A history of the comic book, in which a noted cartoonist demonstrates the aesthetics and power of the medium

The comic strip was created by rival newspapers of the Hearst and the Pulitzer organizations as a device for increasing circulation. In the United States it quickly became an institution that soon spread worldwide as a favorite form of popular culture. What made the comic strip so enduring? This fascinating study by one of the few comics critics to develop sound critical principles by which to evaluate the comics as works of art and literature unfolds the history of the funnies and reveals the subtle art of how the comic strip blends words and pictures to make its impact. Together, these create meaning that neither conveys by itself. The Art of The Funnies offers a critical vocabulary for the appreciation of the newspaper comic strip as an art form and shows that full awareness of the artistry comes from considering both the verbal and the visual elements of the medium. The techniques of creating a comic strip - breaking down the narrative, composition of the panel, planning the layout - have remained constant since comic strips were originated. Since 1900 with Winsor McCay's Little Nemo in Slumberland key cartoonists have relied on the union of words and pictures to give the funnies their continuing appeal. This art has persisted in such milestone achievements as Bud Fisher's Mutt and Jeff, George McManus's Bringing Up Father, Sidney Smith's The Gumps, Roy Crane's Wash Tubbs and Captain Easy, Harold Gray's Little Orphan Annie, Chester Gould's Dick Tracy, Zack Mosley's Smilin' Jack, Harold Foster's Tarzan, Alex Raymond's Secret Agent X-9, Jungle Jim, and Flash Gordon, Milton Caniff's Terry and the Pirates, E. C. Segar's Popeye, George Herriman's Krazy Kat, and Walt Kelly's Pogo. In morerecent times with Mort Walker's Beetle Bailey, Charles Schulz's Peanuts. Johnny Hart's B.C., T.K. Ryan's Tumbleweeds, Garry Trudeau's Doonesbury, and Bill Watterson's Calvin and Hobbes, the artform has evolved with new developments, yet the aesthetics of the funnies remain basic. The Art of The Funnies unearths new information and weighs the influence of syndication upon the medium. Though the funnies go in ever new directions, perceiving the interdependency of words and pictures, as this book shows, remains the key to understanding the art.

This monograph seeks to recover and assess the critically neglected comic strip work produced by the Irish painter Jack B. Yeats for various British publications, including Comic Cuts, The Funny Wonder, and Puck, between 1893 and 1917. It situates the work in relation to late-Victorian and Edwardian media, entertainment and popular culture, as well as to the evolution of the British comic during this crucial period in its development. Yeats’ recurring characters, including circus horse Signor McCoy, detective pastiche Chubblock Homes, and proto-superhero Dicky the Birdman, were once very well-known, part of a boom in cheap and widely distributed comics that Alfred Harmsworth and others published in London from 1890 onwards. The repositioning of Yeats in the context of the comics, and the acknowledgement of the very substantial corpus of graphic humour that he produced, has profound implications for our understanding of his artistic career and of his significant contribution to UK comics history. This book, which also contains many examples of the work, should therefore be of value to those interested in Comics Studies, Irish Studies, and Art History.

A complete collection of the legendary work of one of the medium's greatest artists, Lyonel Feininger, featuring the Kin-der-Kids and Wee Willie Winkie.

Featuring an extensive price guide, this well-illustrated book is a complete reference on acquiring comic strip art, providing useful and practical information to both novice and experienced collectors. It also provides a brief look at the history and creative process that brings cartoon art to life, as well as an introduction to original comic strip art collecting.

Reprints the syndicated newspaper comic strip Dark shadows, based on the television series of the same name, which ran from March 14, 1971 to March 11, 1972.

Comics flourished following the publication of the first Thai comics strip in 1907. Artists borrowed elements from European and American publications, such as Punch magazine, and created uniquely Thai mash-ups. In the 1930s, one artist combined E. C. Segar's Popeye with the codes of local 'likay' theatre, while another used the neoclassical realism introduced by Italian painters appointed at the Siamese court to give eerie form to the folklore pantheon of Thai ghosts. During the Cold War era, horror tales, anti-communist propaganda and socially engaged graphic novels bore witness to the country's darker years. Then, in the 1990s, Thai comics struggled to compete with the sudden influx of unlicensed manga from Japan that led to a disregard for local efforts and its current 'forgotten' status. After a hiatus, Thai comics made a comeback in the late '90s with a quirky, alternative scene that deserves wider international recognition. Beautifully designed and bursting with stories - from 20th-century interpretations of age-old Buddhist legends to tales of modern-day millennial angst - 'The Art of Thai Comics' opens an enlightening and visually spectacular window onto the country's history, culture and creativity. In doing so, it reinstates Thai comics into the wider story of global comics art.

A treasury of outstanding graphics and rare and beautiful comic art, this book is also a history of the art form itself, as seen through the work of 16 of the finest cartoonists of the last century, including Al Capp, Charles M. Schulz, Walt Kelly and Chester Gould. Marschall's fascinating text portrays the life and times of these artists, demonstrating their influence on American art and society. 250 illustrations, many in full-color.