The Ultimate Dennis the Menace Thread 4 4

[ComicBookGuy]

Hi, everybody - I've been very busy this week and not posting much. I DID find updated information on the new Dennis book, though. Here is some more info about it with a link posted at the end. What I noticed is that Fantagraphics is claiming March 14th, 1951 as the start date for the strip, the same date Ketcham stated in his autobiography. It's unclear what the sources of information are with regard to some sources saying it started March 12th and some March 14th. I agree with Jon that checking the Chicago Tribune microfilm collection may yield the definitive answer. It's either in the paper on the 12th or it's not. That aside, with Fantagraphics and Ketcham both claiming the 14th, I find myself leaning in that direction. However, it doesn't really matter what day it is to me; what does matter is that we can settle the matter definitively one way or the other. Here is the updated press release:

 

FANTAGRAPHICS ANNOUNCES THE COMPLETE DENNIS THE MENACE

Press Release

 

An American icon defined: the first two years of Hank Ketcham’s classic comic strip, in one handsomely thick hardcover volume.

 

From the publisher of the New York Times bestselling series THE COMPLETE PEANUTS comes the most exciting comics publishing project of 2005! DENNIS THE MENACE began on March 14, 1951 (four months after Ketcham’s friend and colleague, Charles Schulz started his own historic comic strip) — and went on to become the 2nd most popular cartoon kid in the world after Charlie Brown.

 

DENNIS THE MENACE first appeared in 16 American newspapers; by the end of 1951, it was appearing in over a hundred. The strip’s success in only the first 10 months of syndication was a harbinger of greater success to come — as Ketcham himself put it, “The sales chart was not an upward curve but more the flight of an arrow.” The timing was perfect: the post-war generation, at the height of the baby-boom, embraced the perennial troublemaker and turned Dennis into a global publishing, merchandising, and multi-media phenomenon, with over 50 million book collections sold, the fondly remembered live-action TV show from 1959-63, a cartoon from 1986-89, theatrical productions, TV specials, a major motion picture in the ’90s, and a full-length animated film in 2002. The strip is still enjoyed by readers of over 1,000 newspapers every day.

 

The reason for Dennis’ success is easy to figure out: It was one of the most brilliantly observed and empathetic comic strips about childhood ever drawn. Ketcham captured the mischievousness, rambunctiousness, and anarchy of a kid’s world better than any other cartoonist. The strip appeals to both parents and children —while parents shake their head ruefully at how accurately Ketcham caught the essence of children’s natural zest for mayhem, children identify with Dennis and the chaos that he leaves in his wake — just a hop, skip, and

a jump away from their own fantasy of themselves! Ketcham was a cartoonist with a vivacious line that was exquisitely suited to depicting adults and children. His gags were funny, subtle, and touching.

 

Ketcham drew DENNIS THE MENACE from 1951 to 1994, when he retired and let his assistant take over the strip. This first volume of HANK KETCHAM'S COMPLETE DENNIS THE MENACE publishes every single panel strip from 1951 and 1952 in one handsome and thick hardcover volume resembling a Big Little Book on steroids. HANK KETCHAM'S COMPLETE DENNIS THE MENACE will continue with new chronological volumes annually until the entire run of Ketcham’s strip is collected.

 

The series is designed by Fantagraphics Lead Designer Jacob Covey (THE PIN-UP ART OF DAN DeCARLO, HANGING WITH THE DREAM KING: CONVERSATIONS WITH NEIL GAIMAN AND HIS COLLABORATORS, BUDDY DOES SEATTLE, etc.) and edited by Fantagraphics President and Founder Gary Groth.

 

Hank Ketcham was born in 1920 and created Dennis the Menace in 1950. He passed away in 2001.

 

DENNIS THE MENACE FACTS:

 

• Over 50 million Dennis books have been sold worldwide

 

• The strip continues today in more than 1000 newspapers

 

• Dennis has been a “spokesman” for UNICEF, the Boy Scouts, and the Red Cross

 

• Dennis is one of the most recognizable characters in the world.

 

HANK KETCHAM'S COMPLETE DENNIS THE MENACE 1951-1952

By HANK KETCHAM

Foreword by PATRICK McDONNELL (Mutts)

Introduction by BRIAN WALKER (The Comics After 1945)

624 pages • HARDCOVER

5.5” x 6.25” • Black-and-white

ISBN 1-56097-680-2 • $24.95

Humor / COMIC STRIPS

Sales Area: World (Except the UK)

Publication Date: Sept. 25, 2005

 

 

Here is a link to the article in case you want to see it for yourself.

