Walter George Ball (7 April 1911 – 18 February 1995) was a Canadian cartoonist best known for the comic‑strip feature Rural Route, which appeared in the Star Weekly from 1956 until the magazine’s closure in 1968.
Early life and education
Ball was born in Essa, Ontario, and grew up on a farm near Cookstown. Although he initially considered a career in electrical engineering, he pursued art through correspondence‑school lessons and secured a position as a graphic artist with the Toronto Daily Star in 1932.
Career
While working in the Star’s art department, Ball befriended established Canadian cartoonist Jimmy Frise. In 1956, when the Star Weekly changed format from broadsheet to tabloid, an editor asked Ball for recommendations for a new comic feature. Ball proposed several names but ultimately submitted his own strip, Rural Route, which was accepted and quickly became the publication’s most read feature. The strip was syndicated by Miller Services to other Canadian newspapers and several Midwestern United States papers.
Rural Route depicted the rustic adventures of a small‑town youth, Willie, and his relatives Uncle Elmer and Aunt Myrtle, drawing heavily on Ball’s own farm experiences. Together with Frise and fellow cartoonist Doug Wright, Ball is regarded as a co‑creator of a distinct Canadian comic‑strip style characterized by detailed artwork and simple, folksy humour.
After the Star Weekly ceased publication in 1968, Ball remained at the Toronto Daily Star, advancing to art director in 1970. He retired from the newspaper in 1976 and lived with his wife in Richmond Hill, Ontario, until his death in 1995.