Wednesday, October 31, 2007
Boo!
Still under the weather here are Stripper Central, but couldn't let Halloween pass without a post that's been waiting in the wings for some time. Cole Johnson sent me this nightmare-inducing photo of a trio of axe-murderers ... er ... cute comic strip characters:
The promotional photo was taken when the Boston Herald succeeded in stealing three strips (BC, Dennis the Menace and Andy Capp obviously) from the Boston Globe.
I find the Dennis character particularly disturbing. The demon-spawn of Chucky and Freddy Krueger?
The promotional photo was taken when the Boston Herald succeeded in stealing three strips (BC, Dennis the Menace and Andy Capp obviously) from the Boston Globe.
I find the Dennis character particularly disturbing. The demon-spawn of Chucky and Freddy Krueger?
Comments:
Yowza! That is one creepy Dennis costume! (Tho BC and Andy look pretty good) I think Dennis ranks right up there with the original Flintstones Theme Park costumes and the Archie character costumes as one of the most disturbing looking comic strip cosplays ever.
Hope you're feeling better.
Post a Comment
Hope you're feeling better.
# posted by 
: 11/04/2007 2:31 PM
: 11/04/2007 2:31 PM Monday, October 29, 2007
Laughter May Not Be Best Medicine
Been laid low by some sort of stomach virus since Friday. Managed the Saturday post but otherwise too weak to do SG posts. Back once this damn thing subsides.
Comments:
I wish to recover from your disease soon ... and not only in order that you could continue with the posts!!!
Saludos from Spain
Alejandro
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Saludos from Spain
Alejandro
# posted by : 10/30/2007 7:17 AM
: 10/30/2007 7:17 AM Saturday, October 27, 2007
Herriman Saturday
Here are Herriman's cartoons for October 29 through November 1. Of special interest are the last three, which form sort of a three day triptych, all variations on the same scene. You might also notice a slight change in tone -- earlier cartoons gave the impression that there was no doubt that this pack of bums (and the more I read about them, they certainly were) would be history after the election. Now the tone is almost mournful as the Examiner began to realize that the Independence League candidate, Langston, was not garnering the level of support needed to win the governorship, and that either Bell or Gillett, both in the pocket of the Southern Pacific, were the more likely winners.
Labels: Herriman's LA Examiner Cartoons
Comments:
those last three are much more interesting than anything that was happening in the comics sections at the time. Herriman has got such a momentum going here that the characters establish their own life on the page all these years later, independently of the real persons they're caricaturing.
keep 'em coming!
Post a Comment
keep 'em coming!
Thursday, October 25, 2007
News of Yore: Louie's Harry Hanan Profiled
"Louie" Thrives at 5; So Does His Creator
By Erwin Knoll (E&P, 5/15/52)
George McManus, who looks like a walking edition of his hero, Jiggs, claims that all cartoonists tend to resemble their creations, and vice versa. Harry Hanan and "Louie" are a case in point.
Though the bespectacled cartoonist bears little physical resemblance to his bemoustached pantomime hero, Mr. Hanan and "Louie" are definitely soulmates. Their philosophies, economic status -and weight-keep pace with each other.
When "Louie" made his bow in U. S. papers five years ago this week, he was a slight young man who eked out a precarious livelihood as a burglar, panhandler or pickpocket. His creator was a staff artist on the The People in austere post-war England, whose income was equally precarious, if slightly more legitimate. Since that time things have been looking up for Harry Hanan and, consequently, they've been looking up for "Louie" too. The cartoonist and his family are settled in a model suburban home in Westfield, N. J. (they came to the U. S. in November, 1948) and, equipped with a car, a television set, etc., lead model suburban lives. Mr. Hanan has gained 12 pounds.
In that time "Louie" has abandoned his life of crime, though he still cuts corners from time to time. Readers of the daily and Sunday strips now usually find their hero in the role of henpecked family man, ignored restaurant patron or cheated customer. And, though exact figures are not available, he seems to have gained at least 12 pounds.
Mr. Hanan, once described as a "solemn, helpless-looking" man, shares these qualities with "Louie." Yet both manage to wreak occasional revenge, real or fancied, on a hostile, confusing world. Mr. Hanan admits to a long-standing ambition to snip the feathers off women's hats. The 35-year old cartoonist went to art school in his native Liverpool, and got his first job doing layouts and illustrated articles for the Liverpool Evening Express at $16 a week. Occasionally he received a $2 bonus for doing a daily cartoon.
