Bob Dunn Dead At 80

Originator of the "knock-knock" joke

Robert Joseph Dunn Jr., cartoonist of the syndicated They'll Do It Every Time and Little Iodine strips, died January 31 of complications from diabetes at Overlook Hospital, Summit, New Jersey. The 80-year-old Dunn lived in the Short Hills section of Millburn, New Jersey.

Born May 15, 1908, in Newark, Bob Dunn attended St. Benedict's Preparatory School (Newark), St. Anselm's College (Manchester, New Hampshire), and NYC's Art Students League. After selling gags to Judge and Life, he joined the Newark Ledger art staff, later moving to Hearst's International News Service. He became an assistant to Milt Gross in 1932, a period when Gross began expanding with various strips (Dave's Delicatessen, Count Screwloose), coloumns, and screenplays.

Dunn is credited as the creator of the "knock-knock" joke with his best-selling book Knock-Knock (1936). After the initial craze for "knock-knock" gags was analyzed by Max Eastman (Enjoyment of Laughter), these perennial puns became a tradition in American humor, circulating through word-of-mouth but also adapted to television (Laugh-In) and humor novelty items (Topps Chewing Gum's Laugh-In card series).

In 1939, Dunn teamed with Jimmy Hatlo's popular creations, They'll Do It Every Time and Little Iodine. His work for comic books began the following year with the features "Roger" and "Little Acorns" for David McKay Publications. Dunn's Sunday cartoon, Just the Type, ran for almost two decades. He followed Knock-Knock with other books (I'm Gonna Be a Father, and One Day in the Army), and he pioneered early television game shows with Face to Face (NBC, 1946) and Quick on the Draw (Dumont, 1952). Comic strip historian Rick Marschall described Dunn as "one of America's funniest, most entertaining after-dinner speakers and raconteurs."

When Hatlo died in 1963. Dunn took over both Little Iodine and They'll Do It Every Time, variously assisted by Al Scaduto, Moyer S. Thompson, Fred Faber, and Hy Eisman. Dunn was a member of the Society of Illustrators and a past president of the National Cartoonists Society. He is survived by his wife, two sisters, daughter, two sons and four grandchildren.