Charles Henry "Bill" Sykes (1882 1942) graduated from Drexel Institute in 1904. For a short time he did free lance art work and then was employed by the Philadelphia North American, the Williamsport News, and the Nashville Banner. In 1911, he returned to Philadelphia to work for the Philadelphia Public Ledger. In 1914, he became the first and only editorial cartoonist employed by the Evening Public Ledger, which ceased publication in 1942. Until he died later in that year, Sykes, who smoked four packages of cigarettes a day, received a commission to draw a series of anti-smoking advertisements. From 1922 to 1928, he was the regular editorial cartoonist for Life, producing full-page weekly editorial cartoons. In addition, during that time, Skyes inherited the weekly and annual cartoon roundup of news subjects upon the death of F. T. Richards. His most famous cartoon "Madonna and Child A. D. 1940" depicts the ugliness of war; the image shows a mother and child wearing gas masks.

Skyes created his early cartoons using the unusual patterns of coquille board for the shading effect. His later works were created with a crayon and wash technique. He was well known for his amiable style of cartooning. His cartoons were usually funny, filled with delightfully distorted figures while offering his unique perspective on the current news events.