Wacky Wolf! By Bob Wick!!

Good afternoon, Kids! So nice to visit with you all again!

Bob Wickersham is perhaps best known as an animator for the Walt Disney Studios, where he left an indelible mark through the 1930s. Mr. Wickersham provided much of the smooth, Disney finish on many famous black-and-white shorts like “Playful Pluto” (1934) and “Mickey’s Steamroller” (1934).

During the 1940s, Mr. Wickersham began drawing comics as well, often signing his name “Bob Wick.” He worked mainly for the American Comics Group, which published some of my favorite Kids’ Comics titles of all time, like Ha-Ha Comics and Giggle Comics. In today’s story, we see Mr. Wick’s easy, clean style in a story featuring Wacky Wolf, a signature character in the ACG line.

This story comes from Giggle Comics No. 20 (June, 1945)

So, in the end, universal order is restored and everyone's happy (we hope!)

I will see you all again very soon. Until then, I hope you are all warm, safe, and happy!

--Your friend, Mykal

The Duke and the Dope ala Ken Hultgren!

Good afternoon, Kids! So nice to visit with you all again!

Ken Hultgren had a very successful and varied career in the arts, working at a very high-level wherever he hung his shingle.

He began, like so many illustrators before him, in animation. In the early 1940s, he became one of the great “animal artists” at Disney. By the late 40s, Mr. Hultgren had branched out into comics, working for Sangor Studios (Ha Ha and Giggle Comics). He famously illustrated such titles as The Duke and the Dope (enjoyed below) and Robespierre.

Throughout the 1950s and thereafter, he did a little of everything, working in comics, animation, and newspaper strip work.

His beautiful artwork is on good display here in this tale from the halls of injustice, featuring the pair of friends, the Duke (ever scheming) and the Dope (ever innocent). This story comes from Giggle Comics No. 20 (June, 1945)

Coming up next, the work of Bob Wickersham (Bob Wick)!

I will see you all again very soon. Until then, I hope you are all warm, safe, and happy!

--Your friend, Mykal

Dan Gordon's SuperKatt!

Good afternoon, Kids! So nice to visit with you all again!

Dan Gordon remains a favorite cartoonist of mine, so it’s always a good day when I can share some of his work. It seems many comic book artists from this era (40s/50s) had animation backgrounds, but Mr. Gordon’s directorial background with various animation studios was very extensive. Most notably, he directed several Popeye shorts for Famous Studios which were known for their frenetic action and fast pace. It was this breakneck sense of movement that Mr. Gordon carried onto his storytelling and comic book work for Giggle Comics in 1944.

Superkatt was Mr. Gordon’s best-known reoccurring creation in Giggle Comics, a character intended to poke gentle fun at the emerging costumed superhero genre. Pure fun, the character is a simple housecat (albeit a talking one) who wears a diaper, a baby’s bonnet, and a bowtie to fight minor, local injustice.

So, let’s enjoy Mr. Gordon’s glorious, lush work! This story comes from Giggle Comics No. 20 (June, 1945)

Coming up next, the work of Ken Hultgren!

I will see you all again very soon. Until then, I hope you are all warm, safe, and happy!

--Your friend, Mykal

More from Giggle Comics circa 1949

Here are a couple of more fantastic artists that graced the pages of post-war, golden age kid's comics. The first story, starring Fremont Frog, is the unmistakable work of Jack Bradbury, whose luxurious brushwork was an era stable. The following Wacky Wolf story is by Bob (Wick) Wickersham, who was an animator at Columbia and also a frequent contributor to Giggle and other era comics. Both stories come from Giggle Comics No. 64, April 1949.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here's a cool ad from the same issue. Imagine, the boy or girl that marveled and desired this technology in 1949 could grow up to see their grandchildren in 2013 talking on cell phones which connect them to the world.

From the Pages of Giggle Comics - 1949

Today let’s enjoy a couple of stalwarts from the golden age of kids’ comics, Dan Gordon and Ken Hultgren. These two were oft contributors to the pages of kids’ comics in the postwar period, both artists forging an immediately recognizable style. Gordon is a particular favorite of mine.  His work is so lively. Mr. Gordon does both the cover and the first Superkatt story.  Mr. Hultgren’s work is on display in the Duke and the Dope story. Both stories are from the pages of Giggle Comics No. 64, April 1949.