The Junior Times Feb. 1927


jr-times-2-10-27-junior-artists-pic.jpg Wow, art instruction for 15 cents a lesson! That’s what the future animators of the 1930s were paying in 1927 courtesy of the Los Angeles Junior Times. You’ll note that Bob Wickersham, Phil De Lara, Izzy Ellis and Frank Tipper were among the students on those halcyon Saturdays in Los Angeles. You’ll also note Bob Wickersham doing his best Chaplin impression for Aunt Dolly’s Hi-Jinks in the photo below. Also if you look down the page, you’ll see the comic strips and editorial drawings for the Junior Times by Izzy Ellis (Hezy Tate, Pearl Handle), Bill Zaboly (Lucky Lem), Bob Wickersham (Fido Bark), Morey Reden (Highshine Joe, Jim Dandy), Isadore Ellis (Incidents in Lives of Famous Characters) and Frank Tipper (The Average Home). These cartoons all appeared in February of 1927. Even though Aunt Dolly expressly forbade continuity, you will notice that Jim Dandy and Fido Bark still use it. Fido Bark is a printed out of sequence.

jr-times-2-6-27-fido-bark-wick.jpgjr-times-2-6-27-jim-dandy-and-hezy-tate.jpgjr-times-2-6-27-pearl-handle-de-lara.jpgjr-times-2-10-27-incidents-in-lives-ellis.jpgjr-times-2-10-27-frank-tipper-cartoon.jpgjr-times-2-10-27-hezy-tate-fido-bark.jpgjr-times-2-13-27-hezy-tate-average-home-incidents-in-lives.jpgjr-times-2-13-27-highshine-joe-redensky.jpgjr-times-2-13-27-jim-dandy-redensky.jpgjr-times-2-13-27-lucky-lem-fido-bark.jpgjr-times-2-13-27-pearl-handle-de-lara.jpgjr-times-2-20-27-jim-dandy-redensky.jpgjr-times-2-20-27-lucky-lem-zaboly.jpgjr-times-2-27-27-de-lara-cover.jpg

jr-times-2-20-27-bob-wick-jr-thespian.jpg

jr-times-2-6-27-hardie-gramatkys-life-story.jpg Hardie Gramatky was a busy little guy, according to his bio printed in the Junior Times. He took cartooning classes with correspondence school, the Landon School of Cartooning. Like Joe Barbera, Hardie worked in a bank before becoming a full time cartoonist. I don’t know if the Junior Times ever ran a part two of this biography, I couldn’t find it. These Junior Times posts are the most labor intensive ones I do, so I hope you readers enjoy them.

myrtle-4-28-to-5-3-47.jpg Here’s Myrtle, from 4-28 to 5-3-1947. Dudley Fisher is really in top form in the 4-28 and 4-29 strips, I love how Bingo leaps off the roof and graps Pa’s head in his two paws in a really human looking grip. I like the use of silhouette in the last panel with Pa lying prone in the foreground with a star coming out of his head. I love the business in the 4-29 of Bingo chasing his friend the rabbit with his sprained ankle, and then appealing to Pa for sympathy in the last panel. These strips are loaded with great poses and appealing drawing. The Myrtle dailies featured the kind of cartooning we used to take for granted. See you next time.

Recent Posts


Archives