Syd Hoff was a Jewish-American cartoonist and children's book author. Although best known for his classic early reader Danny and the Dinosaur, his cartoons appeared in a multitude of genres, including advertising commissions for such companies as Eveready Batteries, Jell-O, OK Used Cars, S.O.S Pads, Rambler, Ralston Cereal and more. While Hoff was still in high school, Milt Gross, a popular 1930s cartoonist, told him at an assembly that "Kid, someday you'll be a great cartoonist!" At 16, he enrolled at the National Academy of Design in New York City. At 18, he sold his first cartoon to The New Yorker, and would sell a total of 571 of them to the publication from 1931 to 1975. Hoff became known for his cartoons, in The New Yorker, depicting tenements and lower-middle class life in the city. His cartoons have appeared in a variety of publications including the New Yorker, Esquire, and Look magazine. He was also the host of a television show, Tales of Hoff, in which he drew and told stories. 

September 4th, 1912 in The Bronx  /  Died:   May 12th, 2004