Here come I SPY and THE SPARKY PEOPLE (1969)

Fifty years ago Sparky comic was undergoing some changes that had seen it gradually evolve from a kind of sweet title that bridged the gap between nursery comics and The Beano into a more off the wall comic that appealed to all ages. Intentionally or not, it had slowly matured with its readership, so that the six year olds who enjoyed it in 1965 could still get a kick out of it in 1969 when they were slightly older. 

Two of its best remembered strips debuted in Sparky No.211, dated February 1st 1969. They were I Spy, drawn by Les Barton, and We Are The Sparky People, drawn by Jim Petrie. 

I always felt that I Spy was D.C. Thomson's answer to Mike Higgs' The Cloak which was running in Smash! at the time, with a dash of the Black Spy from Mad's Spy vs Spy thrown into the design element. Whatever the inspiration, I Spy was a great strip in its own right and I hope that D.C. Thomson's Heritage Comics imprint do a collection one day. 

I'm showing the first episodes of I Spy and We Are The Sparky People strips here. Hope you enjoy them! 

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The Christmas SPARKY (1970)

One of the most fondly remembered covers for a D.C. Thomson humour comic, this Christmas 1970 issue of Sparky eschewed the usual Barney Bulldog strip to present this cosy festive scene with all the characters carol singing. The artwork was by Vic Neill, the Peter Piper artist of the time. (Peter being the one writing the message in the snow with his pipes.) 

There were plenty of Christmas strips inside this 24 page issue. I-Spy didn't have a festive theme but I know so many of you liked this strip (as did I) that it'd be remiss of me to avoid it. Brilliant comedy-adventure material of the type we should see more of in British comics. Artwork by Brian Walker.

Mr.Bubbles was a strip I never really cared for. It seemed too young, even when I was 11, but in retrospect this is a nicely told Christmas tale. I think the artist was Pamela Chapeau at this stage but I'm not too familiar with her work. Can anyone confirm this?

The Sparky People was the comic's brilliant sit-com set in the Sparky office. Although the staff were fictionalised it was an enjoyable strip about the behind-the-scenes antics. Art by Jim Petrie.

L-Cars (the name a spoof on TV's Z-Cars) was another great Sparky strip. The thing about Sparky was that it had its own identity and style of humour. When the Odhams comics ended, I jumped to Sparky as one of the closest equivalents. A genuinely funny comic, and L-Cars was one of its best strips. Art by Bill Hill...

The back page featured Puss and Boots by John Geering. Full of comic violence and frantic situations, it became one of the most popular strips in the comic. 

We're nearing ever closer to Christmas, but look out for another festive flashback on this blog on Christmas Eve!

Incidentally, the issue of The Beano that came out that same week in 1970 featured a cover that complimented the Sparky one, with its characters carol singing too. You can see my blog post about it from last year here:
https://lewstringer.blogspot.co.uk/2016/12/christmas-comics-beano-1970.html

New exhibition of Jim Petrie's work

Scanned from THE BEANO SUMMER SPECIAL 1966.

A new exhibition of the artwork of the late Jim Petrie opens tomorrow (June 3rd) at the Lamb Gallery at the University of Dundee. It runs until 19th September. 

Here's the info:
This special exhibition celebrates the work of artist Jim Petrie, who died in 2014. A former student of Dundee College of Art (now Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art & Design) and Dundee Training College (now the University’s School of Education, Social Work & Community Education), Jim later became a popular art teacher at Kirkton High School but is best known as the man who drew the "world's wildest tomboy" Minnie the Minx for 40 years in DC Thomson's famous comic The Beano.

To find out the full details, visit the website here:
http://www.dundee.ac.uk/museum/exhibitions/comics/petrie/ 

Here's my tribute to Jim Petrie which I posted last year:
http://lewstringer.blogspot.co.uk/2014/08/jim-petrie-1932-2014.html

Christmas Comics: SPARKY (1973)

Sparky No.466, dated 22nd December 1973 kicked off with a marvelous wraparound cover drawn by Bill Ritchie. 

Turn the page, and there's The Sparky People, a great strip set in the Sparky office. (Although as far as I know, none of the characters were based on actual people.) Art by Jim Petrie...