 

New Dennis Hardback Link

[ComicBookGuy]

I'm a cartoonist who has mimicked a lot of styles and been influenced by Ketcham strongly.

Welcome Bill W!

Here's a Dennis painting I commisioned Bill to do for me a couple of years ago featuring my favorite Dennis- the early "evil" Dennis!

 

I was browsing eBay and found a similar-looking "evil" Dennis on the cover of this Pressman Fingerpainting Kit. Great art, Bill W! This is not the

Dennis I am used to seeing in the comics.

Joe

 

Dennis Fingerpainting Kit by Pressman, 1954

 

 

[ComicBookGuy]

Here is the next segment of the Dennis Giant / Bonus Magazine Series. I've included circulation numbers here. And, Bill C., I'm keeping track of how many printings of each are going. It's looks like you are correct about Hawaii being the most reprinted so far, with nine printings as of #114. It will be interesting taking the numbers from the circulation statements and the number of printings and trying to figure out from there how many copies of Hawaii may have been printed.

Joe

 

#101. Rise & Shine

New Stories: Something From Down Under; Ruff & Tough; Paper Work; A Pet for Joey; The Camp Scamps; Watch the Birdie; If You Don't Know These You Autumn (1 page puzzle)

Publisher: Fawcett, February 1972

 

#102. And His I-Wish-I-Was Book

Reprints Giant #63

Publisher: Fawcett, March 1973

Note: Exact reprint of #63

 

#103. Short Stuff Special

New Stories: The Baby Zoo; Greek Treat; Cracker Snacks; Missing Person; Smarty Party; Joey the Joker; Talking Back

Publisher: Fawcett, April 1972

Note: Contains three 2-foot posters: one of Dennis, one of Joey, one of Margaret.

 

#104. In Mexico

Reprints parts # 8, #25, and #38. Exact reprint of #64.

Publisher: Fawcett, Spring 1969

Notes: Does not include the following chapters of the original 100 page giant: So-Chee-Milko; The Story of Mexico (text with illustrations); Dennis...the Hacienda Ender; King of the Castle. This is the 6th printing of this story.

Publisher: Fawcett, May 1972

 

#105. Birthday Special

New Stories: Birthday Roundup; Joey's Birthday Party; The Mrs./Mystery Birthday; 5-page history of Dennis the Menace to celebrate his 21st anniversary; Dennis Birthday Cards (non-comic)

Reprint from Dennis the Menace #1: Half-Pint G-Man

Publisher: Fawcett, June 1972

Note: Reprint of "Half-Pint G-Man" includes the -script to the story alongside each page.

 

#106. Fast & Funny

New Stories: To the Rescue; Ice Cold; Sold Out; Monkey Business; The Woe of Wilson

Publisher: Fawcett, June 1972

 

#107. Around the Clock

Reprints Giants #44 and #65

Publisher: Fawcett, July 1972

Note: 3rd printing of this comic.

 

#108. Goes to Camp

Reprints # 9, #16, #24, #39, and #67.

Publisher: Fawcett, July 1972

Note: This is the 7th printing of this comic. Does not include original feature "Dennis

Letters from Camp."

 

#109. Gags & Games

Reprints Giant #66

Publisher: Fawcett, July 1972

Note: New Cover

 

#110. Mr. Wilson and His Gang at Christmas

New Stories: The Good Old Days; The DeLIGHTful Christmas Tree; The Attic Attack; Snow Use Trying; Cooling It

Publisher: Fawcett, October 1972

Notes: Contains two large cut-out posters: one of Mr.Wilson and one of Mrs. Wilson.

 

#111. Christmas Special

New Stories: Strictly Santa-Mental; Christmas Is for the Birds; Shopping Daze;

ElectriChristmas; Dennis 1973 Calendar

Publisher: Fawcett, October 1972

 

#112. The Go-Go Special

New Stories: Going Places; The ElectriCar; A Smashing Success; All Tired Out; The Big Blow-Up; Going Down; Out of This World; Jetting Along; Look, Ma, No Wheels!; Wooden You Know It; Going Up in Smoke; All Going All Out; 6-Page Charlie's Farm Feature (told in color daily panels)

Note: Circulation figures in "Jetting Along": 360,426 copies distributed.

Publisher: Fawcett, January 1973

 

#113. Tangled Tales

Reprints Giant #70

Publisher: Fawcett, February 1973

 

#114. In Hawaii

Reprint of Giant #68: First half is chapters new in #68: Paradise Park, Sea Life Park, All in Polynesia in a Day.

