Comics UK

Could it be the green eyes went well with the yellow backgrounds on the early Monster Comics? Because in the weekly then fortnightly comic Korky's eyes where white and when Thomsons ditched the yellow background on the 1950 Monster comic they just kept them green??

I'd suggest they splashed out on more colour on the Monster Comics covers, and factored in coloured eyes for Korky - and flesh-coloured skin for the humans.

AndyB wrote:I'd suggest they splashed out on more colour on the Monster Comics covers, and factored in coloured eyes for Korky - and flesh-coloured skin for the humans.

Well Thomsons certainly went to town on The Dandy Monster Comic 1941 with the colouring on Desperate Dan on it's rear cover it even shows that Dan didn't brush his teeth properly judging by the cheddar teeth on his bottom set

Something similar happened with Alfred Bestall's Rupert Annuals where Rupert Bear was always shown with a brown face on the covers but a white one inside. In fact Bestall was so incensed when the then-editor of the Express ordered that the 1973 Annual should be altered so that the cover matched the interior he resigned in disgust!

- Phil Rushton

philcom55 wrote:Something similar happened with Alfred Bestall's Rupert Annuals where Rupert Bear was always shown with a brown face on the covers but a white one inside. In fact Bestall was so incensed when the then-editor of the Express ordered that the 1973 Annual should be altered so that the cover matched the interior he resigned in disgust!

- Phil Rushton

Isn't the Rupert annual 1973 with Rupert having a brown face worth many thousands of pound due to its really low print?

Finally got the book...
I'm loving the original art for the colour pages like Griggs Korky for the Dandy summer specials..
if I'm allowed to say I wish it was bigger like the Beano one..But there is lots to enjoy..
nice seeing Eric Robert's Willie the wicked..not wicked willie also a good amount on Eric..

Its hard to fit 75 years history in one book..

also nice seeing Tom Paterson's comic page that never took off.a new comic was considered with these characters..

the 70's section is only 10 pages..so it almost didn't need mentioning in the book..

Bill Holroyd's The hovercar snatcher is brilliant..might do a post on it..

I think Jamie should have been mentioned for drawing Desperate Dan today!

Its a book we never thought would happen so very pleased its here..thanks DC Thomson..

Of course, Jamie would be mentioned in the index. I think maybe the reason they glossed over it is because he started drawing Dan in the Xtreme era.

I ordered the last copy Amazon had, it was despatched within hours.


Dunno what to make of this....

ISPYSHHHGUY wrote:I ordered the last copy Amazon had, it was despatched within hours. Dunno what to make of this....

They posted off to me a perfect replacement copy, which arrived on Friday at my house, before the one I sent back had even left my local Collect+ collection point. Amazon certainly know how to retain the loyalty of their customers.

Phoenix wrote:Could someone please tell me why Korky always had white eyes on the cover of The Dandy for donkeys' years, at least into the fifties, but green eyes on the covers of the early annuals at least. Any information about later changes will also be helpful.

Some interesting conjecture and guesswork, thanks for those replies. Now, does anybody know the answer, or have any actual related facts that will shed some real light on the issue?

My copy arrived extremely quickly, and I merely tore open the Amazonian cardboard [which WILL be recycled eventually, for all you pee-cee pundits] to make sure that it was the item I ordered.

I had to leave it entombed in cardboard, though, or I would have leafed through the contents---like the BEANO counterpart, I want to leave this 'til Christmas day.

Has anyone else noticed the subliminal Dennis the Menace hairdo at the epicentre of this cover: shrewd marketing, or merely chortlesome coincidence?







Even the red-and-black colour scheme smacks of delicious subversion from some joker at DCT's art department------if this wheezular jape is indeed deliberate, I salute and respect this worthy act of anarchy.

Good point, but don't forget Smasher's hairstyle is similar to Dennis's. That's probably why he originally had red hair instead of black. As for the red, considering the logo used, it is a little odd that a red background was used, as the logo had a blue background when used originally. They probably did it to match the History of the Beano, for which this book is a follow-up.

Digifiend wrote:Good point, but don't forget Smasher's hairstyle is similar to Dennis's. That's probably why he originally had red hair instead of black. As for the red, considering the logo used, it is a little odd that a red background was used, as the logo had a blue background when used originally. They probably did it to match the History of the Beano, for which this book is a follow-up.

Or perhaps because red is a more popular colour than blue.

It's not a black hairstyle by the way. It's just a flash, like the ones that used to be behind the Wham and Smash logos.

thanks for the comments, guys----yes I used to think there was a great resemblance between Dennis and the Smasher.


I was just amused by the way the design actually turned out---it's a good cover actually.