Walt Kelly's Pogo has been making me smile ever since I was a little sprat. Lucky for me, Dad had great taste in comics, and when we were old enough to read, good ol' Dad brought forth his treasures and shared with us chill'un the joys that are Pogo. In a manner not dissimilar from the Warner Brothers cartoons that held the interest of children on one level, and also contained humor meant for older 'children' on a different level, Kelly could entertain and mesmerize all ages. As a kid, I didn't understand the social commentary and many of the popular culture references Kelly infused his comics with, I just knew they were funny.
I read and re-read these books and comics over and over throughout my childhood (and beyond), and after only a few decades of this, the bindings wore out and the pages began to come loose. That became a blessing in disguise, because now they are in perfect condition for scanning. Lucky you!
I can only imagine how Walt Kelly wrote his stories...they seem to flow from panel to panel in a spontaneous whimsy, going nowhere in particular, but overflowing with such gentle and approachable humor -- good-natured, but waaaay out there. Silly? Yes. Fun? Of course. Entertaining? To say the least! As you read the next 30 plus pages, I challenge you to find one single panel that isn't brimming with either Kelly's boundless wit in the form of jokes, or his unmatched humorous art, or both. G'wan, I dare ya!
So here is the first part of UNCLE POGO'S So-So-Stories, first print, 1953, including 'Robin Hood To Pay Piper', and 'A Chile's Guardin' Adversus'. What a talented fellow this Walt Kelly was. Enjoy.
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...COMING SOON!!
A~W~E~S~O~M~E~!
ReplyDelete(bootylicious scans, Bra~!)
You know, my father was a big Walt Kelly fan and had this book when I was growing up. Thus, you could say I was introduced to the classics early. Beautiful post. I loved it and thanks for the memories. -- Mykal
ReplyDeleteThanks, guys!
ReplyDeleteThom Buchanan is currently maintaining Whirled of Kelly, which gives us a personalized look at Kelly's work. And, previously, Buchanan creäted Pogo in Pandemonia, which presented most of a extended story arc from c. '66.
ReplyDeleteThanks oeconomist, for the reminder and the links as well (I think I have at least one of those blogs linked on the side here).
ReplyDeleteBoth fantastic blogs that focus on the genius of Walt Kelly - everyone should check them out!
There was no one else like Kelly.