After six years of Army service in World War II, Mr. Hanan joined the staff of The People, London's four million circulation weekly, as editorial cartoonist. He started "Louie" because he found that drawing one weekly editorial cartoon didn't quite take up all his time. It was in The People that H. R. Wishengrad, head of Press Features, saw "Louie" and decided to syndicate it in the U. S. The strip defied two old taboos of the syndicate business: against pantomime strips and against British imports. "Louie" caught on, and both taboos have since been scrapped.
Today Mr. Hanan's strip appears in almost 100 U. S. papers, and in more than 100 publications abroad. Some newspapers use it on their editorial pages-a unique distinction for a comic strip. "Louie" has rated high in readership surveys in Oakland, Calif., New York City, and Stockholm, Sweden, among others.
"Even when we're settled, 'Louie' and I tend to be shiftless," Mr. Hanan says. "People seem to like that."
By Erwin Knoll (E&P, 5/15/52)
George McManus, who looks like a walking edition of his hero, Jiggs, claims that all cartoonists tend to resemble their creations, and vice versa. Harry Hanan and "Louie" are a case in point.
Though the bespectacled cartoonist bears little physical resemblance to his bemoustached pantomime hero, Mr. Hanan and "Louie" are definitely soulmates. Their philosophies, economic status -and weight-keep pace with each other.
When "Louie" made his bow in U. S. papers five years ago this week, he was a slight young man who eked out a precarious livelihood as a burglar, panhandler or pickpocket. His creator was a staff artist on the The People in austere post-war England, whose income was equally precarious, if slightly more legitimate. Since that time things have been looking up for Harry Hanan and, consequently, they've been looking up for "Louie" too. The cartoonist and his family are settled in a model suburban home in Westfield, N. J. (they came to the U. S. in November, 1948) and, equipped with a car, a television set, etc., lead model suburban lives. Mr. Hanan has gained 12 pounds.
In that time "Louie" has abandoned his life of crime, though he still cuts corners from time to time. Readers of the daily and Sunday strips now usually find their hero in the role of henpecked family man, ignored restaurant patron or cheated customer. And, though exact figures are not available, he seems to have gained at least 12 pounds.
Mr. Hanan, once described as a "solemn, helpless-looking" man, shares these qualities with "Louie." Yet both manage to wreak occasional revenge, real or fancied, on a hostile, confusing world. Mr. Hanan admits to a long-standing ambition to snip the feathers off women's hats. The 35-year old cartoonist went to art school in his native Liverpool, and got his first job doing layouts and illustrated articles for the Liverpool Evening Express at $16 a week. Occasionally he received a $2 bonus for doing a daily cartoon.
After six years of Army service in World War II, Mr. Hanan joined the staff of The People, London's four million circulation weekly, as editorial cartoonist. He started "Louie" because he found that drawing one weekly editorial cartoon didn't quite take up all his time. It was in The People that H. R. Wishengrad, head of Press Features, saw "Louie" and decided to syndicate it in the U. S. The strip defied two old taboos of the syndicate business: against pantomime strips and against British imports. "Louie" caught on, and both taboos have since been scrapped.
Today Mr. Hanan's strip appears in almost 100 U. S. papers, and in more than 100 publications abroad. Some newspapers use it on their editorial pages-a unique distinction for a comic strip. "Louie" has rated high in readership surveys in Oakland, Calif., New York City, and Stockholm, Sweden, among others.
"Even when we're settled, 'Louie' and I tend to be shiftless," Mr. Hanan says. "People seem to like that."
Labels: News of Yore
Comments:
Hi Allan,
I have a question. What is the purpose of the long standing American tradition of including an editorial cartoon in almost every daily newspaper across the United States?
I have a question. What is the purpose of the long standing American tradition of including an editorial cartoon in almost every daily newspaper across the United States?
Hi Hilton -
Hmm. Sorta sounds like a homework assignment.
Well, ok, let's throw Miss Grundy a curveball.
Rather than blather on about the innate power of the editorial cartoon, or citing the master, Nast, and how his toons succeeded in bringing down a government, let's keep it real. About 2% of the population reads newspaper editorials, but more like 98% will look at the editorial cartoon. Newspaper editors hate to admit it, but the best way to get across a viewpoint on a news story is with the editorial cartoon, not with some long-winded blather from the editor. Ipso facto ergo sum the editorial cartoon is the unacknowledged king of the op-ed page. Howzat?
--Allan
Hmm. Sorta sounds like a homework assignment.
Well, ok, let's throw Miss Grundy a curveball.
