Yogi Bear Weekend Comics, May 1965

Our source for full, three-row Yogi Bear Sunday newspaper comics dried up a month ago. At that time, we suggested you could see the full-colour, two-row versions for April 1965 on Mark Kausler’s web site, from his own personal collection. Once again, we direct you to visit Mark at THIS LINK to see the comics from 50 years ago this month.

However, we have updated this post since originally uploading it with three-row Yogis we surprisingly found. Before we get there, a few random musings...

The newspaper version of Jellystone Park is an odd place, though I suppose it’s less odd than having military manoeuvres and a missile launching site like on the TV show. Native Indians seem to live in the park. And above, you see a couple of seniors in the May 30, 1965 comic. Perhaps it’s a case of Yogi wandering off the grounds of Jellystone and into nearby reserves and wooded residential areas. Yes, I know he couldn’t escape from the park in “Yogi Bear’s Big Break,” but there weren’t internet continuity freaks in those days. So let’s assume Yogi made strolls outside the park boundaries on occasion.


The May 2, 1965 comic with a blond woman and one of those cutsy, maybe-Hazelton-designed kids named Kevin. Their identities aren’t revealed, but I’ll assume they’re Ranger Smith’s wife and kid, since he had such in earlier newspaper adventures. Their look varied. No continuity, remember.


In 1964, prime-time television was graced with “The Famous Adventures of Mr. Magoo,” where his character would portray historical or literary characters. Well, here we are on May 9, 1965 where Yogi portrays historical characters in ancestral form. Hey, why is Ranger Smith chopping down a tree? The comic has a neat twist ending (Dale Hale, is this one of yours?). And Great Shades of Charlie Shows! This may be the first Yogi comic where he doesn’t rhyme. Isn’t that a crime? Hey, hey, hey!


You’d think a teenaged girl would be listening to the Beatles or some parody name version of them. Nope. This chick’s groovin’ on...Andy Williams?! Well, parts of the animated cartoon world were never friendly to rock music. Until I found the top row of the May 16th comic, I figured Yogi appeared for a second time without rhyming. I should have known better. The birds are nicely rendered; there are pretty good drawings of birds in a few of the other Yogi comics. Perhaps they’re like Humboldt in that Augie Doggie cartoon and they’re humming “Swanee River.”


Speaking of Augie, here he is in the first panel of the May 23rd comic, making a cameo appearance with his dear old dad and Huck, Quick Draw and Baba Looey. Then they vanish. We get Indian stereotypes instead. A shame that first row is poorly scanned; I like the composition.


Mark has the May 30th comic with all three rows in colour. “Mom, who’s Tom Dewey?” I can hear the young newspaper readers of America asking when they first saw this comic.

Join us next month for more three-row Yogis from our new source. But check out Mark’s blog, too, to see part or all of them in full colour.