Leonard, Lank Mickey Finn Comic Strip

Frank E. Leonard (January 2, 1896 – August 1, 1970), better known as Lank Leonard, was an American cartoonist artist who created the long-running comic strip Mickey Finn. In 1936, the McNaught Syndicate bought his comic strip about the family life of an Irish-American policeman. From the start, the strip was calculated to show the good qualities of human nature rather than the sordid side of crime. The character of Mickey Finn was inspired by Leonard's observations of Port Chester policeman Mickey Brennan. Other characters in Mickey Finn were drawn from Lank Leonard's own family, and the model for Mickey Finn was Leonard himself. Mickey's mother was based on numerous sketches of Leonard's mother, and his real-life Uncle Phil inspired the comic strip Uncle Phil. Kitty Kelly, Mickey's fiancée, was modeled on Florence McLaughlin, whom Leonard married in June 1939. Lank Leonard drew the strip for more than three decades.