Rather than blather on about the innate power of the editorial cartoon, or citing the master, Nast, and how his toons succeeded in bringing down a government, let's keep it real. About 2% of the population reads newspaper editorials, but more like 98% will look at the editorial cartoon. Newspaper editors hate to admit it, but the best way to get across a viewpoint on a news story is with the editorial cartoon, not with some long-winded blather from the editor. Ipso facto ergo sum the editorial cartoon is the unacknowledged king of the op-ed page. Howzat?
--Allan
Alan:
Louie was a classic comic strip.
Any possibilty that a book could
be put together showing all the
strips that appeared in the New
York Daily News for many a year?
I would think it would sell well.
Pat Cosgrove
Louie was a classic comic strip.
Any possibilty that a book could
be put together showing all the
strips that appeared in the New
York Daily News for many a year?
I would think it would sell well.
Pat Cosgrove
# posted by : 7/18/2008 10:38 AM
: 7/18/2008 10:38 AM
Hi Pat -
Louie was a nice strip but never all that popular. I think such a reprint project would fall into the 'labor of love' category. Perhaps you should consider taking a whack at it.
--Allan
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Louie was a nice strip but never all that popular. I think such a reprint project would fall into the 'labor of love' category. Perhaps you should consider taking a whack at it.
--Allan
Wednesday, October 24, 2007
More T.S. Sullivant Editorial Cartoons
Comments:
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Tuesday, October 23, 2007
T.S. Sullivant Editorial Cartoons
Couple of months ago (okay, more like four) it came up in conversation with R.C. Harvey that he'd not had the pleasure of seeing T.S. Sullivant's editorial cartooning, and I promised to dig some up for his edification. Better late than never, here's a small sampling.Sullivant, well known for his delightful animal caricatures, isn't remembered for his editorial work for Hearst, probably because he was sort of a flop in that role. The drawings, of course, are top-notch, but Sullivant apparently wasn't much interested in politics as most of them are on the tepid side.
So here, for Harv and anyone else who appreciates the mastery of Sullivant, are a few samples of his editorial cartoons from late 1907.
Monday, October 22, 2007
Obscurity of the Day: Spokania
Here's a local strip from the Spokane Spokesman-Review that ran daily from March 16 until at least July 18 1981. Spokania commented on Spokane politics in the guise of a fairy tale. Sort of a local version of Pogo, you could say. I know nothing of the creator, R.E. Wells, other than that he or she did a fine job.
Searching for local strips is like looking for needles in haystacks, and finds such as this are always a delight to me. If you have information and samples of local strips I'd love to hear from you.
Labels: Obscurities
Comments:
Local strips...hmm...
When I stayed in Pennsylvania last Spring, the local paper, Tribune-Democrat (Johnstown, PA), was running a comic panel called "Bol's Eye" by Shaun Boland in the Editorial section.
I looked around and it's apparently a weekly comic panel that the creator self-syndicates to over 27 publications, most of them in Pennsylvania.
I still have the Tribune-Democrat paper with one of the comics. Do you want a scan?
When I stayed in Pennsylvania last Spring, the local paper, Tribune-Democrat (Johnstown, PA), was running a comic panel called "Bol's Eye" by Shaun Boland in the Editorial section.
I looked around and it's apparently a weekly comic panel that the creator self-syndicates to over 27 publications, most of them in Pennsylvania.
I still have the Tribune-Democrat paper with one of the comics. Do you want a scan?
Thanks Charles, with the title I was able to find the creator's website:
http://www.bolandcreations.com/
He's got a pretty decent little list of papers!
http://www.bolandcreations.com/
He's got a pretty decent little list of papers!
Me again ... here's some trivia probably interesting only to me. "Bol's Eye" just became the 6,666th feature to get a listing in the Stripper's Guide index.
--Allan
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--Allan
Sunday, October 21, 2007
Jim Ivey's Sunday Comics
Order Jim Ivey's new book Cartoons I Liked at Lulu.com or order direct from Ivey and get the book autographed with a free original sketch.
