The Era -- Day By Day

[LizzieMaine]

Astonishingly -- and I just went back and checked -- there was no "Terry" in yesterday's News. The comic section had a bunch of full-page ads, and of all the strips to get bounced, Terry -- their second-most popular strip next to Tracy -- was the one they picked. Which is weird, because all the "filler" strips, the half-page ones they run to make up the page count, were present and accounted for. I imagine "Voice of the People" will see a flock of complaints about this.

After digging deep at the Out Of Town Newsstand I was able to find it elsewhere. Somebody at the News is getting hazed big time this morning.

 

[Fading Fast]

Astonishingly -- and I just went back and checked -- there was no "Terry" in yesterday's News. The comic section had a bunch of full-page ads, and of all the strips to get bounced, Terry -- their second-most popular strip next to Tracy -- was the one they picked. Which is weird, because all the "filler" strips, the half-page ones they run to make up the page count, were present and accounted for. I imagine "Voice of the People" will see a flock of complaints about this.

After digging deep at the Out Of Town Newsstand I was able to find it elsewhere. Somebody at the News is getting hazed big time this morning.

View attachment 283537

Thank you so much for finding a copy. What an outstanding day it was for it - so a shame if we had missed it. I had to read it twice to take it all in. Caniff is at the top of his game. Hu Shee springing into action in panel six is more exciting than half the over-CGI'd action you seen in big-budget action-adventure movies today. Methinks Hu Shee has a little thinga-thinga for Terry. Caniff weaves it all in at warp speed and with incredible illustrations. He's got, as noted, a three-corner battle raging and he's in total control of it while keeping us on the edge of our seats. The man is a master storyteller.

 

[LizzieMaine]

There was a time when comics were "movies on paper." This is that time.

The Sunday "Terry" is hard to find in general, at least from my sources -- many of the papers that carried the daily didn't publish at all on Sunday -- which means a lot of these spectacular pages got limited circulation. Of course, the Sunday News blanketed much of the Northeast with three million copies a week in 1940, which leads me to think that Mr. Caniff himself will not be pleased that it was omitted from this week's issue.

The Minneapolis Star Journal, incidentally, has a helluva comic section -- or sections, actually. There's three, including the Will Eisner "Spirit Section" pull out comic book, totalling thirty two pages of comics. Pretty much the entire stable of Tribune-News Syndicate strips are here, along with a good selection of Hearst strips, and, on the front page, Superman. That's a lot of star power for a nickel.

 

[MissNathalieVintage]

As per usual the Sunday Chicago Trib is without Smiln' Jack. The good news Here is the link where you can read a couple of colorized copies of the Smiln' Jack Comic book from the late 1940s and it turns out Joy is a blond, I thought Joy would be a brunette. https://comicbookplus.com/?cid=1543

A closer look at the comic on the front page.

There are always patterns for clothing and crochet items in the news paper. I really enjoy this and it helps me get an idea of what the women who had jobs/housewife would've worn in the 1940s. And one of my favorite hobbies is crochet. It took me years to learn to crochet due to not knowing how to read the patterns. I did loads of research and watched lots to crochet a long youtube videos and now I can read simple crochet patterns.
I learned to knit from a book quickly, only I could not master any thing other then projects that only knitted with two straight knitting needles.

And did you know before the war women in America were crocheting, it was not until after the war when America began knitting too, it was mainly a UK fiber craft that American's adopted too. In the UK they do crochet as well only their crochet instructions are very different from American style crochet.
Here is the chart UK and US Conversion Chart:
https://www.coffeeandvanilla.com/basic-crochet-stitches-uk-us-conversion-chart/

 

[Fading Fast]

...and it turns out Joy is a blond, I thought Joy would be a brunette. https://comicbookplus.com/?cid=1543...

Considering the deftness with which she takes off her clothes, blonde makes sense.


It's not often that you see a score like this in a football game from the '40s; looks more like a 2020 score. So much for three yards and a cloud of dust.

 

[LizzieMaine]

I still sleep under an afghan my grandmother crocheted for me fifty years ago. The yarn arts are undergoing quite a resurgence these days -- a couple of the Kids knit, and another of my co-workers, who's struggling to keep food on the table during the pandemic, has been crocheting baby hats to sell on Etsy. I never learned how to knit or crochet myself, and probably don't see well enough anymore to learn now, but I admire the skill involved.

