Gary Larson is an American cartoonist born on August 14, 1950, in Tacoma, Washington. He is widely known for creating The Far Side, a single-panel cartoon series that was syndicated internationally in over 1,900 newspapers for fifteen years, ending on January 1, 1995. Since 2020, Larson has occasionally published new comics online.

Larson was raised in Tacoma, where his father Vern worked as a car salesman and his mother Doris was a secretary. He graduated from Washington State University in 1972 with a degree in communications. In 1987, he married Toni Carmichael, an archaeologist.

His unique and sometimes 'paranoid' sense of humor was influenced by his older brother Dan, who often played pranks on him. Dan also nurtured Gary's interest in science, as they spent their childhood capturing local wildlife and creating terrariums.

Larson's work, particularly The Far Side, has sold over forty-five million copies in the form of twenty-three books of collected cartoons. His official website, TheFarSide.com, provides a platform for his classic and new cartoons, offering a deep dive into his offbeat humor with exclusive content.