Alfred Gerald Caplin (September 28, 1909 – November 5, 1979), better known as
Al Capp, was an American
cartoonist and humorist best known for the satirical
comic strip Li'l Abner, which he created in 1934 and continued writing and (with help from assistants) drawing until 1977. He also wrote the comic strips
Abbie an' Slats (in the years 1937–45) and
Long Sam (1954). He won the
National Cartoonists Society's
Reuben Award in 1947 for Cartoonist of the Year, and their 1979
Elzie Segar Award (posthumously) for his "unique and outstanding contribution to the profession of cartooning." Comic strips dealt with northern urban experiences until the year Capp introduced "Li'l Abner," the first strip based in the South. Although Capp was from Connecticut, he spent 43 years teaching the world about Dogpatch, reaching an estimated 60 million readers in over 900 American newspapers and 100 foreign papers in 28 countries.
M. Thomas Inge says Capp made a large personal fortune on the strip and "had a profound influence on the way the world viewed the American South."