December 8 Illinois History Minute

It’s December 8th, and cartoonist Elzie Crisler Segar (SEE-gar) --- E.C. Segar for short, was born in Chester Illinois on this day in 1894. Segar drew his first cartoons for Chicago newspapers. But it was at the New York Journal where he created his most famous character, Popeye the Sailor in 1929. Segar died in 1938, and is buried in his hometown of Chester. He’s also remembered with a bronze statue of Popeye in a local park.

The Chicago Bears scored eleven touchdowns on this day in 1940, beating Washington and winning the NFL championship by a score of  73 to nothing. The final score still stands as the most lopsided victory in NFL history. It was the first of four NFL championships for Bears quarterback Sid Luckman.