Brooks, Charles b. 1920

Charles Brooks original cartoon artwork.

Charles Brooks started as a cartoonist on the Birmingham News in Alabama in 1948. He used the platform to express great faith in the character of the American people and harsh criticism of anyone or anything that attacked or insulted that character. He did not withhold criticism of the Ku Klux Klan, a group which is believed to have counted many of the city's powerful men among its members. In addition to cartooning, the News lent Brooks out to work with police and the Federal Bureau of Investigation to create sketches of suspects from eyewitness descriptions. Brooks was invited to the White House in 1982 and presented an original of to President Ronald Reagan. Former head of the FBI, J. Edgar Hoover, also requested a Brooks original cartoon, which he hung in his office.