 

[Fading Fast]

I still sleep under an afghan my grandmother crocheted for me fifty years ago. The yarn arts are undergoing quite a resurgence these days -- a couple of the Kids knit, and another of my co-workers, who's struggling to keep food on the table during the pandemic, has been crocheting baby hats to sell on Etsy. I never learned how to knit or crochet myself, and probably don't see well enough anymore to learn now, but I admire the skill involved.

Both my grandmother and my girlfriend's grandmother had a very similar-looking afghan that we remember them using as a throw/wrap to stay warm in their old age. Seems like it was a thing with that generation (our grandmothers were both born in the last quarter of the 1800s).

After my grandmother passed, we put her B&W TV and sofa in a small extra room (that filled the room) and kept the afghan on the sofa. I "discovered" old movies, watching them in that room, on that TV, (in the winter) under that afghan (as our house was always cold in the winter, "heat" cost money and all).

 

[LizzieMaine]

"You're In The Army Now!" That's how the song goes, and it rang out today for all those Brooklyn boys now earning $21 a day once a month as privates undergoing basic training at Camp Upton. Typical of these boys is
26-year-old Vincent Kenneth Mills, who used to live at 1417 East 14th Street in Midwood. He used to stoke the furnace in the basement of P. S. 206, but now he's learning how to march and salute and all the rest of the basic skills a young man must learn before he'll be ready to take his full place in America's National Defense program. Exactly what he'll do in the Army once he's completed his basic training will depend on the results of an IQ test he took last night, but he hopes to be sent to an engineering school where he can continue his study of steam boilers and how they work, building experience he hopes to carry with him upon his return to civilian life.

Of the forty-three trainees arriving at Camp Upton from Brooklyn yesterday, Vince was the only one not to volunteer for service upon receiving a low draft number. But he's looking forward to his military experience just the same. "It'll be a great adventure," he says, "and it won't hurt me. Might even do me some good!"

("Yeah," says Joe. "Kid like'at, stretch'nna Army'll do'msome good!" "What 'kid'?" laughs Sally. "He'sjussayeah'younga'n you." "Yeah, well, y'loinnalot innat extra yeah!")

Another 120 Brooklyn men are due to go into the Army today, sent by eighteen local draft boards, along with another 85 from Queens. With the kinks worked out of the induction process over the first day of operation, it is expected there will be fewer delays and less "sitting around" for the men than was experienced by the first day's inductees.

A counterattack from fresh Italian troops newly brought from Rome to stem the Greek advance into Albania was reported today to have been repulsed, as the Greeks continued their drive by overwhelming the Italians with two bayonet charges.

Secretary of Labor Frances Perkins today warned the American Federation of Labor that it has a responsibility to the National Defense program to carry out its contracts, avoid production delays, settle its internal conflicts, and remove "subversive influences" from among its membership. It was the Secretary's first appearance before an AF of L convention since 1936, as she spoke today in New Orleans.

Meanwhile, the House Judiciary Committee was called into session today to consider legislation to curb possible strikes in defense plants. It was unclear at the outset exactly what type of legislation might be considered, but possible components could include a program of compulsory arbitration in the event of contract disputes, a ban on closed-shop contracts, or even an outright prohibition on strikes in the defense industry. Any such legislation would require amendment of the National Labor Relations Act.

A forty-year-old unemployed tailor from Bensonhurst was charged today with murder in the slaying of "an old family friend." Solomon Barillari is accused of killing 32-year-old Anthony Catansariti of the Bronx as the man dined with Barillari and his wife at their home at 7121 13th Avenue. Police say Barillari stated that he shot the man with a 32-caliber pistol because he was "paying too much attention" to Mrs. Barillari. Mrs. Josephine Barillari denied that statement, saying that she could think of no reason why her husband should have shot Catansariti.

A New Jersey circuit judge has ruled that "Bank Night," popular promotion in neighborhood movie theatres, is a lottery, and is therefore illegal under state law. The judge also dismissed a suit for $1400 filed by the owners of the "Bank Night" trademark against the operators of the Majestic Theatre in Paterson for failing to pay a licensing fee due for the use of the name, ruling that since the game is an illegal lottery, contracts governing it are unenforceable.

