John Marshall is an American cartoonist, best known as the artist of the Blondie comic strip since 2005. He works closely with scripter Dean Young, son of the strip's creator, Chic Young. Born in Waverly, New York, John Marshall took an interest in cartooning at an early age. He was bored during the summer between the fourth and fifth grades and began drawing Peanuts characters on brown paper bags. When he was 14, his career as a cartoonist was jump-started by his grandmother who urged him to send cartoons to Parade. On his first try, Parade bought one. Marshall recalled, "It's tough peaking in the tenth grade." This was followed by a sale to The Saturday Evening Post.