Cartoonist Hector Cantu decided if the stories of Latino soldiers were going to go untold in Ken Burns' upcoming World War II documentary, he'd have "Baldo" tell them. This week, Cantu and co-creator Carlos Castellanos unveiled Benito "Benny" Ramirez in their syndicated comic strip "Baldo," which appears in 200 newspapers. Benito is a composite character based on the actual stories of several Hispanic World War II veterans. Their experiences are featured in a book by University of Texas journalism professor Maggie Rivas-Rodriguez.
"We are telling a little story about a Latino serving in World War II and there will be millions of people exposed to that," said Cantu, whose two uncles were veterans of the war. "Will we reach as many as Ken Burns? Probably not. But there will be more people out there who know about Latinos serving in the U.S. military."
In Monday's installment, Benito began his war story by removing his artificial leg. In Tuesday's, 
The Baldo strips, running through Sept. 27, are among several activities planned around the Sunday start of Burns' 15-hour series, "The War," which Hispanic groups have criticized for inadequately representing their role in the conflict. Read more.
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