(Alas for Joe and Sally, it's hard to do this when yaphonesiinaboot'downacannystoah.)

Brooklyn College president Dr. Harry Gideonse lashed out today at the editorial policy of the student newspaper, and denounced its editor as a Communist. The college head deplored what he called the "unrepresentative policy" of the Beacon, and declared that editor Sam Fox, a senior living at 30 Joralemon Street, had admitted to him that he belongs to the Young Communist League. Dr. Gideonse continued by criticizing the American Student Union and the student council for opposing his plan for reorganization of the college's evening class schedules, a plan which, he contents, will allow students to obtain associate's degrees by attending night classes equivalent to two years' regular coursework.

(Wait, Henry Aldrich was in the running to be John Barrymore's son in law? Ohhhhhhh, the missed opportunities. And speaking of which, it looks like Eddie's still got some turkey left over.)

Reader Julian Chalif writes in to express support for Brownie the Dog, and to deplore the city's policy sentencing biting dogs to death. As a mailman by profession, Mr. Chalif knows from biting dogs, and he says no dog is a biter who hasn't been trained that way by his owner, and he believes it's the owner who should be penalized when a dog misbehaves -- not the poor dog himself.

(Some parents just aren't cut out for quadruplets.)

Whoever invented the famous "Norden Bombsight," the U. S. Government is keeping his identity a deep secret, refusing even to confirm that his name is "Norden." Even that name was unknown until it was recently spoken aloud by General George C. Marshall, but there is no indication of why the bombsight is called that. All that is known of the inventor is that he worked in close connection with the Navy for fifteen years -- but was evidently not a member of that service himself. General Marshall let slip the name of the closely-guarded, top-secret device when he indicated that it would not be installed on planes being sold by the US to Great Britain.

(No simulated pigs, either. I have a pigskin purse I've been carrying for years, and it's only now starting to wear out. Maybe I should take it over to the -- hahahaha -- "Shoe Fixery" to see what they can do.)

With the Dodgers well on their way to building up their club for 1941 with the acquistion of Kirby Higbe, their arch-rivals uptown are beginning a rebuilding project of their own. The Giants yesterday announced the purchase of infielder Joe Orengo from the Cardinals for an undisclosed amount of cash and two players to be named later, and Bill Terry says the Jints began negotiating the deal as far back as the World Series. Memphis Bill has always liked the swarthy young Italian's roughneck style of play and has him pencilled in for next year as his starting third baseman, although he may also see work around the keystone at both short and second. The 24-year-old Orengo hit .287 for the Cardinals in 129 games in 1940. Meanwhile, Giants president Horace Stoneham refused to confirm or deny rumors that he had approached former Cubs manager Gabby Hartnett to take over the Giants' Jersey City farm club.

(In 1940, Superman cannot yet fly -- he merely leaps long distances. Once again, Sparky leads the way. And incidentally, it's long been believed that "Madame Fatal" was the first cross-dressing superhero -- but Slappy will beg to differ.)

(You know who'd be a great help in this scheme? Oakdale! Who pretends to know Europe better than him?)

(Leach has so much swagger that he can light his own cheek AND NOT EVEN FEEL IT.)

(CALLED IT.)

 

[LizzieMaine]

And in the Daily News...

Well now! We've got a boy Bunny and a girl Bunny today -- hope they don't get together, or this paper will need a lot more pages.

Somebody ought to write a novelty song about this. "Arthur Murray -- uh -- taught me dancing -- in a....Flurry!" Yeah, just in time for Christmas!

There's always somebody that's gotta be a bringdown.

You gotta admit he's got a good press agent.

In 1940 all milkmen are required to have first-responder training. No, not really.

See, this is why you should always carry a couple of fresh Molotov cocktails in your emergency kit.

Andy Gump is the only man who ever lived to wear size 13 shoes and a size 8 shirt collar.

You need to subscribe to "Billboard" magazine, kid -- they have a whole page devoted to this kind of thing.

I declare, William, you appear to be losing weight. All this exercise you've been getting is doing you some good.

