Don Kracke was born outside Chicago, Illinois in 1931 where he lived before moving to Los Angeles where he went on to study design at UCLA through the Air Force's ROTC program. After graduating, Kracke got married and moved to Florida where he completed his military service where he continued his creative pursuits whether he was directing training films or painting murals in the Orlando Air Force Base Officers' Club.

From there, Don made his name iconoclastic artist, crafting paintings, sculptures, line drawings, photographs, and cartoons in a dizzying range of styles, all with tongue firmly in cheek. He co-created the nationally-syndicated comic strip Yankee Doodles; ran a successful advertising agency; wrote multiple bestselling books on entrepreneurship; lectured at his alma mater, UCLA; invented Rickie Tickie Stickies, the flower stickers that defined the '60s and '70; regaled audiences on Oprah, Nightline, The Merv Griffin Show, and others.

Kracke was prolific and never stopped looking for the next big project. Sadly, he passed away in 2017.