Bill Watterson: Ohio's own J.D. Salinger

Remember Calvin & Hobbes? A lot of people must, as the Calvin & Hobbes collections (the only officially licensed merchandize you can still buy - sorry Ford/Chevy truck decals) are consistently somewhere on the New York Times best-seller list.

The man behind Calvin & Hobbes is Bill Watterson who, as his comic unequivicolly proves, is a genius. Who else could single-handedly write and draw a comic so original, beautiful, thought provoking, and oh yeah, funny? No one. Duh, that's why he's a genius.

Not only that, no one else in popular culture history has been able to play the game, break all the rules, and quit at the height of their fame all while flat out refusing to sell out (the only possible exception being The KLF). While Peanuts characters hawk everything from life insurance to amusement parks, and Garfield can be found everywhere from stuffed dolls to boxer shorts, Watterson's characters can only be found in one place: his comics.

On top of all these wonderful things, Bill Waterson is also apparently a lifetime Ohioan. He grew up and still lives in Chagrin Falls, a suburb of Cleveland, and even attended Kenyon College. Who knew? He's also reclusive, so if you Chagrin Falls people run into him, don't say anything. Just smile and remember how awesome he is (and Ohio by association).