I didn't know Sally Snipe had a sister living in Covina. Coincidence indeed.

 

[Fading Fast]

"...
(Wait, Henry Aldrich was in the running to be John Barrymore's son in law? Ohhhhhhh, the missed opportunities. And speaking of which, it looks like Eddie's still got some turkey left over.)...

Can't image what Eddie's is thinking as nothing makes your restaurant look more tired and unappealing than advertising a holiday meal several days after the holiday is over. Run a turkey-club or stew or something special, but this looks sad and left over (pun intended). Hard to do, but this is actually worse than the usual Childs ad.

... (In 1940, Superman cannot yet fly -- he merely leaps long distances. Once again, Sparky leads the way. And incidentally, it's long been believed that "Madame Fatal" was the first cross-dressing superhero -- but Slappy will beg to differ.)...)

As you've noted, Roger has the pieces of a really good superhero and some ideas and storylines for a really good strip, but he doesn't bring them all together well. It's like he hasn't thought everything through and created an overarching narrative; instead, he just does a day-to-day brain dump in the strip. And while Sparky might have beaten Superman to flight, I'm very, very happy Superman flies (somehow) without waving his arms like a fully wound tin toy.

... (CALLED IT.)

Kudos, you were spot on.

.... Well now! We've got a boy Bunny and a girl Bunny today -- hope they don't get together, or this paper will need a lot more pages.....

Way too many people today who have no idea how to act like adults when making marriage decisions.

Also, only 2.5 years for killing her husband. Based on all the other things going on, on this page today alone, spousal murders could increase a lot. Room and board for two-and-a-half years versus six months in Reno, legal costs, an uncertain alimony ruling, etc., - where's the local gun shop?

...[ See, this is why you should always carry a couple of fresh Molotov cocktails in your emergency kit.....

Caniff just knows what he's doing. After those incredible close up illustrations (film noir meets '60s Pop Art) in the first few panels, he pulls back to the sky view to amp up the drama. Plus, Hu Shee like blondes (certainly, exotic for her world) - Caniff almost always throws some sexual spice in no matter how much other stuff is going on.

 

[LizzieMaine]

Sixteen persons were indicted today on charges of grand larceny and conspiracy connected to the nationwide $4,000,000 Brooklyn-based card-sharking ring allegedly headed by fight manager Hymie Caplin. Caplin's name heads the list of those indicted by the November grand jury, and two of those named are already serving sentences at Sing Sing Prison on swindling convictions.

The two specific incidents named in the indictments charge the defendants with conspiring to swindle a fur merchant out of $10,000 in a rigged poker game at the St. George Hotel in downtown Brooklyn, and to cheat a shoe salesman out of $1400 in a game at the Coney Island Half Moon Hotel.

Ten individuals and nine corporations from Queens were indicted today along with four individuals and five corporations from upper Manhattan and the Bronx by the special Amen Grand Jury in connection with Assistant Attorney General John H. Amen's ongoing investigation of paving-contract racketeering. The incidents covered in the indictment mulcted the city out of more than half a million dollars in rigged bids.

A Brooklyn Democrat today accused Mayor LaGuardia of blocking his appointment to the position of borough Superindendant of the Department of Housing and Grounds for political reasons. Edwin W. Kleinert brought gales of laughter to the Manhattan Supreme Court room this morning when he hoised his trouser legs to demonstrate that he does not suffer from varicose veins as claimed by the Mayor in denying him the appointment, a job which would have required Kleinert to do a great deal of standing and walking about. Kleinert alleged, instead, that the real reason he was denied the job is that the Mayor believes he is "too close" to Brooklyn Democratic Party leader Frank Kelly -- and he further alleged that the Mayor said exactly those words to the late Borough President Raymond Ingersoll -- who, Kleinert stated, wanted him to have the job. Kleinert testified as part of the City Council's ongoing probe of Civil Service Commission hiring practices.

The Rumanian Iron Guard, Nazi-backed rulers of that country since the abdication of King Carol, today evened old scores with the former regime by executing sixty-four Carolite political prisoners at the grave of Iron Guard founder Corneliu Zelea Cordreau. The executions by firing squad were conducted in the same manner as the executions of Iron Guard supporters by the prior regime. Former Premier George Argesanu is reported to have been among those executed today, along with several high-ranking generals under the former administration.