The final chapters are then reprints from #6: Pearl Harbor, Garden Island, Big Island, and Finally...

Publisher: Fawcett, March 1973

Note: This is the 9th printing of this comic and features a new cover.

 

#115. Ting-A-Ling Special

New Stories: The Back Pack Snap Crack; After All That... (4-page daily panel feature); No Place Like Home; Some Ruff Ideas; What's With Wilson; Sea-ing Things; Margaret/Mother Nature; Cookie Jar featuring Special Inside Information

Publisher: Fawcett, April 1973

Note: 10 Page Cookie Jar Section by Hank Ketcham shows how he gets ideas for the comics, draws them, and submits them for publication.

 

#116. In Washington

Reprints Giants #15, #26, and #40 but missing Chapter on the FBI

Publisher: Fawcett, May 1973

Note: This is the 5th printing of this comic.

 

#117. Encore

Reprints Giant #69, which is reprints from regular series: The Menace of the Seas; Jumpin' Jupiter; Something Fishy; Monterey County Fair; Dennis the Bookworm; Pet Peeves; City Park; Dennis Vs. Texas

Publisher: Fawcett, June 1973

Note: All Wiseman stories

 

#118. Here's How

New Stories: Earn and Learn; Free Enter-Prize; Pest Control; Guest Who's Coming to Visit; Buried Treasure; Food for Thought

Publisher: Fawcett, June 1973

Note: Date stamp on cover reads, "June 20, 1973."

 

#119. The Summer Number

New Stories: 1 of a Kind; 2's a Crowd; 3's Company; 4 Heaven's Sake; 5 O'Clock Shadow; 6; Lucky 7; It Must Have Been Something I 8; A Stitch in Time Saves 9; Down for the Count of 10; 11; 12 The Witching Hour; Baker's Dozen 13; For-Teen; 15 Men on a Deadman's Chest; Sweet 16; State Flag feature (9-page feature with illustrations)

Publisher: Fawcett, July 1973

Note: Date stamp on cover reads, "July 10, 1973."

 

#120. Dennis Strikes Back

New Stories: Just Imagine; The Bear Facts; The Problem Child; Just Ducky; Pizza Pie in the Sky; Pick a Picnic

Publisher: Fawcett, July 1973

 

#121. Way-Out Stories

Reprints Giants #48 and #73

Publisher: Fawcett, August 1973

Note: This is the 3rd printing of this comic.

 

#122. Mr. Wilson and His Gang at Christmas

New Stories: Alone for Christmas; Christmas Children; What the Heck Are Hex Signs (3 pages text with illustrations); Hex-Actly; Just In Time; Santagrampaclaus; The Cookie Jar Special Holiday Edition ( 7 pages on India); Daily Strips (9 pages of color Christmas daily strips)

Publisher: Fawcett, October 1973

 

#123. Christmas Special

New Stories: O Christmas Tree, Ow! Christmas Tree; Black Marks and Bright Stars; Hello, Kid-Dough!; Early Christmas; Dennis 1974 Calendar

Publisher: Fawcett, October 1973

 

#124. Happy Holidays

New Stories: Happy Birthday to... Who?; Fool-ish April; Mom's Day; Dad's Day; All-American Kid; Hey! It's All Right!...; Thank Goodness...; Hi Pals...(11 pages of daily strip reprints in color)

Publisher: Fawcett, January 1974

Note: Circulation statement in "Dad's Day": 328,325 total distributed copies.

 

#125. In London

Reprints #88

Publisher: Fawcett, February 1974

 

#126-#194 will be coming soon.

[FlyingDonut]

Anybody interested in this? PM me if you are, if not, here's Dennis and the Bible Kids 1:

 

[BillyBatson4360]

Once again, kudos on the research, Joe. I'm curious about the circulation figures. Am I correct

in presuming they are for the Dennis the Menace Bonus Magazine Series?

 

I don't recall ever seeing any circulation statements in the earlier Dennis the Menace Giant

Series. And I would presume those had higher press runs as comic book circulations

(especially among non-super-hero books) declined from the mid-50's to the early 70's.

 

Also many magazine circularion statements contain two sets of figures - average numer of copies

and actual number of copies of single issue closest to filing date. If there is only one set of

numbers, then I am presuming that represents "average" number of copies. Obviously,

individual titles could have sold more or less.

 

But with nine or ten printings, it's getting pretty hard to overlook Dennis in Hawaii as the all-time

sales champ.

[BillyBatson4360]

My favorite issues of Dennis are a brief run of issues between #23 & 36.

 

These are my favorites because:

 

A.) This was about the time I started reading Dennis off the newsstand as a kid.