Labels: Jim Ivey's Sunday Comics
Saturday, October 20, 2007
Herriman Saturday
Four cartoons in just two days for Herriman on the 27th and 28th of October 1906. The tar-and-feather political cartoon campaign continues, plus a cartoon about America's new fascination with the automobile.Labels: Herriman's LA Examiner Cartoons
Friday, October 19, 2007
News of Yore: Walt Scott Profiled
NEA Service's Walt Scott - Triple Threat Cartoonist
By Erwin Knoll (E&P, 1952)
You never know just what kind of drawing is liable to come out of a small studio overlooking Lake Erie at NEA Service's comic art headquarters in Cleveland. It might be an editorial cartoon, or a story strip illustrating an event in American history or a biblical anecdote, or an illustration for a fiction piece, or a Sunday page for the new "Little People" comic feature. The versatile cartoonist who turns out all this, and more, is Walt Scott, a triple-threat man at the drawing board if ever one there was.
Biggest of these projects now is "The Little People" and its companion strip, "Huckleberry Hollow," launched by NEA Service last spring and now appearing in almost 200 newspapers. Many more will use "The Little People's Christmas," a special series of 21 strips using characters of the Sunday feature but with a plot all its own, for release Dec. 1 to 24. And NEA expects new clients for the regular Sunday page when a new sequence starts Dec. 28.
Though the strip is new, the "Little People" have been with Walt Scott for many years. The pixie-like creatures and their imaginative "Valley of the Small Ones" began to turn up in Scott's landscapes and water colors soon after his Army service in World War I. (He had previously worked in the back shop of a small newspaper plant, attended the Cleveland School of Art and worked for an advertising agency.)
In the early twenties, after a short stint in the advertising art department of the Cleveland Press, Scott joined the Cleveland Plain Dealer and here the "Little People" first found their way into print. They were called "The Doonks" then, and made a Sunday children's feature.
The small-fry stuff was temporarily abandoned when Scott joined NEA as magazine art director in 1935. But he kept his hand in by taking three years off to join Walt Disney's Hollywood studios, where he worked on "Bambi," "Pinnochio," "Fantasia" and "Dumbo."
Scott made his name for versatility when he rejoined NEA about ten years ago. He "specialized" in fiction drawings, special feature work and comics, pinch-hit for the regular NEA editorial cartoonists and originated the story strips which the service has been distributing for special holidays in the past year or two. Revival of the "Little People" characters he launched 30 years ago has rounded out his career.
Tall, mustached, gray-haired and fiftyish, Scott likes to spend his non-drawing hours—yes, he does get away from the board once in awhile—hunting and fishing or entertaining his four grandchildren with tales of the "Little People." Occasionally he takes a busman's holiday at water color paintings, many of which have been displayed at the Cleveland Museum of Art.
Labels: News of Yore
Comments:
Walt Scott ilustró varias planchas de Captain Easy en los años ´40. Su trabajo no era especialmente craneano.Sin embargo la belleza de su estilo asomaba en las viñetas, de figuras alargadas. Leí sus tiras en la Argentina. Las publicó la revisra Espinaca, y también Pif Paf.Hoy resido en Catalunya.
Soy coautor de "Mark Kane. Detective en Hollywood" (dailies & six comic adventures, published By Cimoc, andi Italy Publishers) junto al dibujante Oswal. Discípulo de Crane e Eisner.
Un saludo por este extraordinario Blog.
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Soy coautor de "Mark Kane. Detective en Hollywood" (dailies & six comic adventures, published By Cimoc, andi Italy Publishers) junto al dibujante Oswal. Discípulo de Crane e Eisner.
Un saludo por este extraordinario Blog.
Thursday, October 18, 2007
Obscurity of the Day: Sunbonnet Sue
This post had to sit in the hopper for awhile as Blogger was having one of its brain freezes yesterday.
Sunbonnet Sue is another Christian Science Monitor feature that I had no sample for at the time of submitting the Hogan's Alley article. This little one-column panel ran January 13 1936 through December 17 1940. Usually credited simply to "Don" or not at all, the art was by Don Dero and written by someone with the initials L.M.
Sue is sort of Flapper Fanny with a Victorian, high-button sensitivity. The title seems a bit derivative of Bertha Corbett's Sunbonnet Babies but other than the shared millinery there's no particular resemblance.
Labels: Obscurities
Tuesday, October 16, 2007
Obscurity of the Day: The Magic Pencil
Before we leave the subject of the Christian Science Monitor, I've got a few samples to show that I hadn't found in time for the article in Hogan's Alley. Here's The Magic Pencil by Dwight Sturges. Sturges is better known for his editorial cartooning, but he also produced this delightful but short-lived strip for the Monitor from November 25 1935 to February 17 1936. The second example above is the final strip in the series.
