Stripper's Guide: Obscurity of the Day: What is the Reason

Monday, September 08, 2014

Obscurity of the Day: What is the Reason

I really like the work of Foster M. Follett, so much so that I devoted a week to him on the blog back in October 2012. Luckily, though, that didn't empty the coffers of Follett gems. Here's his debut series in the New York World's Funny Side section, a delightful one titled What is the Reason.

Just in case you thought Jimmy Hatlo was covering new ground in They'll Do It Every Time, this is a very early precursor to the theme -- poor innocent nebbishes beset by the trials and tribulations of a harsh, unfeeling, and arbitrary world. Pity them!

There is a typo in my book American Newspaper Comics, saying that this strip ran from March 30 to June 1 1901. Evrything's right there except the year, which should be 1902. Holtz's flying fingers rewriting history ...

Thanks to Cole Johnson for the samples!

Labels: Obscurities

# posted by Allan Holtz @ 8:00 AM

Comments:

When did color comics start?

The post 1900 papers I've looked at online are black and white (or not microfilmed in color?).

# posted by

Unknown : 9/08/2014 5:17 PM

Joe --
The first newspaper color comics were in 1893. The online newspapers you're viewing are taken from black and white microfilm.

Best, Allan

# posted by

Allan Holtz : 9/08/2014 8:26 PM

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My name is Allan Holtz. I am a comic strip historian, and author of "American Newspaper Comics: An Encyclopedic Reference Guide." This blog is my outlet for all manner of interesting, oddball and rare material related to comic strip history. It is also a forum where others interested in comic strip history are encouraged to participate through the comments, or even by contributing articles. Have some information about a strip or cartoonist you'd like to share? I'd love to hear from you! You can post a comment on any post (click on 'Post a Comment' at the end of any post), or email me (see below). Note: All images on this blog are thumbnails - click on the images to see full size readable versions. Some browsers may require you to click on the image a second time to see the image at absolute full size (not reduced to fit your screen).

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