Axis Grinder #2 p 04 by Raymond F Houlihan (Aug 1941)

Houlihan was born in Worcester, Massachusetts in 1923. He attended the Art Students League in New York City, but it's unclear if that was before or after he began working professionally.

Like many other aspiring young artists of his era, Houlihan's first published works were in 1941, as a story contributor to anthology comics. Houlihan was 18 or 19 years old when he pencilled this page for a strip called "Axis Grinder."

Working for Funnies Inc., a "packager" that supplied completed strips to a variety of publishers in the 1940s, the teenage Houlihan drew short filler strips for some landmark publications at He was an artist of filler comics for National/DC, including features like 'Hank the Yank' and 'Molly'. He additionally drew 'Tubby and Tack' for Timely and 'Little Leo' for Hillman.

In the second half of the 1940s, Houlihan did gag cartoons for American Magazine, Pic, Holiday and Argosy. In the 1950s he did illustrations for pulps and magazines including Saga, Sea Adventures and Reader's Digest. Houlihan then focused on painting, and was exhibited widely in both museums and historical institutions in the U.S., London and the Middle East.