Girls Have Always Read Comic Books

Photograph by Ruth Orkin, New York, 1947.

Once, I Could've Learned To Care For Him

But that was ten years ago.


More from Calling All Girls, December, 1945.

Think, Edward!

(from superpoop)

Book Boards At School

Introduction To Economics, by Alvin S. Johnson, Ph.D., copyright 1909 and 1922 by D.C. Health & Co. sure looks like your usual old, unloved school text, complete with water damage (mildew & bent boards), but I didn't just throw it away... If I had, I hadn't taken the time to look at it, I would have missed the fabulous doodles inside the cover and on the front free end page.



Inside the front board, the illustration features "John Tards" at a streetlight, looking quite drunk. The streets appear to be cobblestone -- or uniformly lumpy. The city backdrop is darn-near a big city skyline.

On the front free end, beneath the title "Economic of Fr nk Jones" (a teacher, perhaps?), several comic versions of a man's face (also one lady) and the very stylized full-view (from the side) of one man.

These could be attempts to draw very popular comics at the time, but they still please me greatly.

The doodles are presumed to have been made by the former owner, Gordon A. Martin, a university student & an Alpha Psi Delta member (at whatever university was in Grand Forks, North Dakota, at that time).

The Unknown Comic - Artist

From The Saturday Evening Post, June 14, 1941, a full-page ad for Hotpoint electric refrigerators and ranges. The top portion features a comic, Just Around The Corner: Ed And Alice Open Up The Summer Cottage, which extols the virtues of having appliances in your summer cottage "just like in town." So much for getting away from it all & roughing it.

And no one ever shows up to help me move.


Having a title seems to signify a series -- be it a regular comic series or an ad campaign -- but it's unsigned. The style is so familiar... Capp? Marge? I honestly don't know; neither does Google. If you do, please share.

Here's the bottom portion of the ad, in case that helps.

Mrs. Alexander's Advice To Negro Youth

In 1948, this was a nicer way to say, "Don't be uppity!"



Sadie T. M. Alexander comic page via University of Pennsylvania Archives.

Vintage Dick Tracy and Junior S&P Shakers

Vintage 1920s-30s chalk S&P shakers worth their salt.

Put That Cephalopod In Your Glass And Read It

Columnist pal Collin, aka ResonantFish, has created creates art.



This particular piece is for the Coptopus cover (Front, back, what's the diff? It's a cover people!) and I for one love it. I wouldn't touch it if a serving wench brought it to my table, but on a cover it's quite delicious.

Collin wants INPUT, DAMMIT!, so give it to him.

Note: This post is my input :p

Vintage Kid's Comic: Tim & Tom Thumb

From a 1953 issue of Mine, a Catholic children's magazine, comes this children's four-panel comic of two little people.

I'm not certain which is Tom, which is Tim; but one's thing's for certain -- one of these Christian fairies is secure enough in his masculinity to wear pink.

Little LuLu For Kleenex

Did you ever?

Ever tussle with a tissue
while baby's cries grow louder --
When you want to sooth a sniffle
or apply his oil and powder?

Use Kleenex in the "pop up" box --
this tissue's up and doing!
Absorbent, soft -- its gentle care
keeps Kleenex babies cooing!

Crazy Cat Cutouts

I found this classy ad in the February 1959 issue of Home Craftsman -- get yourself 110 different jigsaw patterns:

Have Fun - Make Money selling these amazing NEW UNUSUAL Novelties, Gifts, Lawn Figures...Animals, Bar Implements, Door Markers, Plaques, Wall Shelves, etc. Easy...Trace, saw out, and paint. $1 brings you these EXCITING and DIFFERENT 110 fill size BIG patterns. Order now!

When they say UNUSUAL, EXCITING, and DIFFERENT -- they mean it, if the rest are anything like their best examples from the ad. Stepping away from the cute and homey patterns that usually came in jigsaw pattern books , these are right out of Mad Magazine: A wacky buck-toothed cat, tongue lolling out, saliva splattering off it? Was this supposed to be for Grandma to put up in her garden, or Mom to hang over the kitchen sink? It has a very grubby, loose style associated with underground comics (or "comix" if you're not a square like me). There's something very familiar about these two examples, but I can't quite put my finger on it.

Is there anything remotely cute or endearing about this duck? He's got some headband with leaves or feathers in it, leaning forward menacingly...and I like him. These two examples have some life to them, something that separates them from the generic style in most ads. They're not sweet, they're not traditional -- they're art. It's too bad the illustrator isn't named in the ad: the address for this "Trans Plans" company isn't some fancy office building -- according to Google Maps it's a residential area in Yonkers, sandwiched between Lincoln High, Yonkers Raceway, and Hillview Reservoir. It'd be easy to make a joke about drawing crazy comics while living in mom's basement, but, well, that's where some of the best comics came from.

Something Fishy I Can Blame On The Simpsons

I just discovered The Fish Police. First the comic book was news to me.


Now I discover I missed the animated TV series.

Adapted to the cartoon format in 1992 as an attempt by CBS to compete with the success of The Simpsons by creating cartoons adults in the prime time evening slot, starring a wonderful cast:

* John Ritter as Inspector Gill
* Hector Elizondo as Don Calamari
* Edward Asner as Chief Abalone
* Jonathan Winters as Mayor Cod
* Tim Curry as The Sharkster
* Robert Guillaume as Detective Catfish
* Buddy Hacket as Crabby
* Megan Mullally as Pearl
* JoBeth Williams as Angel
* Frank Welker as Mussels Marinara/Doc Croaker
* Georgia Brown as Goldie
* Charlie Schlatter as Tadpole

But the series was very short-lived. According to Toonopedia:

Despite the star-studded cast, Fish Police failed to reel in viewers. Six episodes were produced, but the plug got pulled after only three had been aired. The rest appeared only in a few overseas markets.

Another reason to hate The Simpsons. Sure, if it weren't for them, maybe Fish Police the TV series wouldn't have been made; but the too-high rating expectations CBS had was unrealistic for a new show. (And don't get me started on how few episodes shows get before they are cancelled -- it drives me nuts.) Plus I just don't like the Simpsons.

Guess what collection-obsession's on my horizon?