Today we’re traveling back over a hundred years to meet Walter Bradford’s Fizzboomski the Anarchist! Inspired by the drama of the Russian Revolution, Bradford dreamed up his bungling anarchist, Fizzboomski (né Fitzboomski), whose assassination plots are constantly foiled by elaborately comic countermeasures; his targets, the Czar and the Prime Minister, forever one step ahead. The humor is pretty dark for the Sunday funnies, but the feature hardly takes itself seriously. Along with the madcap antics of the titular star we’re treated to those familiar jabs at Russia, you know, ending words in “-ski” or referring to the Prime Minister as the “Prime Minister-a-vitch.” Sometimes I worry you folks must think I live under a rock, but I will admit that I was surprised to see that sort of humor so early in the 20th Century (I think of that sort of silliness as more of a Cold War thing, but here it is).

The Stripper’s Guide featured this title a few months back and, needless to say, the coverage is certainly worth your time. If not for the history lesson, certainly for the color samples. According to Allan’s dates we have half the original run and all of the 1907 revival here in the archives (no luck finding that 1908 oddball). Enjoy.

From Winsor McCay and your pals at Barnacle Press.

I’m guessing that there are a fair amount of comickers who follow our li’l site, and I’d like to ask a favor of them. I’ve got a vaudeville-themed board game that I’ve designed, and I’m looking for some spot illustrations for the cards. There are 45 cards to illustrate, so I’m looking for as many folks to contribute as I can find. Do one card, do five, anything you can contribute would be appreciated and will really help!

Catches? Oh, I’ve got a handful of catches… Firstly, there’s no money in this deal. I’m looking for folks who love to draw, who love old stuff, and who love Barnacle Press. Next, I need these illustrations by this coming Monday, the 16th of November, one week from this very moment! I’m heading to the wonderful BoardGameGeek.con convention next Wednesday, and I need to assemble my game to bring along.

The upside? Well, I think that any follower of this site will find the subject matter to their liking. It should really be a lot of fun to draw these things, and I’m just looking for black and white cartoon portraits of people. No wild action, no backgrounds. The end result will be a Creative Commons licensed, free print ‘n’ play board game that will be available here at Barnacle Press. And a plus: it’s actually a really fun game!

If you’d be interested in lending your pen to my cause, drop me a line with a link to your work, and I’ll send you a link with more information: my name is Holmes, this site is BarnaclePress.com. I’ll wager you can figure out my email address…

It is with great excitement that I add Ed Carey’s The Troubles of Dictionary Jaques to the archive; we have been looking for this one for years. Back when we first started this site, Holmes and I were discussing strips we had never seen but really wanted to find and share here. For my part, I was dying to get my hands on Madge the Magician’s Daughter, which I thankfully found a while back. Holmes mentioned our new friend Dictionary Jaques, and I was intrigued right away. Ron Goulart’s The Funnies showed a couple panels, but that was as close as I’ve come to seeing the strip until I recently stumbled upon it while looking for something else. So in celebration of my pal’s birthday, I’m posting all the Jaques I’ve been able to find. You may remember Carey’s work from another favorite of ours (and, coincidentally, another strip discussed that fateful day): Dolby’s Double. Jaques is a really fun creation. The situation is simple enough: Jaques is a Frenchman who relies on his dictionary to understand his surroundings, but misinterprets the definitions he reads. Hilarity ensues and you get some crazy imagery like Jaques head-butting a stranger who resembles Everett True or Jaques bundling up a baby like a package. I hope this was worth the wait, Holmes! Happy b-day!

