The Freeman didn’t mention that Mr. Mullins was a cartoonist, or professor. Most likely, they didn’t know. (Had I known, it would have made me doubly sad.) What they did report was that a tourist, hiking with his girlfriend in the Catskills, fell at least 60 feet to his death. The accident was blamed on the fact that Mr. Mullins was hiking, near the Kaaterskill Falls, but was wearing dress shoes at the time.
I’ve been to that area in the past, and because of the steep climb, and extremely moss covered rocks and very slippery paths, dress shoes would have been a very dicey choice of footwear… and this has been a very wet spring.
As an artist, and professor, I’m sure that Mr. Mullins made many decisions on a daily basis, just as we all do… but this one decision, made at a time when he was more than likely ‘miles away’ from all cares, cost him his life… and us his talent.
So sorry, fellow inker.