Labels: Obscurities
Monday, October 15, 2007
The Adventures of Waddles: Week 8
This brings us to the end of part one of the Waddles adventure. But what amazing invention has Jack cooked up? And how will Betty Baldpate get the money she needs to restore the mansion? And how the heck does a trip to another planet figure in to all this? To find out, read the rest of the story over at the Hogan's Alley website -- click here!!!!Labels: Adventures of Waddles
Sunday, October 14, 2007
Jim Ivey's Sunday Comics
Order Jim Ivey's new book Cartoons I Liked at Lulu.com or order direct from Ivey and get the book autographed with a free original sketch.
Labels: Jim Ivey's Sunday Comics
Saturday, October 13, 2007
Herriman Saturday
Another Herriman Saturday, and our man Garge is still busy skewering the Southern Pacific's alleged minions as elections loom near. Note the dog Zoo Zoo in the second cartoon - this little fella will eventually star in a continuing feature. I wish I understood the significance of the pup's name. Stay tooned!These cartoons ran on October 23-25 1906.
Labels: Herriman's LA Examiner Cartoons
Friday, October 12, 2007
The Adventures of Waddles: Week 7
Thursday, October 11, 2007
The Adventures of Waddles: Week 6
Wednesday, October 10, 2007
The Adventures of Waddles: Week 5
Tuesday, October 09, 2007
The Adventures of Waddles: Week 4
Monday, October 08, 2007
The Adventures of Waddles: Week 3
Comments:
Hi Allen,
Like your site. Do you happen to have any images of the Yogi Bear daily strip/panel? I have lots of Sundays but have yet to find any dailies. Great Herriman posts! Thanks.
Gary
Like your site. Do you happen to have any images of the Yogi Bear daily strip/panel? I have lots of Sundays but have yet to find any dailies. Great Herriman posts! Thanks.
Gary
Never seen it if there was. A listing showed up in E&P for a daily panel in 1963, but seems to have been a misprint since in that year the Sunday was not listed. Fairly common occurrence in the E&P listings.
--Allan
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--Allan
Sunday, October 07, 2007
Jim Ivey's Sunday Comics
Order Jim Ivey's new book Cartoons I Liked at Lulu.com or order direct from Ivey and get the book autographed with a free original sketch.
Labels: Jim Ivey's Sunday Comics
Comments:
This is just to let Mr. Ivey know that his comic strip is one of my favorite Sunday comic strips,
and to thank Allan for bringing it to us every week.
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and to thank Allan for bringing it to us every week.
# posted by : 10/07/2007 8:40 PM
: 10/07/2007 8:40 PM Saturday, October 06, 2007
Herriman Saturday
Taking a break from Waddles for the weekend; he'll be back on Monday. Today's budget of Herriman starts out with some xenophobia, a fairly typical California editorial cartoon for the day reacting to the influx of Asian labor. Next up, one of Herriman's few editorial cartoon contributions on national news items reacts to another verdict against Rockefeller's Standard Oil monopoly. Third we have the Examiner casting its net wide to accuse both Democrats and Republicans of being at the beck and call of the Southern Pacific.Finally we have a cartoon commemorating America's third straight loss in the Long Island Vanderbilt Cup automobile race. The race was conceived to encourage American auto makers to get into auto racing, a new sport taking Europe by storm. After three straight losses, though, all to French cars, not to mention a spectator being killed at the 1906 race, the concept was shelved for a year. The cup race resumed in 1908 with an American succeeded in winning the race for the first time.
The top cartoon appeared on October 19, the second two on the 20th, and the bottom cartoon on the 21st. A Herriman editorial cartoon published on October 18 had to be omitted because the photocopy was beyond redemption.
Labels: Herriman's LA Examiner Cartoons
Comments:
Allan: Very interesting to see the Vanderbilt Cup cartoon. The 1908 winner was Harry Grant, who drove an ALCO (American Locomotive Company) car at an average speed of over 63 mph. Just the other day, I posted something about on my blog:
http://cablecarguy.blogspot.com/2007/10/lewis-strang-at-wheel-of-fiat-car.html
Regards,
Joe Thompson ;0)
http://cablecarguy.blogspot.com/2007/10/lewis-strang-at-wheel-of-fiat-car.html
Regards,
Joe Thompson ;0)
Hello, Allan---The top cartoon of the overwhelmed American worker could be run legitimately today----if you put sombreros on the engulfing hoard.----Cole Johnson.
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# posted by : 10/07/2007 10:20 AM
: 10/07/2007 10:20 AM Friday, October 05, 2007
The Adventures of Waddles: Week 2
Thursday, October 04, 2007
The Adventures of Waddles: Week 1
Today we begin a reprint series of a strip I bet not one in a dozen of you has ever seen before.