 

B.) I loved the covers that simulate the look of the Dennis newspaper strip.

 

The first time they tried the layout, was issue # 23. Then, it was used again on issues # 25, 28, 29, and every issue from 31 thru 36. Then, it was abandoned and never used again. Joe has already posted the covers to # 23 & # 25, so I thought I would pick up with # 28:

 

[BillyBatson4360]

Here's Issue # 29:

 

[BillyBatson4360]

Issue # 31:

 

 

This is a particular favorite as it was the very first issue of Dennis the Menace that I ever purchased. (Obviously, this is not my original copy. That has long since returned to the dust from whence it came!)

[BillyBatson4360]

Moving along to issue # 32:

 

[BillyBatson4360]

Issue # 33:

 

 

Always liked this gag for some reasons.

[BillyBatson4360]

Issue # 34 (more on some art from inside this issue in a moment):

 

[BillyBatson4360]

Issue # 35:

 

[BillyBatson4360]

And finally, issue # 36 which also contains the illustration I use as my avatar:

 

[BillyBatson4360]

As you may have noticed I am in the ironic position of actually having better grade copies (with a couple of exceptions) within the first 20 issues of the title than I do between # 21 and # 36. From # 37 to the end of Wiseman's run, conditions on the books in my collection improve again, but the best condition copies are really those early issues.

[BillyBatson4360]

I mentioned the interior art on issue # 34. It contains a great example of why I love Al Wiseman both as a draftsman and as visual story teller.

 

Wiseman continually varied the size of his panels to aid in selling the joke or the concept. The bigger the gag, generally, the bigger the panel.

 

This page comes from the lead story in issue # 34 "The Heat Is On Off On Off On Off..." The Fred Toole plot is simplicity in itself. The Mitchell's heating system has malfunctioned (it will turn out to be a stuffed teddy bear that Dennis dropped down the heating vent). They are getting an entire new system of ducts installed when Dennis, Tommy & Joey decide the ducts could be put to a better use:

 

 

Man, notice how detailed and precise yet clean the drawing looks (incredible perspective drawing on the barrel and boxes). And the size of the panel perfectly "sells" the gag.

 

By the way, the coaster at the bottom of the chute provides the big pay-off to the whole sequence on the next page when Dennis, Tommy and Joey go crashing through a basement window sending Henry and the duct installer sprawling!

[Wiseguy-migration]

I always liked that story myself.

I know if the ducts had been a little bigger I would have tried that myself.

 

 

JRW

[BillyBatson4360]

Jim, I thought you had tried it! After all, that same issue contains the story about putting the plastic model together and you said you and your dad did that before he drew the story.

[Wiseguy-migration]

Jim, I thought you had tried it! After all, that same issue contains the story about putting the plastic model together and you said you and your dad did that before he drew the story.

 

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

 

True enough, if those ducts had just been my size..............

I think the house next door to us at that time had similar forced-air heating.

I used to play with the kid that lived there. He had pet chinchillas, I tired to talk him into letting them run thru the heating ducts. He declined my suggestion.

 

If there were specific props pertinet to the story, since most had to deal with kids,

I always benefited.

I saw the DTM bowling kit on Ebay.

I remember playing that a lot.

 

Issue #34:

Drawn on the Monterey Penninsula.

Evident by page 1, Henry is reading the "Herald".

page 3 mentiones Nichols Plumbing and Heating, that name comes up a few times.

 

The "Model Child" story, note on page 2, upper left "Cape Canaveral".

We actually ended up with the Cutty Sark, as the ship.

Page 3 first panel, look at the story in the newspaper.

 

I can almost smell that glue...but that is illegal now.

 

 

More as/when I remember.

 

JRW

[ComicBookGuy]

Bill and JRW, it's great to see you guys back! I love the scans and the commentary. That's when this thread is at it's best. As long as JRW is here, we need to post some more of the same so we can get more great commentary...

 

You posted 28 up, so I will fill in the gap by posting #26 and #27 since the first 25 are already posted. Here they are:

 

Check out this snow-white beauty...

 

[ComicBookGuy]

And here is another gorgeous copy, #27. An interesting note is how popular Dennis comics were. Many from this period, as you may have noted, have the following message in the scroll on the cover:

 

"Boys' Clubs of America

Golden Anniversary Award

presented to

Pines Comics

For distinguished public service to

American youth by publishing

comic magazines whose outstanding

wholesomeness, interest and entertainment value

exemplify the highest publishing standards.

Herbert Hoover, Chairman of the Board"

 

Is this the former president???