Two out of three selectees who have passed every other qualification for military service are being rejected under strict Army standards of physical fitness, according to Selective Service officials in the city, with the Army rejecting two and a half men to get a single man suitable for service. Selective Service officials state that the rejected men are not being placed in a deferred class, but have been deemed outright to be physically unfit for hazardous military duty. Out of 119 Brooklyn men examined yesterday, thirty-one were sent home. The most common reasons for rejection are insufficient teeth and poor eyesight.

("H&H? Never heard of it.")

A Queens man sent home by the Army because he has too few molars says he's humiliated by the rejection, especially after all his family and friends from the neighborhood gave him a big going-away party when he got his draft notice. 32-year-old Frank Gruetzke quit his job as a brokerage clerk in anticipation of doing his year of military service, after his local draft board assured him that his upper plate was a sufficient substitute for the missing teeth, but once he arrived at Camp Upton, the Army disagreed and sent him home. "I don't know what to do," says Mr. Gruetzky. "I can't go back to my job after leaving the place. I don't want to see my friends. Why, I even spoke Monday night at a veterans' reception and said how glad I was to serve my country. Now I feel like I've been dealt a heavy blow with a hammer when I least expected it." Gruetzky has been reclassified "1B," meaning he could still be eligible for future "limited duty" service.

The fate of Brownie the Dog may be decided today, with the five-year-old cocker spaniel's case before City Court Justice Louis Goldstien. Brownie, who is owned by 17-year-old Miss Ruth Fucelli of Sunset Park, could be released back into her custody, could be released on the condition that he be removed from the city, or could be turned over to the ASPCA for execution for having bitten three persons. Meanwhile, it has been learned that Brownie is being kept at the Long Island Bird Store, 107 Flatbush Avenue, by arrangement with Kings County Sheriff James Magnano, who has allocated $1 a day in county funds for his upkeep pending a decision on his fate. Miss Fucelli has received over a thousand letters offering Brownie a home if he is banished from the city, and has also presented to the court a petition signed by over a thousand persons -- including Clifford Paige, president of the Brooklyn Union Gas Company -- demanding clemency.

A young Midwood woman's habit of carrying old, odd currency in her wallet foiled a purse-snatcher yesterday. Miss Alice L. McGuire identified her pocketbook in Flatbush Court today by the presence inside of a large, old-fashioned dollar bill, an oddly-stamped nickel, and a three-cent piece. That led to the conviction on petty-larceny charges of John W. Quilligan of Fort Greene, who was accused of lifting the wallet when the two met in a restaurant Monday night.

With all the musical comedies rampant on Broadway these days, it's refreshing to see a good substantial play now and then -- especially if it stars Ethel Barrymore. So says Arthur Pollock upon viewing "The Corn Is Green," now playing at the National Theatre. Miss Barrymore, playing a bicycle-riding turn-of-the-century social worker in Wales, enacts her role with that rich voice and those sidelong glances which have always been her stage trademark.

Duke Ellington, his band, and his stage revue will appear next week at the Flatbush Theatre. (Joe and Sally nod in simultaneous agreement: "We're goin'!")

"Scout Suit" writes in to Helen Worth wanting to know if anyone has a Girl Scout uniform in size 18 that they can spare. Helen acknowledges that this is an unusually-large size for such a uniform, but here's hoping someone out there can help.

Today, Sands Street is populated almost exclusively by sailors and shops serving the needs of sailors -- naturally enough, given its proximity to the waterfront, and the Navy Yard in particular. But you might be surprised to know that when it was first laid out back in 1786, it was intended as a residential street for the most discriminating sort of resident. The Sands Brothers, Joshua and Comfort, made a large boodle of money selling supplies to the Continental Army, and invested their windfall in real estate, planning an elite development to be called "Olympia," and promoted it with fulsome newspaper advertisements touting its "pure and salubrious atmosphere, fresh spring water, and good society."

(And yet, even in 1940, some still find the atmosphere salubrious.)