The new issue of Hogan's Alley, which should be on your newsstand in the next few weeks, features an article by yours truly about the comics of the Christian Science Monitor. This article is the first in a projected series on features in off-the-beaten-path newspapers. I'll let you read the article to learn all the details, but in it I describe the surprisingly long and interesting history of the comic strips that ran in that paper.
Among my favorites from the Monitor is The Adventures of Waddles. The strip, starring Waddles the duck, started out as a cute little kiddie strip written all in rhyme back in the 1920s. By the 40s, though, the strip began to feature seriocomic adventures that I think might remind you of a certain other cartoon duck as penned by Carl Barks. While the storylines in Waddles may not quite stand in comparison to the classic Barks stories, I think you'll agree that they have a wonderful charm all their own.
I'll be adding the strips to the blog at about a week's worth each day, and once we get through to the end of my part one I'll tell you where you can go to read the exciting second half of this long story (now you probably know darn well where the rest of the story is, but don't peek until you've read the first half!).
We pick up the story today on June 1 1949. Because Waddles' stories tended to blend together, I've had to pick up with the story already somewhat in progress, so read the following before you proceed:
Our Story Thus Far
A mysterious person claiming to be "Battling Bill" Baldpate has come to town to claim the old abandoned Baldpate mansion. The mansion, though, is also coveted by local bigwigs Blacksoil and Topsoil MacLoon. Battling Bill comes armed with a paper proving ownership, but loses the proof in a gust of wind while showing the claim to Waddles and his pal Ted. "Battling Bill" goes on a crying jag when this happens, leading the boys to wonder about the mysterious stranger's real identity. Meanwhile the MacLoons, aided by their stooge, Shorty, cook up a scheme to get the property for themselves.
The new issue of Hogan's Alley, which should be on your newsstand in the next few weeks, features an article by yours truly about the comics of the Christian Science Monitor. This article is the first in a projected series on features in off-the-beaten-path newspapers. I'll let you read the article to learn all the details, but in it I describe the surprisingly long and interesting history of the comic strips that ran in that paper.
Among my favorites from the Monitor is The Adventures of Waddles. The strip, starring Waddles the duck, started out as a cute little kiddie strip written all in rhyme back in the 1920s. By the 40s, though, the strip began to feature seriocomic adventures that I think might remind you of a certain other cartoon duck as penned by Carl Barks. While the storylines in Waddles may not quite stand in comparison to the classic Barks stories, I think you'll agree that they have a wonderful charm all their own.
I'll be adding the strips to the blog at about a week's worth each day, and once we get through to the end of my part one I'll tell you where you can go to read the exciting second half of this long story (now you probably know darn well where the rest of the story is, but don't peek until you've read the first half!).
We pick up the story today on June 1 1949. Because Waddles' stories tended to blend together, I've had to pick up with the story already somewhat in progress, so read the following before you proceed:
Our Story Thus Far
A mysterious person claiming to be "Battling Bill" Baldpate has come to town to claim the old abandoned Baldpate mansion. The mansion, though, is also coveted by local bigwigs Blacksoil and Topsoil MacLoon. Battling Bill comes armed with a paper proving ownership, but loses the proof in a gust of wind while showing the claim to Waddles and his pal Ted. "Battling Bill" goes on a crying jag when this happens, leading the boys to wonder about the mysterious stranger's real identity. Meanwhile the MacLoons, aided by their stooge, Shorty, cook up a scheme to get the property for themselves.
Labels: Adventures of Waddles
Comments:
Allan--
Together we can present this LOST EPIC! Thanks for making it available and for sharing it with everyone...it's great stuff!
Tom
Together we can present this LOST EPIC! Thanks for making it available and for sharing it with everyone...it's great stuff!
Tom
# posted by : 10/04/2007 1:48 PM
: 10/04/2007 1:48 PM
Hello, Allan----Does WADDLES have anything to do with the strip DOK'S DIPPY DUCK, seen in the SMITHSONIAN BOOK OF COMICS?----or am I just quacking up?-----Cole Johnson.
# posted by : 10/08/2007 6:20 PM
: 10/08/2007 6:20 PM
Hi Cole -
Though both by Hagers, Dok was apparently J.R. Hager, while the originator of waddles was George Hager. Been a long time since I looked at Dok's cartoons (have one of the reprint books buried around here somewhere), don't recall the style.
