NEW! Dangerous Dan by Nigel P

[Digifiend]

He had a thick beard instead of Desperate Dan's stubble, and is mean instead of kind, tends to break the law instead of helping the sheriff like Desperate Dan does, but otherwise they're similar, and Dangerous's role is as a rival or an evil counterpart. Sometimes Dangerous Dan would team up with Cactusman, who could easily have been a Bananaman villain. One annual story had the two Dans both getting ready for dates. They keep bumping into each other, having mishaps, and having to go home and change. Eventually, they both arrive for their date - at the same house, making them think that the same girl asked them both out. It turns out to be twins, but the two Dans are late, and they've both got other men to take them out instead.

[Tin Can Tommy]

Today's dangerous dan strip is quite a departure from his previus adventures. I wont spoil it for any of you. Also there is now a Wikipedia article for the strip which also contains spoilers.

[Peter Gray]

Wowser!!!!!

its getting better and better...love the fact it is for real...oh no I don't want it to end...great imagination..so much scope for ideas..

its been a slow burner...But Wow!!

[AndyB]

Yes, I read that yesterday and thought... wow. He's not paranoid. Nice one, Beano office, you had us all wrong-footed!

[Phoenix]

Thanks for that, Digi. I had been wondering whether Dangerous Dan McGrew was an update on Desprit Dan M'Gee from D.C. Thomson's Adventure in 1930. I had a letter about this character printed in Book and Magazine Collector in January 2002, in which I was suggesting him as a source or an early version of Desperate Dan. Norman Wright agreed with me. See below. In the light of your information, it seems as though there are certainly some aspects of Dan M'Gee in Dan McGrew.

[jakob1978]

He had a thick beard instead of Desperate Dan's stubble, and is mean instead of kind, tends to break the law instead of helping the sheriff like Desperate Dan does, but otherwise they're similar, and Dangerous's role is as a rival or an evil counterpart. Sometimes Dangerous Dan would team up with Cactusman, who could easily have been a Bananaman villain. One annual story had the two Dans both getting ready for dates. They keep bumping into each other, having mishaps, and having to go home and change. Eventually, they both arrive for their date - at the same house, making them think that the same girl asked them both out. It turns out to be twins, but the two Dans are late, and they've both got other men to take them out instead.

Here's a Dangerous Dan strip from issue 2516 (10th February 1990). Note that it's actually "Dangerous Dan McGroo" not McGrew

[Digifiend]

Thanks! I Googled for a scan but couldn't find any.

[felneymike]

Hmm, isn't Kid Kong also a re-used name from The Beezer? XD

[Tin Can Tommy]

i think kid kong was from monster fun

[Raven]

i think kid kong was from monster fun

Yes, Kid Kong - son of King Kong - in Monster Fun from the first issue (and on the first cover mucking about with the free plate wobbler), then in Buster for years after the two comics combined.

[felneymike]

Ah OK. I got the 70's annuals I had in the 90's mixed up! (Well the Monster Fun one might have been 1980 actually, which one had the mashed potato mound with dynamite in?). Strange that DCT weren't a bit wary of using an (admittedly old) IPC character's name, though I suppose he was only in that one story and the name is a bit "obvious".

[AndyB]

Not the first time though - see the DCT and IPC characters called Dinah Mite, who were a lot closer together timewise.

[Digifiend]

So close that IPC had to rename their version when it was reprinted, because DCT's was running by then.

[AndyB]

Yes and no. IPC will have been aware of Dinah in the Dandy, but I think both companies routinely retitled strips when reprinted in another comic anyway according to evidence on this forum - Cannonball Kid, Ali's Baba and Adrian the Barbarian are just latter day examples of this, and in each case it wasn't forced by a joke being of its time (eg L Cars becoming Krazy Kops)

[Phoenix]

I think both companies routinely retitled strips when reprinted in another comic anyway according to evidence on this forum - Cannonball Kid, Ali's Baba and Adrian the Barbarian are just latter day examples of this

I'm just curious about your Cannonball Kid reference, Andy. In which IPC comic did this character appear, and roughly when? I'd like to track it down.