The Charles Ardovino Collection is housed in one flat box and is organized by size of the materials.
Materials in this collection are available for use, but may be used in the Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum reading room only. Please call 614-292-6369 or email
[Identification of item], [Box number/ folder number], Charles Ardovino Collection, SPEC.CGA.CCA, Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum, Ohio State University
Wendy Pflug, January 2026.
Materials in this collection may be protected by copyright, and are made available for research and educational purposes. In general, the OSU Libraries do not own the copyright for materials from our collections and cannot grant copyright permissions for these materials. The user is responsible for making a final determination of copyright status. If copyright protection applies, permission must be obtained from the copyright holder to reuse, publish, or reproduce the work beyond the bounds of fair use or other exceptions to the law. Works in the public domain are not protected by copyright and do not require permission to use.
Eight original Nixxxies comic strips by Charles Ardovino has been separated and cataloged at the item folder in the
The Charles Ardovino Collection mostly contains original art and clippings of his comic strip "Nixxxies" from 1943 to 1947. There is a photocopied booklet of cartoons he created that ran in the "Upton Nooz," the official publication of Camp Union (New York) from 1941 to 1944. In addition, the collection contains photographs of Mr. Ardovino, biographical clippings, and an example of his work for Saks Fifth Avenue.
Charles Ardovino was born in New York in 1913 and grew up in the Bronx. He attended Parsons School of Design on a full scholarship. He took classes on their campus in Manhattan and studied at its campuses in Paris and Rome. He was a graduate of the Leonardo Da Vinci School of Sculpture (New York) and attended New York University. Mr. Ardovino served in the United States Army during World War II, where he drew cartoons that appeared in "Stars & Stripes," a daily American military newspaper. He illustrated and draw cartoons for Upton Nooz, the official publication of Camp Upton in New York. His comic strip "Nixxxies" featured three imp characters named Mercel, Mitchel, and Moe that tried to help, but mostly caused havoc for an Army private named Gus.
After his military service he worked for the department store, Saks Fifth Avenue as a muralist, painter, and fine arts designer for 40 years. He was active in the East Norwich, New York community as member of the Kiwanis, volunteer fire department, and East Norwich Beautification Committee. He continued to create art in his spare time. He retired in 1980 and moved to Bradenton, Florida. He passed away in 1994 at the age of 81.
CGA.2025.068: Patricia Ardovino, August 2025