Interesting, though, that both Hagers were duck fanciers. Maybe there is indeed a connection. Definitely got all your neurons firing to put those two together!
--Allan
Though both by Hagers, Dok was apparently J.R. Hager, while the originator of waddles was George Hager. Been a long time since I looked at Dok's cartoons (have one of the reprint books buried around here somewhere), don't recall the style.
Interesting, though, that both Hagers were duck fanciers. Maybe there is indeed a connection. Definitely got all your neurons firing to put those two together!
--Allan
Allan,
John R. "Dok" Hager's children were indeed the authors of Waddles after he had given up the strip because of failing eyesight. Mary wrote the script, and George was the illustrator. "Dok" was a real live doctor by the way, trained as a dentist before turning to cartooning. Dok's Dippy Duck eventually became Waddles, but I'm not exactly sure how that came about.
Terence Hanley
John R. "Dok" Hager's children were indeed the authors of Waddles after he had given up the strip because of failing eyesight. Mary wrote the script, and George was the illustrator. "Dok" was a real live doctor by the way, trained as a dentist before turning to cartooning. Dok's Dippy Duck eventually became Waddles, but I'm not exactly sure how that came about.
Terence Hanley
# posted by : 11/01/2009 6:54 PM
: 11/01/2009 6:54 PM
Thanks for the info Terence. I'd love to know more about Dok Hager, who was evidently quite active in Seattle newspaper cartooning. Maybe Waddles originated there at some point before the Monitor?
--Allan
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--Allan
Wednesday, October 03, 2007
Zimmie - Redux, Redact, Retract
We talked about Zimmie on Monday, but it turns out there's more to the story. I really love it when I learn something new because of the blog, and presume you do too, so let's take another whack at Zimmie, even though there's still some holes in the story.
Turns out that Zimmie had a far longer run than I'd been able to verify. The Houston Chronicle started running the feature on May 5 1908, and ran it until November 8 1916 (all this info is from J.R. Gonzales of the Chronicle). Furthermore, Gonzales tells me that the earliest panels were signed by a fellow named Arch Bristow, and that when the feature debuted the Chronicle included this blurb:
add decorations and illustration to the paper.
Apparently this Bristow fellow had found himself a very specific niche in doing cuts about weather (which seems like an overly specific niche market, frankly). I can certainly see why he would come up with something like Zimmie to keep subscribers coming back. I mean, how many different cuts does a paper need to represent 'partly cloudy', right?
Worth noting, by the way, that International Syndicate began as a cut service back in the 1890s, and retained vestiges of that business into the 1910s and perhaps beyond. Maybe Bristow sold out to them in 1912. Or maybe Bristow was aligned with International all along. Just another guess, and my track record's been pretty lousy on this one so far!
Speaking of a lousy track record, Cole Johnson is apparently right that Zimmie was not drawn by Harry Martin as I had guessed in the first post. When will I learn that it's rarely a winning proposition to disagree with master Johnson?
Gonzales wonders if Bristow was working directly for the Chronicle because on occasion the Zimmie cartoons would make specific references to Houston and the paper itself. My guess is no, that the occasional local references might have been Bristow doing special items for a valuable client. For a big paper like that to use a cut service is a mite odd. Usually cut service clients were limited to small papers that couldn't afford an in-house art staff, a category that certainly doesn't fit the Chronicle, even in 1908.
Anyone else out there who can tells us something about Zimmie or Arch Bristow?
Turns out that Zimmie had a far longer run than I'd been able to verify. The Houston Chronicle started running the feature on May 5 1908, and ran it until November 8 1916 (all this info is from J.R. Gonzales of the Chronicle). Furthermore, Gonzales tells me that the earliest panels were signed by a fellow named Arch Bristow, and that when the feature debuted the Chronicle included this blurb:
"The Chronicle is pleased to announce to its readers that it has secured in Arch Bristow's weather cut service what it considers one of the most unique and attractive newspaper features in existence."A cut service is sort of like a syndicate. The cut service would periodically send out a whole batch of illustrations to subscribing papers. Depending on the focus of the service, the illos might be cartoons, drawings of people in the news, ad illustrations, page decorations, any number of things. The newspaper would receive from the service printed sheets full of drawings, and in-house staff would cut out individual drawings (thus the term cut service) and use them to
add decorations and illustration to the paper.
Apparently this Bristow fellow had found himself a very specific niche in doing cuts about weather (which seems like an overly specific niche market, frankly). I can certainly see why he would come up with something like Zimmie to keep subscribers coming back. I mean, how many different cuts does a paper need to represent 'partly cloudy', right?
