Walt Kelley was not born in Bridgeport. He was born in Philadelphia, but he moved to Bridgeport in 1902. Yet it seems that Bridgeport was the birthplace of Walt Kelly’s art. Kelly first started drawing, like other kids, but blossomed in art as a student in Harding High School. He drew for the high school yearbook and also wrote poetry. 
Kelly began to work for the Bridgeport Post and later said, “I was the world’s worst reporter.” He began drawing cartoons for the Post, drawing P.T. Barnum comic strips. As a reporter he covered the Welfare Department during the Great Depression.
Kelly moved to California to work at Disney studios. While working there he started developing a swampland series on his own time. He moved back to the East Coast to work for the New York Star. While there, Kelly created had his first “Pogo the Possum” comic strip. In 1949, the Star newspaper folded, and Kelly moved to Darien and raised a family. His comic strip Pogo became known for its political and controversial content. Kelly continued his comic strip, becoming very famous during the 1970′s during the environmental movement for “We Have Met the Enemy and he is Us.” Walt Kelly died 1973.
