The ABCs Of 1940s Funny Animals

EDIT: This series is currently being expanded into a separate website, The 1940s Funny Animalphabet.

As you may recall, i was poking around in Funny Animal comics of the 1940s this past weekend.
Have you any idea just how many funny animals were running around in comics back in that decade?
Not just the big stars. Let's ignore the Disney gang, Bugs & his crew, Felix The Cat, Krazy & Ignatz, Tom & Jerry, Heckle & Jeckle, Mighty Mouse, The Fox & The Crow, Skrewey Squirrel, Woody Woodpecker, and scads of others (is that the proper term for a gathering of funny animals? I'm not sure), and we're still left with a fairly overwhelming amount. Funny Animals were huge, and Everybody was into them -

I mentioned earlier in the week that i had been somewhat overwhelmed by the herd. I did not come away empty handed, however. I returned with a journal recording the animals i had seen

This is in no way comprehensive or complete, merely what i've encountered in the last 3 days of digging through that particular cultural stratum in accessible issues. Nonetheless, let me warn you now - this is going to get a little insane.


A:

Adam The Chimp

(Signature is Jim Davis, but not the later Funny Animal artist. This was two years before he was born)

Albert The Alligator

(Albert is the only one of his gang we'll see here. He and his friends evolved into Pogo and his pals. (Art by Walt Kelly, obviously))

Alkalai Ike

Andy Wolf and Bertie Mouse

(Note that in these old pairings when both names end in an E sound,
one is almost always ending with 'y' while the other ends in 'ie'.)

B:

Baldy And His Brood

Barnaby Beep

(Pardon the roll down into the binding at the right. This was part of America's Biggest Comics Book - nearly 200 pages thick. That makes it unavoidable without destroying the original. You'll see it again a few more times as we go.)

Barney Beagle and Buster

Barney Bear

(Okay - he was famous enough to get cartoons, but nobody ever seemed to know his name)

Battling Bantam

Beanie Bear

(Think his creator got a share of the Beanie Bear profits?)

Bee-29

Benny Beaver (sans Fuzzy Bear)

Benny The Lonesome Burro

Bertie Bruin

(Chambers = Ellis Chambers)

Biff and The Duchess

Bill and Koo

(JCA = Jason Comic Art Studios)

Billy The Badger

Billy and Buggy Bear

Billy Goat

Billy The Kid

Blabber Mouse

Blackie

Blackie Bear

Blimpy

BlunderBunny

Bobby Bantam

Bobo The Fireman

Bo Bunny

(Sheldon Mayer developed those comedy skills we loved in the Silver Age on these old Golden Age FA comics)

Bozo Bear

Buddy Beaver

Buff n' Bobo

Buggy Boo

Bugsey Bear Family

Bull Bowser

Bulldog Drumhead

(Do folks still remember Bulldog Drumond?)

Bum Bill Bee

Bunnyhunch and Buzz - The Bunny Boys

(Hart = Ernie Hart)

Buster Bunny

(An old friend of Bugs after whom he named his son?)

Buzzy

Buzzy Bee

C:

Carrottop Cabot

Cheepy

Chippy Chipmunk

Cholly Chipmunk

Chuck and Charlie Chipmunk

Chucky and Bub

Coco and Bobo

Colonel Walrus and Snazzy The Snail

Cosmo Cat

Crock O'Dile

Cubby the Bear

Custer Cat and Cheesey the Mouse

Cuthburt The Calf

There you have it - the ABCs of 1940s Funny Animals (Inc)
Next and every 3 hours throughout the day - Continuing from D.

sorry, no art credits except where signed. If you want to know, ask. I'll try to track it if the credit exists. (1940s)

Getting To Know Spudo

Last time we looked at Spudo, i mentioned that his first story in the first issue of The Barker was not actually his first story. We'll get back to that in a bit, but first let's look a little more at our four-armed oddball and his ongoing adventures. Our first story here is written, once again, by Gwen Hansen, with art, as always, by Klaus Nordling -

This time, Klaus takes on the writing chores as well as the artwork -

For our final tale, which was also Spudo's final tale from the last issue of The Barker, the writer is unknown. Best guesses indicate Klaus Nordling was handling it all himself again, but that's unconfirmed...

And so ended the adventures of Spudo.

However - just as Spudo's first story was not his first story, this final tale was not his final tale...

page art by Klaus Nordling from The Barker #s 8, 11, & 15 (1948, 1949)

Captain Nice & Mr. Terrific Were Retired

I was overwhelmed by a seemingly endless herd of animals when i should have been prepping the pages for this morning's post. Now sleep is imminent and they lie yet untouched. Will there be no post this morning?
Whatever can we do?
Upon Whom can we call?

We're desperate, so let's jump straight to the bottom of the list and call for Captain Milksop -

Thanks, Cap! It's good to know you're always available.

We'll be back with Spudo this afternoon.
(...and then come the animals...)

page art by Charles Voight for Atomic Bomb #1 (1946)