Billy The Kid & Sherlock Monk

Billy the Kid and Oscar; and Sherlock Monk and Chuck were two funny animal team-ups used in back-up stories for Fawcet's headliner, Hoppy the Marvel Bunny. Both stories here are from Fawcett's Funny Animals No. 24, November 1944 (for the cool cover and Hoppy stories, check out last post). Both these stories were drawn by William Brady, of whom I can discover little.

When interviewed in The Fawcett Companion, Chad Grothkopf said that he created all the Fawcett funny animals, including Sherlock Monk and Chuck. Solid work, Mr. Grothkopf!

These next two pages are the title page of the issue (which was published a year before the end of WWII), and a great ad for RC Cola. Both the title page and the cola ad are concerned with courage and sacrifice, qualities in high demand as the last fires of WWII raged toward a conclusion. The past, I salute you!

Hoppy, The Marvel Bunny! (1944)

These Hoppy stories are from Fawcett’s Funny Animals No. 24, November 1944. The Marvel Bunny was the lead story and franchise player for much of the title’s run. Like Captain Marvel, Hoppy gained his supper powers by speaking the magic word “Shazam!” And like so many superheroes, he had a girlfriend that preferred the superhero to the secret identity.

Hoppy the Marvel Bunny was the creation of cartoonist, Chad Grothkopf. His style is classic Bigfoot and his character design, even for minor walk-ons, is intelligent and thoughtful (I love the candy store clerk and burly sportsman customer of the first story; and the feline witch of the second).

DOWNLOAD: BOTH HOPPY STORIES!

These next two advertisements are from the same issue. With such gorgeous design and layout, the ads become as eye-pleasing as the comic's stories. The 1940s were such a great time for design - of men’s clothes, architecture, cars, what have you. This beautiful standard was obvious in something as simple as an ad for a hobby knife or Tootsie Drink Mix.

Billy Goat in "Post No Bills"

So much great comic art and so many stories remain un-credited and will soon be forgotten as the cheap paper they are printed on returns to dust. Take this story, for example. I was reviewing this comic, which had been in a bag since forever, for a good story when the pages started to disintegrate in my hands. Quick, to the scanner before all is lost! As you can tell by the cover, I barely got it against the glass in time!

Despite my best efforts, I cannot discover the artist. Any help would be appreciated. The story is an excellent example of how to tell a 6 page comic book story. The plotting and pace are pitch perfect, the comedy is sharp, and in the end our hero, Billy Goat, remains undaunted and learns the art of poster hanging. This is from Fawcett’s Funny Animals No. 73, October, 1951. I’m very happy to share it. Just click the image for the big picture.