Because YOU demanded it! Okay, perhaps that’s stretching the truth a bit, but I’m sure someone out there has been wanting to see more of these, right? I’ve been meaning to get some more Zimmie posted in the archive ever since J.R. Gonzales wrote his wonderful “An owl named Zimmie” for the Bayou City History blog a couple years ago. But let’s not focus on how long it takes me to accomplish things around here and let’s delight to the wit and wisdom of those lovable owls: Zimmie and his girlfriend Lizzie. Check out our newest selections where you’ll find Zimmie gabbing about the weather. His feelings on art. And politics. He shares some sensible thoughts on newspapers. And he wouldn’t be Zimmie if he didn’t wax philosophic from time to time. When Lizzie isn’t busy setting him up, she’s trying to shoehorn her religious agenda into the tiny panel. Whatever the topic, be sure these two lovebirds will do their best to provide something to consider as you go about your day.

You’ve met Tweedledum, Tweedledee and the Other Triplet, but are you familiar with Freddie, Eddie and Teddie? They’re the merry mischief makers of Hy Leonard’s The Triplet Boys! This strip definitely has a look of its own; were it not for the fact that this was produced in 1905, I’d almost be willing to guess the triplets were based on muppets. Just look at those heads! While Tweedledum and Co. get their kicks hiding from strangers the fact that they are a trio of look-a-likes, Freddie, Eddie and Teddie take the opposite approach by simply tormenting their loved ones en masse. The gags are a bit forced, sure, but the odd visuals are not to be missed.

Anyone in the mood for a classic comic strip? We’re going way back to 1903 today folks; allow me to introduce William F. Marriner’s fun-loving trio: Tweedledum, Twedleedee and the Other Triplet. I know, I cringe too when I see a strip that labels the panels one, two, three, four…but just take a moment to look past that. Marriner actually gets some good mileage out of his premise. Sure, the gags aren’t exactly breaking new ground, but they do deliver a smile here and there which is a lot more than I can say for other humor strips of the same time period. And even if these don’t have you chuckling out loud, it’s still worth the price of admission to check out Marriner’s artwork. I’m not sure how long this title lasted; I get a sense there aren’t a whole lot of these. We have ten of them up today, go take a look.

I’ll admit upfront “geevum” is a term I can’t recall ever seeing until I recently ran across this forgotten work: The Geevum Girls. From what I gather after a few seconds of online research, the term has something to do with giving your best. How this relates to the strip at hand, I’m not exactly sure. What we have here is a typical, light domestic comedy of the era centered around two sisters. I’ve been looking for names, but Miss Geevum is the only one I’ve seen and used for either. One sister is drawn in a rubbery, cartoony style (think Olive Oyl), while the other has more of the glamorous look of an illustration. Supporting characters include the diminutive Joe Gazinkus who is desired by one sister, but not-so-secretly in love with the other and Uncle Ed & Little Nell, a couple of relatives who are perhaps a bit too rough around the edges for the sisters’ liking. Tim Early is a name I have not seen attached to a strip before, anyone familiar with his work? Does he have other features to his credit?

The modern “bus boy” is derived from “omnibus boy,” a lad assigned a number of tasks in a restaurant, chiefly removing dirty dishes and brushing crumbs from tables. In the case of Rowland’s Omnibus Boy one imagines scheming and trickery to be prerequisite for the position. While a fine title for this feature, Stereotypes Running Rampant in Turn-of-the Century Dining Establishment might have been even more fitting. The titular Omnibus Boy speaks with a German accent; I have yet to spot a proper name for him, but his nationality is emphasized every time he opens his mouth. As with the Katzenjammers and many other comic characters cut from the same cloth, Americans from a century ago seem quite tickled by those German accents. Our Omnibus Boy frequently buts heads with Gaston, the head waiter better known as “Frenchy.” You can guess what he’s like before sampling even a a single strip. And the less said about the stereotypical Asian character working the kitchen, the better. A lot of the strip’s “humor” revolves around Frenchy getting his comeuppance, though I think our “hero” comes across as a spiteful jerk a little too often. I tend to enjoy the strip more when the jokes center on antics of the diners, though those episodes tend to be even wordier than the usual outings. As for the creator, Rowland, I feel as if I have seen other things from him, but I can’t name a single one at the moment. Did he go on to other, hopefully better, strips?