Worth noting, by the way, that International Syndicate began as a cut service back in the 1890s, and retained vestiges of that business into the 1910s and perhaps beyond. Maybe Bristow sold out to them in 1912. Or maybe Bristow was aligned with International all along. Just another guess, and my track record's been pretty lousy on this one so far!
Speaking of a lousy track record, Cole Johnson is apparently right that Zimmie was not drawn by Harry Martin as I had guessed in the first post. When will I learn that it's rarely a winning proposition to disagree with master Johnson?
Gonzales wonders if Bristow was working directly for the Chronicle because on occasion the Zimmie cartoons would make specific references to Houston and the paper itself. My guess is no, that the occasional local references might have been Bristow doing special items for a valuable client. For a big paper like that to use a cut service is a mite odd. Usually cut service clients were limited to small papers that couldn't afford an in-house art staff, a category that certainly doesn't fit the Chronicle, even in 1908.
Anyone else out there who can tells us something about Zimmie or Arch Bristow?
Labels: Obscurities
Comments:
I would just like to comment that doing a weather panel like this for the Chronicle would've been the easiest thing in the world, considering it's partly sunny and in the mid 90s for half the year and rainy and 70 the other half. (A slight exaggeration but not much of one.)
The copy of The Family Upstairs arrived the other day, by the way. Thank you much for sending it.
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The copy of The Family Upstairs arrived the other day, by the way. Thank you much for sending it.
Monday, October 01, 2007
Obscurity of the Day: Zimmie
Your faithful blogmeister, always happy to kill two birds with one stone, tells the tale about Zimmie on the blog today because someone wrote to me privately asking about it.
Zimmie, who appears to be an owl, is a knock-off of the locally famed St. Louis Post-Dispatch Weatherbird. Weatherbird, an overfed cardinal, was created in 1901 by Horace "Harry" Martin. The feature continues today, making it without peer for longevity of a daily panel cartoon. The Weatherbird, ostensibly a cartoon reporting the day's weather forecast in an entertaining manner, more typically provided pithy philosophy and commentary on politics and local events.
Harry Martin decided to parley his local hit on the national stage. He went to New York and did lots of bird-related cartoons, mostly for Hearst, from 1903-12. Martin seems to have been canned from Hearst in 1912, and that's the point at which Zimmie appears (first I've seen are from May 1912), syndicated by Baltimore's International Syndicate. The Zimmie cartoons are never signed or credited, but the art style certainly seems to be Martin's.
Zimmie ran until at least August 1913. After that Martin only shows up once more that I know of, doing a minor feature at the New York Globe in 1918.
Labels: Obscurities
Comments:
Hello, Allan-----My two and a half cents-----I don't think ZIMMIE was the work of Martin, rather the artist just used Martin's style of bird face. This character would be pretty unusual for Martin, his birds are bigger and wear clothes. The letters don't look like his either. It also would be odd for a nationally known big-time cartoonist to do such a humble,unsigned International Syndicate thing. Besides, Martin for some months in 1912 was still employed by the Post-Dispatch doing the full-page ADVENTURES OF THE WEATHER BIRD in their Sunday section.-----------Cole Johnson.
# posted by : 10/01/2007 9:52 AM
: 10/01/2007 9:52 AM
Your halfpenny change ...
Weatherbird in the SLPD Sunday section in 1912? I only have it indexed in 1903 (I stopped indexing after 1904 because it seemed to turn into the normal NY World section). Even by then the Sunday was by Oscar Chopin, Martin having (ha!) flown the coop. Can you tell me more about the 1912 Sunday?
Seems unlikely to me that Martin was still in St. Louis since he worked for Hearst doing minor daily features in 1903-12.
A nationally known cartoonist? None of his features made much of a ripple as far as I can tell. No reprint books, anyway. Do you really consider him a bigtime guy?
--Allan
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Weatherbird in the SLPD Sunday section in 1912? I only have it indexed in 1903 (I stopped indexing after 1904 because it seemed to turn into the normal NY World section). Even by then the Sunday was by Oscar Chopin, Martin having (ha!) flown the coop. Can you tell me more about the 1912 Sunday?
Seems unlikely to me that Martin was still in St. Louis since he worked for Hearst doing minor daily features in 1903-12.
A nationally known cartoonist? None of his features made much of a ripple as far as I can tell. No reprint books, anyway. Do you really consider him a bigtime guy?
--Allan
