Ziggy Creator Tom Wilson Left His Mark in Strongsville

Tom Wilson, creator of the Ziggy comic, lived most of his life in Cleveland's suburbs -- and left his mark on Strongsville.

His death yesterday at 80 led to questions about how and why Ziggy came to watch over the city from the water tower.

The website waymarking.com offers an explanation:

Back in the 1970s, Ziggy was a secondary mascot at . One night, a group of students jumped the fence and scaled the ladder to write "Ziggy 75" on the water tower.

When Wilson heard about it, he offered to do the teens one better. The fire department lifted the artist up to the tower, where he hand-painted his cartoon character next to Strongsville's official mascot, the mustang.

Resident John Motley, who said he was curious about why Ziggy was on the water tower, looked up the story and relayed it to City Council Monday night.

"The value of the water tower just quadrupled," Motley jokingly said.