Scott Adams, the cartoonist behind the office-comic strip Dilbert, died in January 2026 after a battle with prostate cancer. His death was announced by his former wife Shelly Miles on his podcast Real Coffee with Scott Adams.
At a Glance
- Scott Adams passed away days after a Jan. 1 farewell message he wrote was read on his podcast
- He was married twice – to Shelly Miles (2006-2014) and Kristina Basham (2020-2022)
- Adams became stepfather to Miles’ two children; her son died of a fentanyl overdose in 2018
- Why it matters: The cartoonist’s later years were marked by personal loss and public controversy after widespread syndication of Dilbert ended
Early Life and Rise of Dilbert
Adams created Dilbert in 1989. The strip lampooned office culture and quickly grew into a media franchise appearing in more than 1,000 newspapers across 32 countries at its peak. Spin-offs included best-selling books, calendars, and a line of Hallmark cards. Before cartooning, Adams held corporate positions that informed the strip’s cubicle humor.
Marriage to Shelly Miles
Adams met Miles at a Pleasanton, California gym. He hired her for administrative work and they wed on July 22, 2006, aboard a yacht on San Francisco Bay. During their eight-year marriage, Adams credited Miles with helping him recover from spasmodic dysphonia, a neurological disorder that had left him nearly mute until corrective surgery in 2008.
The couple divorced in 2014 yet lived a block apart and called each other “best friends,” according to a blog post Adams later deleted.
Family Tragedy: Stepson’s Overdose
Adams became stepfather to Miles’ daughter and son, Justin. He disliked the term stepdad, saying, “I’m a bonus dad.” In 2018 Justin died at 18 from a fentanyl overdose after struggling with addiction that began following a serious bike-accident head injury at age 14. Adams described the teen’s loss of impulse control after the trauma, noting, “He sort of lost his ability to make good decisions.”
Second Marriage to Kristina Basham
In 2020 Adams married Kristina Basham, a commercial airline pilot, venture capitalist, and former child model who studied economics at the University of California, Berkeley. The relationship lasted two years; Adams announced their divorce in March 2022 on his podcast, citing a “tough pandemic” without elaborating on specifics.
Controversy and End of Dilbert Syndication
Dilbert ended its 30-plus-year print run after Adams posted a YouTube rant in which he advised White people to “get the hell away from Black people,” prompting hundreds of newspapers to drop the strip. Previous remarks on race, men’s rights, the Holocaust, and COVID-19 vaccines had already drawn criticism, though some conservative figures supported his commentary.
Final Message and Illness
Adams learned he had prostate cancer in May 2025. By January 2026 he said recovery odds were “essentially zero,” reporting leg paralysis and heart failure. On Jan. 1 he wrote a farewell note intended for posthumous release. Miles read it on the Jan. 13 podcast episode, stating Adams had died “just before the show started.”
In the message he reflected on marriage, writing, “For the first part of my life, I was focused on making myself a worthy husband and parent, as I waited to find meaning. … Once the marriage unwound, I needed a new focus, a new meaning, and so I donated myself to the world.”
Legacy
Beyond Dilbert, Adams authored nonfiction bestsellers including How to Fail at Almost Everything and Still Win Big and Reframe Your Brain. His work influenced workplace satire and entrepreneurship circles even as later controversies overshadowed his cartooning achievements.
Key Takeaways
- Scott Adams died at 69 following a lengthy cancer fight, leaving behind a complex legacy of cultural influence and public backlash
- His marriages to Miles and Basham bookended a period of both personal loss and professional reinvention
- The end of Dilbert’s syndication marked a dramatic fall for one of the most widely read comic strips in U.S. newspaper history
