[2] Van Straaten studied at the Gerrit Rietveld Academie in Amsterdam and started his career on 26 July 1958 for the Dutch newspaper Het Parool, where he illustrated news reports.

From 1968 to 1987 he published a daily comic strip, Vader & Zoon (Father and Son),[4] which became a huge success and inspired a television series.

His series Dagelijks Leven (Daily Life) depicts people in amusing recognizable everyday situations.

Van Straaten's cartoons have been published in Het Parool, Humo, Penthouse and Vrij Nederland.

[7][8][9] In 2006, he received the Gouden Ganzenveer, in 2009 he was appointed a Knight in the Order of the Netherlands Lion[10] and in 2010 he won the Jacobus van Looyprijs.