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Art Spiegelman Awarded NCS Caniff Lifetime Achievement

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D. D. Degg Published: July 16, 2025 1 minute 1 comment

The National Cartoonists Society is honored to announce that Art Spiegelman will receive the Milton Caniff Lifetime Achievement Award, celebrating his extraordinary and lasting impact on the art of cartooning. Named for Terry and the Pirates creator Milton Caniff, this award is bestowed by unanimous vote of the NCS Board to recognize a lifetime of outstanding and accomplished work.

The Milton Caniff Lifetime Achievement Award “is given for a lifetime of outstanding and accomplished work to a cartoonist who has not previously won a Reuben (the one exception was the posthumous award to Charles M. Schulz, who was awarded a unique Golden Caniff for his outstanding contribution to the artform).” Spiegelman joins an elite list of recipients.

The National Cartoonist Society writes:

Spiegelman has spent a lifetime exploring comics as a powerful vehicle for art, literacy, and commentary. His work spans from the underground comix movement to mainstream media. He began drawing professionally as a teenager, contributing to Topps trading cards, most notably Wacky Packages and Garbage Pail Kids, for over two decades. He also co-founded influential anthologies like Arcade and created iconic covers for The New Yorker, including his unforgettable post-9/11 imagery. His work often reflects deeply personal narratives and incisive social insights.

In 1980, Spiegelman and his wife Françoise Mouly launched the groundbreaking magazine RAW, where his seminal work Maus first appeared in serialized form. Later published as a graphic novel, Maus became the first of its kind to win a Pulitzer Prize (1992) and remains a landmark in both comics and Holocaust literature. Its innovative visual language and courageous exploration of inherited trauma transformed how comics convey emotional and historical depth.

Beyond his own work, Spiegelman has elevated the comics medium through teaching, editing, and advocacy—helping to solidify its status as a respected literary art form. His tireless dedication and deep passion for the craft embody the spirit of the Milton Caniff Lifetime Achievement Award.

Much more on Art Spiegelman’s career. Art Spiegelman books. Art Spiegelman’s representatives.

The award presentation will be part of the annual Reuben Awards, this year on August 15, 2025, in Boston.