Mr. Jack

This article is about the comic strip. For the song by System of a Down, see Steal This Album!.

Jimmy Swinnerton's Mr. Jack (February 12, 1905)

Mr. Jack was a "funny animal" comic strip by Jimmy Swinnerton which ran in William Randolph Hearst newspapers from about 1903 until 1935.

When Jimmy Swinnerton moved from the San Francisco Examiner to the New York Journal in 1896, he changed his The Little Bears to The Little Tigers. At first nameless, some of the tiger characters started to appear regularly, until one of them, Mr. Jack got his own Sunday strip from November 1, 1903 on.^[1]

Characters and story

Mr. Jack, a married but philandering tiger, became the star from what has been called "the first fully-realized funny animal", as he was clothed, moved on his hind legs, had hands and talked.^[1][2] Since his womanizing behaviour was considered a poor example for children, the comic was moved to the sports section after 1904.^[1]

Mr. Jack appeared irregularly, although in 1912 The Escapades of Mr. Jack began, a daily but also sporadically appearing strip which ran to at least 1920. Finally, in 1926, Mr. Jack became the topper for the more popular Sunday strip Little Jimmy, where he appeared until 1935, when Mr. Jack was discontinued.^[1]

The real main character is Mr. Jack's long suffering spouse, whose loyalties are never rightly placed with the flirtatious Mr. Jack. His misbehavior often leads her to beg for forgiveness on his behalf and then beat Mr. Jack senseless with whatever is closest.

Mr. Jack is an incorrigible philanderer who may flirt with nearly any nearby lady, with the exception of Mrs. Jack, and often harass and be moved to take flirting to unacceptable levels by modern standards. His shameless behaviour is usually punished, either by his wife or his victims' boyfriends, but Mr. Jack later concludes that it was worthwhile nonetheless. On a whole, a very popular figure among less conservative characters in his universe, Mr. Jack is often seen as the jovial life of the party, charming to women and admired by men.

Influence

Mr. Jack, while never as popular as Little Jimmy, probably also because of its erratic appearances, still had a considerable influence. One clear derivative was Mr. George by Harold Knerr, the second author of the Katzenjammer Kids.^[3]

References

1. ^ ^{a b c d} Don Markstein's Toonopedia. "Mr. Jack". http://www.toonopedia.com/mrjack.htm. Retrieved 2007-05-14. 
2. ^ Holmes! (2005-11-16). "New strip! Mr. Jack!". Barnacle Press. Archived from the original on 2007-04-06. http://web.archive.org/web/20070406133812/http://www.barnaclepress.com/archives/2005/11/new_strip_mr_ja.html. Retrieved 2007-05-14. "In 1892, Swinnerton unleashed a series of bears and tigers, standing on two feet and dressed in the styles of the day, setting off an explosion of anthropomorphic animals that we've yet to tire of." 
3. ^ Jim Lowe (2002-06-25). "Harold H. Knerr". http://www.yodaslair.com/dumboozle/knerr/knerrdex.html. Retrieved 2007-05-14. 

Sources

• Barnacle Press: Mr. Jack