Scott Adams, the sharp-witted creator of the iconic comic strip Dilbert, died Tuesday at the age of 68 after a hard-fought battle with metastatic prostate cancer. His death was announced by his ex-wife, Shelly Miles, during a livestream of his YouTube show, "Real Coffee with Scott Adams," a platform where he had connected with fans almost daily until his final days. The announcement marked the end of an era for a cartoonist who both entertained and provoked audiences for more than three decades.
“He’s not with us anymore,” Miles told viewers, her voice heavy with emotion. She read a final message from Adams, penned on New Year’s Day, in which he reflected on his life and legacy. “I had an amazing life. I gave it everything I had,” Adams wrote. “If you got any benefits from my work, I’m asking that you pay it forward as best you can. That’s the legacy I want. Be useful, and please know I loved you all till the very end.”
Adams’ journey from a small town in New York to worldwide fame was as unconventional as the office antics he lampooned. Born Scott Raymond Adams on June 8, 1957, in Windham, New York, to a postal clerk father and real estate agent mother, he began drawing cartoons at age six. He graduated as valedictorian of Windham-Ashland-Jewett Central School, earned a bachelor’s degree in economics from Hartwick College, and later completed an MBA at the University of California, Berkeley. After stints at Crocker National Bank and Pacific Bell—jobs that would inspire much of Dilbert’s material—he launched his comic strip in 1989.
Dilbert quickly became a cultural touchstone, poking fun at the absurdities of white-collar work. At its peak, the strip appeared in more than 2,000 newspapers across 65 countries and was translated into 19 languages. The series’ popularity led to bestselling books, merchandise, and even a short-lived animated TV show. In 1997, Adams received the National Cartoonists Society’s Reuben Award, and Dilbert was named to Time magazine’s list of most influential Americans—the only fictional character to earn that distinction that year.
But Adams’ career was not without controversy. In February 2023, he made remarks during a livestream that were widely condemned as racist. Responding to a poll about attitudes toward the phrase “It’s OK to be white,” Adams described Black people as a “hate group” and urged white people to “get away” from them. “If nearly half of all Blacks are not OK with white people ... that’s a hate group. And I don’t want anything to do with them,” he stated, according to FOX News. Within days, scores of newspapers—including the Los Angeles Times and the USA Today network—and his syndicator, Andrews McMeel Universal, severed ties with him. Penguin Random House canceled his upcoming book and removed his back catalog.
Adams defended himself on his YouTube channel, arguing that his statements had been taken out of context and that he was using hyperbole to make a point about societal divisions. “The trick is just to use my quote and to ignore the context which I helpfully added afterwards,” he said. He insisted his main points were to “treat all individuals as individuals, no discrimination” and to “avoid anything that statistically looks like a bad idea for you personally.” Despite the backlash, Adams continued producing content, self-publishing his book Reframe Your Brain in August 2023 and maintaining a loyal following online.
In addition to his comics, Adams authored several business and self-help books, including How to Fail at Almost Everything and Still Win Big and Win Bigly. He prided himself on offering practical advice and insight into personal effectiveness, often blending humor with real-world observations. “I know the book [‘Win Bigly’] changed lives because I hear it often,” he wrote in his final message. “You’d probably never know the impact the book had on the world, but I know, and it pleases me while giving me a sense of meaning that is impossible to describe.”
Adams’ personal life, much like his professional one, was marked by both achievement and hardship. He married Shelly Miles in 2006, and though the marriage ended in 2014, the two remained close. Adams suffered the loss of his stepson, Justin, in 2018, a tragedy he shared candidly with his audience. He also spoke openly about his shifting political views, describing himself at various times as a libertarian, a liberal “left of Bernie” Sanders, and later as a supporter of President Donald Trump, whom he considered a master persuader. “I don’t vote and I am not a member of a political party. I try to avoid identifying with any political label because doing so would make me biased and less credible,” Adams once said, as reported by The Los Angeles Times.
Adams was diagnosed with aggressive prostate cancer in May 2025, around the same time President Joe Biden disclosed a similar diagnosis. “Some of you have already guessed, so this won’t surprise you at all, but I have the same cancer Joe Biden has,” Adams revealed on his livestream. By early 2026, his condition had deteriorated. “I talked to my radiologist yesterday, and it’s all bad news — the odds of me recovering are essentially zero,” he told listeners in January. He described being paralyzed from the waist down, suffering from constant pain, and facing ongoing heart failure. “However, you should prepare yourself that January will probably be a month of transition, one way or another.”
In November 2025, Adams made a public plea to President Trump for help accessing the drug Pluvicto, which had been approved by the FDA but was delayed by his healthcare provider. Trump responded, “On it!” in a social media post, and after Adams’ death, he called Adams a “fantastic guy” who “bravely fought a long battle against a terrible disease.” Vice President JD Vance also weighed in, describing Adams as “a true American original, and a great ally to the President of the United States and the entire administration.”
Despite his fall from mainstream favor, Adams’ influence on popular culture and office humor remains undeniable. His weekday livestreams, which began in 2018 with a “Simultaneous Sip” of coffee, attracted thousands of viewers and provided a sense of community for many. “I didn’t plan it this way, but it ended up helping lots of lonely people find a community that made them less lonely,” Adams wrote. “Again, that had great meaning to me.”
As the world reflects on Scott Adams’ complex legacy, his words in his final message echo: “If you got any benefits from my work, I’m asking that you pay it forward as best you can. That’s the legacy I want.” For fans and critics alike, the story of Scott Adams is a reminder of the power—and perils—of speaking one’s mind in public life.
