Educated at the Clepington Primary School and then at
Morgan Academy, both in Dundee, Kennedy was employed after leaving school by D. C. Thomson & Co. He was taken on as a trainee illustrator in their Art Department in 1949. He recalled that his first published work was
inking the black squares in the weekly
Sunday Post crossword. In 1953 having become married, Kennedy managed to get work in Amalgamated Press's
Knockout via a local agent. In 1955 he began working for D. C. Thomson again, this time as a
freelance artist. During the 1950s Kennedy mainly illustrated war comics such as
Thriller Picture Library and
Air Ace and his work appeared in a range of comics including
Hotspur,
Buster, and
The Wizard. From the 1970s onward, Kennedy began to extend his range to
science fiction comics, regularly producing work for
IPC's
2000AD and
Star Lord. He also worked for
Battle Picture Weekly,
Buddy, ''
Blake's 7,
Eagle (Dan Dare), M.A.S.K., Victor Summer Special
, Wildcat'' and D. C. Thomson's pocket books (including
Commando). Kennedy also produced many covers over the years for different comics and
annuals, working mainly in
acrylic paint. In the late 1980s and 1990s Kennedy began creating the covers for the annual
RAF Leuchars Air Show's programmes. He went into semi-retirement in 1997, but still continued to draw covers and features for
Commando until his death. A definitive career-spanning interview with Kennedy appears in the Spring 2009 edition (Vol.11, No.1) of the "
International Journal of Comic Art". Kennedy died in February 2022, at the age of 89. ==Bibliography==