Minnesota’s Link To Garfield, Which Went National On This Day In 1978

On this day, June 19th, in 1978, a comic strip featuring an obese, orange cat that hates Mondays (but loves lasagna) was syndicated in newspapers across the country for the first time.

Since then, Jim Davis' "Garfield" comic strip has run well over 10,000 times around the world. In 2013, the strip was recognized by the Guiness Book of World Records as being the world's most widely syndicated comic strip- over 2,580 outlets ran 'Garfield' during that year.

Although the cartoonist's home town of Muncie, Indiana, is the setting for the comic strip, the 'Garfield' franchise has a pretty cool tie to the state of Minnesota.

In addition to the comic strip, Davis has published several compilation books featuring Garfield and there have been three movie made (including a pair with Bill Murray voicing the titular character in 2004 and 2006).

However, Minnesota's link to Garfield happens via the television series Garfield and Friends, which aired from 1988 to 1994.

As it turns out, the voice of Garfield in that iconic (ok, for kids of the 90s anyway) animated series was a man named Lorenzo Music. While music was born in Brooklyn, New York, he moved to Duluth, Minnesota at the age of six.

After attending Central High School, Music attended the University of Minnesota-Duluth. After meeting his future wife at the school's Theater Department, the pair teamed up to make a comedy duo.

*Check out an awesome history of their time at UMD >HERE<

Music wrote for TV shows like The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour and Rhoda and also co-created the Bob Newhart Show. Producers for Rhoda were the first to utilize his deadpan, tired voice in an 'unseen' role as doorman.

In the early 80's, Davis and a group of television producers were looking for the perfect voice for a Garfield animated special. After auditioning a ton of people, including Winnie The Pooh voice actor Sterling Holloway, Music was hired after one audition.

He would voice the character for nearly 20 years, including over 100 episodes of Garfield and Friends.

Jim Davis via WIKIPEDIA: 

 "I looked at the room full of [voice] actors, and then in the corner I saw Lorenzo, quietly licking himself".

Music's other voice-acting credits included Pac-Man, Adventures of the Gummi Bears, Ghostbusters and Pound Puppies. Music passed away at age 64 in 2001.