Brian Crane's Pickles has been part of the comics pages since 1990. Soon after Pickles’ debut, Crane “retired” as an art director for an advertising agency in Reno, Nevada, to devote his full attention to his comic strip. Although he often used cartoon figures in ads he designed, Pickles is his first syndicated comic strip. In 1995 and 2001, Pickles was nominated for best comic strip of the year by the National Cartoonists Society, winning the coveted award in 2001. Today Pickles appears in more than 400 newspapers around the world. In 2004, Andrews McMeel published the latest collection of Pickles strips, “Still Pickled After All These Years." Two previous collections, “Pickles” and “Pickles, Too: The Older I Get, The Better I Was” were published in 1998 and 1999 by Longstreet Press. In the foreword to the first book, Peanuts cartoonist Charles Schulz wrote: “There are many things I like about Brian Crane's feature, Pickles. I think it would be very comforting to have Earl and Opal for neighbors. …” “Pickles,” he added, “is going to be around for a long time.” Crane was born in Twin Falls, Idaho, but grew up in the San Francisco Bay area. He graduated with a degree in art from Brigham Young University in 1973. Crane lives near Reno with his wife, Diana. He's the proud father of seven and grandfather of five.