Comments on: Speaking the Unspeakable

By: Mike Hunter

Mike Hunter — Thu, 17 Feb 2011 14:05:43 +0000

Great article as always, R.C.!

Speaking of “once acceptable” comic strip fare, are we ever likely to see again something like Chester Gould’s “Dick Tracy” schtick of a bullet going into the forehead, leaving a neat round hole, then shown popping out through the back?

Even something like this March 13, 1938 scene – http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/thedailymirror/2008/03/dick-tracy.html – would hardly be acceptable…

(Some Gould stuff at http://potrzebie.blogspot.com/2008/04/chester-goulds-girl-friends-1928.html , including the true story – in comics form – of Jay Lynch and R. Crumb’s visit to the great comic strip creator…)

By: WLLilly

WLLilly — Wed, 16 Feb 2011 23:58:53 +0000

…Al Smith started signing the strip in 1954 , and , he won an NCS award for CICERO’S CAT in 1968 , per Wikipedia ( Who have been prety prickly to me lately – including my additions to their M&J listing – , but anyway . ) .
I think we actually ” conversed ” on whether such contemporary strips as WEE PALS and DICK TRACY have what can be called toppers , and I seem to recall MAW GREEN running in LITTLE ORPHAN ANNIE into the 1970s .

By: R.C. Harvey

R.C. Harvey — Wed, 16 Feb 2011 21:33:01 +0000

The Beaumont name is a leftover from Fisher’s celebrated marriage to a European titled woman; the divorce followed almost immediately, but apparently Fisher left his copyright on M&J to her and her descendants.
Dunno from what era the current Web run of M&J comes; my guess is 1950s. Cicero was Mutt’s son; and the cat was, indeed, a topper for the Sunday page, but all toppers disappeared when full- and half-page strips disappeared.

By: WLLilly

WLLilly — Wed, 16 Feb 2011 20:09:24 +0000

…Maybe not literally within a week , but anyway…When do these M&Js specifically date from , BTW ? Do they reprint every strip , day by day , or omit some ( Say , ones even more ” non-PC ” . ) ? THe Sundays , as printed on the WEb , have the panels awfully seperated from each other…
And , didn’t the original Sundays carry ” Cicero’s Cat ” as a topper ? Not here .

By: WLLilly

WLLilly — Wed, 16 Feb 2011 20:06:49 +0000

…That said , there are some once-acceptable jokes that are certainly highly unlikely , anyway , to get printed in a syndicated strip to-day…I’ve often though of my childhood Bringing Up Father and Andy Capp strips making light of domestic violence , household brawls…
Recently , those reprints of Al Smith Mutt & Jeff strips ( that go out under the name ” Pierre S D’Beaumont’s Repackaged M & J ” , or something like that . ) offerd , within a week’s time:
A Joke revolving around Mutt’s child complaining to his father about receiving a spanking from the teacher , Mutt going to complain , but when he sees the buxom teacher , spanking Cicero again .
A several day’s continuity about Jeff giving testimony in a case of a man accused of beating his wife , with jokes among the likes of ” I saw her backside was open , and I saw an oppurtunity ” .
Mutt’s wife preparing to dump a vase on his head as reward for him emulating the Four Lads/Frank Loesser towards an attractive female going by the Mutts’ house .
A joke revolving around Mrs. Mutt being angry at M&J for bringing back a massive amount of venison back from their hunting trip just as she’d finished off the last hunt’s result – which devoted a large panel to a pretty realistic-looking prepared and stripped (whatever) of dead deer being carried by M&J , one assumes that Al Smith must’ve hunted himself ! I think a modern-day strip , even one not disapproving of hunting , would think twice before fairly realistically depicting the result…
MOres , as ever…change .