Sunday 5 August 2012

Yogi Bear, Weekend Comics, August 1962

Cute little creatures, an out-of-character Boo Boo and guest appearances highlight the weekend Yogi Bear comics 50 years ago this month.



Yogi was always a little sensitive about his weight. In one cartoon, he took exception to being called “dumpy.” In the August 5th comic, a bunch of Hanna-Barbera characters (wait for it!) weigh in on the situation. What’s odd is the ones who appeared on Yogi’s own show aren’t present, but everyone who was on the Quick Draw McGraw Show is. And so is Huck, though Mr. Jinks, Pixie and Dixie are missing. Ranger Smith gets the day off.



I wonder how the play on words in the August 12th comic would have translated into other languages. Yogi distracts Ranger Smith so he can get at some unseen pic-a-nic baskets. Silhouette drawing.



Would Boo Boo really laugh over Ranger Smith’s misfortune? Not in the cartoons. But it’s different in this comic from August 19th. The composition in the first and last panels is quite attractive. Notice the woodchucks in the opening panel. It seems fir trees in the backgrounds of Yogi comics have to be drawn at a slight angle. I’m a dope when it comes to figuring out who drew what but I suspect Harvey Eisenberg is responsible for the art here.



A cute armadillo is the highlight of the August 26th comic. Do they really die if they flip over? It seems Fred Flintstone and Barney Rubble aren’t the only ones who bowl in the Hanna-Barbera world. And Bugs Bunny isn’t the only animated character who makes a turn in a city in the American Southwest. Another silhouette panel.

As usual, click on each comic to enlarge it.

2 comments:

  1. I became a Harvey Eisenberg fan since I began reading the old Tom and Jerry comics back in the 50s and when I bought my first comic book in 1958, it was a Huckleberry Hound issue drawn by him. Years later I began writing and drawing the Pink Panther and Beep Beep, The Road Runner comic books for Western Publishing Company's Spanish licensees in Mexico and I confess I tried to imitate Harvey's style as much as I could. He was my idol then and still is now! Thanks for posting these wonderful strips.

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  2. It's Harvey Eisenberg, all right.

    And, I'd sure like a glimpse of Fernando Llera's Eisenberg-inspired Beep Beep art!

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