R. Crumb		Self Portrait

Robert, one of five children, was influenced by his older brother, Charles, jr. to draw comic books at an early age.  For a time, Robert designed greeting cards at Cleveland-based American Greetings.  In 1967, Crumb moved to San Francisco to be at the center of the counterculture scene.  There he published Zap Comix that established his fame.  Fritz the Cat and Mr. Natural, the little bearded guru, are probably his best-known characters.  The drawing, Keep on Truckin', became a pop culture favorite of the 1970s.  Crumb was regarded as an anti-establishment icon, and his work became more satirical and bitter with time.  In the early 1990s, Crumb traded six of his sketchbooks for a house in the south of France, where he still resides with his family.