The New York Public Library, New York City
The Addams Family movie released by Paramount Pictures
1992
The Charles Addams Gallery on the third floor of The New York Public Library is dedicated for “permanent rotating exhibition of Addams works from their collection” (NOTE: Removed from service in 2000)
1993
Addams Family Values movie released by Paramount Pictures
1999
Formation of the Tee and Charles Addams Foundation
2002
The Foundation publishes an updated version of The Charles Addams Mother Goose with Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers
2004
The Foundation and the Children’s Museum of the East End inaugurate the Charles Addams Festival: Cartooning for Kids
2005
The Foundation publishes Chas Addams Half-Baked Cookbook: Culinary Cartoons for the Humorously Famished with Simon & Schuster
2006
The Foundation publishes Chas Addams Happily Ever After: A Collection of Cartoons to Chill the Heart of Your Loved One with Simon & Schuster
Charles Addams: A Cartoonist’s Life by Linda H. Davis is published by Random House, Inc.
2009
The Addams Family: A New Musical opens in Chicago for out-of-town tryouts
2010
The Foundation publishes The Addams Family: An Evilution with Pomegranate Communications, Inc.
The Addams Family: A New Musical opens at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre in New York City
2011
The Addams Family: An Evilution is published in Japanese and in Italian
Addams Family Musical launches North American tour
2012
Addams Family Musical (A Familia Addams/Los Locos Addams) launches South America tour to Brazil, Peru, Argentina, Mexico
Theatrical Rights Worldwide, NYC represents Addams Family Musical for non-equity licenses
2013
Addams Family Musical launches USA/Asia tour
2016
The Addams Family: An Evilution is published in French
2017
Addams Family Musical launches United Kingdom tour
Addams Family Musical opens in Paris
2018
Comic-Con presents Charles Addams with Will Eisner Hall of Fame Award San Diego, California
2019
MGM releases The Addams Family animated film worldwide
The Foundation publishes Addams’ Apple: The New York Cartoons of Charles Addams with Pomegranate Communications, Inc.
2020
NPR Education and Playbill Magazine report Addams Family Musical as Number One musical performed by US high schools for the past five years (Number 2 in 2018)
Charles Addams inducted into New Jersey Hall of Fame
Westfield, NJ continues its third year of AddamsFest activities and virtual events through October
The Foundation presents a bronze bust of Charles Addams to his birthplace Town of Westfield, NJ in celebration of its 300th Anniversary