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Family Circus Inspiration Thelma Keane Dies at 82
Family Circus depicts the comic life of two parents and their four children. Bil says the Mommy character was inspired by Thelma. “She was the inspiration for all my success. When the cartoon first appeared, she looked so much like Mommy that if she was in the supermarket pushing her cart around, people would come up to her and say, ‘Aren’t you the Mommy in ‘Family Circus?’ and she would admit it,” Bil, 85, tells the Associated Press.
Keane worked as her husband’s business and financial manager. She was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s five years ago.
“We all had a time to say goodbye in the end. I just think she’s in a better place, and she’s not dealing with that fog and confusion that Alzheimer’s brings into your life,” says her daughter Gayle Keane.
Keane is survived by her husband, 5 children and 9 grandchildren.
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