Sparky had its own distinct style, often wittier and more modern than The Dandy and The Beano at the time. Here's the Christmas episode of the popular L Cars with art by Bill Hill...

Snip and Snap had a very distinct art style that I liked. It was drawn by Mike Green, who later went on to do Weedy Willy for Oink!...

Ali's Baba made good use of spot colour by having the guardian angel Ali only appear in red line. Art by Malcolm Judge...

By 1973 Puss an' Boots had proven so popular with the readers that they now occupied the full colour centre pages. Not bad for a strip that began as a half pager in black and white. Artwork by the excellent John Geering...

Dreamy Daniel was about a boy with a vivid imagination, very much a forerunner to Les Pretend from The Beano. Art by Gordon Bell...

Where will the Blimey-Timey Time Machine land next? Find out soon!

Jim Petrie 1932 - 2014

Sad news in the comics industry this week with the passing of humour artist Jim Petrie on Sunday 24th August. If you read The Beano in the last four decades of the 20th Century you'd certainly know his work, for he was the main artist on Minnie the Minx from 1962 until his retirement in the year 2001.

Jim Petrie was assigned the task of taking over Minnie the Minx from the great Leo Baxendale, but rather than simply ghost Leo's style Jim added his own flourishes to the strip. Minnie the Minx under Jim Petrie was distinctly his own strip, and his lively, energetic pages conveyed a sense of pure fun and enjoyment. 

Jim Petrie's pages were always a pleasure to behold. The body language of his characters kept the strips alive and entertaining. Whether drawing slapstick scenes or quieter moments, Jim handled it like a true master. 

You can read a proper obituary of Mr.Petrie over at Steve Holland's blog here:
http://bearalley.blogspot.co.uk/2014/08/jim-petrie-1932-2014.html

A memoriam on John Freeman's Down the Tubes site:
http://downthetubes.net/?p=16500&utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=in-memoriam-jim-petrie

...and The Beano itself have a nice tribute to him on their website:
http://www.beano.com/characters/minnie-the-minx/downloads/jim-petrie-1932-2014

I've selected a few pages of Jim Petrie work from my comics collection to show here. (Click on each image to read it full size.) Firstly a lively slapstick Minnie the Minx from The Beano No.1246 (June 4th 1966)...

Next, Minnie wants to be Billy the Cat in this story from The Beano No.1396 (April 19th 1969)...

Some great reaction shots in this Minnie strip from The Beano No.1495 (March 13th 1971)...

One of my favourite 1960s strips was The Sparky People that Jim drew every week. Excellent expressions in this one from Sparky No.223 (April 26th 1969)...

...and smashing cartoon work in this one from Sparky No.226 (May 17th 1969)...

Finally, a Minnie the Minx full colour page from The Beano Summer Special 1994...

My condolences to Mr.Petrie's family and friends at this sad time. I hope they can find comfort in the fact that his work brought happiness and good cheer to millions of children for nearly 40 years. Rest In Peace Jim Petrie. 

Minnie the Minx at 60

Today's issue of The Beano is special for two reasons. Not only is it the Christmas issue, but it also marks the 60th anniversary of Minnie the Minx, and Minnie herself dominates the cover, replacing Dennis the Menace for once, illustrated by Nigel Parkinson. 

Minnie the Minx began in The Beano No.596, dated 19th December 1953, in a six panel black and white strip drawn by Leo Baxendale. Here's that very first strip (taken from The History of The Beano book)...

Although conceived as a female version of Dennis the Menace, the character of Minnie developed in its own direction and always seemed an equal to Dennis, rather than a mere imitation. The strip evolved along with Leo Baxendale's style. Here's a nice example from The Beano No.928, April 30th 1960...

When Leo Baxendale left DC Thomson in the early 1960s, the strip was handed over to Jim Petrie, who illustrated over 2,000 episodes. Here's one of his earlier ones from The Beano No.1126, February 15th 1964...

Other artists have drawn Minnie over the years, including impressive stints by Ken H. Harrison and Laura Howell, with Nigel Parkinson being the current artist. At 60, Minnie continues to be The Beano's premier tomboy, and shows no sign of slowing down yet.

The Christmas Beano is in the shops now, bagged with gifts for £4.99, or as a digital download on the Beano App for £1.49.