Rumors are rampant today that the Dodgers and Giants may be close to a deal that would send Harry Danning and Carl Hubbell to Brooklyn in exchange for Luke Hamlin, Babe Phelps -- and Dixie Walker. It is claimed that Larry MacPhail's noise about sending Hamlin and Phelps to St. Louis for Mickey Owen has merely been a blind to tease the Giants into making a counteroffer with Danning, but -- as the story goes -- Bill Terry won't make a deal unless Walker, who became an Ebbets Field fan favorite in 1940 with an outstanding .308 season, is included. And then the story goes that MacPhail won't bite unless the Giants, in turn, throw in Hubbell -- the one-time Giant "Meal Ticket" and longtime Dodger foe, who, though he will turn 38 next summer, is still capable of winning a key game or two. What impact such a deal would have upon the Faithful, however, remains to be seen. Danning is a fine catcher who would solve the Brooklyn backstop situation for years to come, but the loss of Walker to get him might be more of a price than Brooklyn fans would tolerate.

Brooklyn's own Elaine Carrington, award-winning writer of the "Right To Happiness" and "Pepper Young's Family" radio serials is moving her office to Manhattan -- but she reassures her neighbors and friends that she will continue to live in the Heights. Miss Carrington says working at home offers too many distractions, and she believes she will be more productive in meeting her daily scripting obligations by following a regular office routine.

(Sure, Slappy. And maybe the two of you can even swap outfits!)

(You might as well just hand him your whole bankbook right now -- he's going to get it anyway.)

("Hey!" says Chief Brandon, relaxing over lunch with his newspaper. "I wonder where he got that!")

("Ah, I hate to bring this up, sir -- but -- um -- that extra weight might have an effect on our fuel consumption. Just thought you should know, sir.")

 

[LizzieMaine]

And in the Daily News...

Wait, whaaaaat?

"Everything will be in abeyance until well after his next picture is released." And speaking of pictures, Elaine, who released that one? Jeeeeeeez.

"Not only that, we're comin' over there an' spike all ya tires."

Sandy's getting fed up with all this hooey. "Wonder if they can use a good dog in 'Terry and the Pirates?'" he thinks. "Me and that Dragon Lady, now that'd be something."

"City Milk Co." huh? Nice to see the municipal-milk movement is gaining traction in Tracy's city. A Sheffield guy never would've even stopped.

Somehow I don't find that the least bit hard to believe.

"Sorry, Gooseface -- we're here to repossess the bed."

"And, golly, Mr. Wallet, I'm sure sorry to have to say this, an' everything, but, gee whiz, you an' me are gonna have to step outside."

Mamie and Willie are the only comic-strip couple we ever see sharing the same bed. Ah, romance.

Yep, if not Snipe's kid sister, than her cousin then.

 

[Fading Fast]

... A Brooklyn Democrat today accused Mayor LaGuardia of blocking his appointment to the position of borough Superindendant of the Department of Housing and Grounds for political reasons. Edwin W. Kleinert brought gales of laughter to the Manhattan Supreme Court room this morning when he hoised his trouser legs to demonstrate that he does not suffer from varicose veins as claimed by the Mayor in denying him the appointment, a job which would have required Kleinert to do a great deal of standing and walking about. Kleinert alleged, instead, that the real reason he was denied the job is that the Mayor believes he is "too close" to Brooklyn Democratic Party leader Frank Kelly -- and he further alleged that the Mayor said exactly those words to the late Borough President Raymond Ingersoll -- who, Kleinert stated, wanted him to have the job. Kleinert testified as part of the City Council's ongoing probe of Civil Service Commission hiring practices....

...A young Midwood woman's habit of carrying old, odd currency in her wallet foiled a purse-snatcher yesterday. Miss Alice L. McGuire identified her pocketbook in Flatbush Court today by the presence inside of a large, old-fashioned dollar bill, an oddly-stamped nickel, and a three-cent piece. That led to the conviction on petty-larceny charges of John W. Quilligan of Fort Greene, who was accused of lifting the wallet when the two met in a restaurant Monday night....

Crook: "They don't teach you about this in purse-snatching school."

...With all the musical comedies rampant on Broadway these days, it's refreshing to see a good substantial play now and then -- especially if it stars Ethel Barrymore. So says Arthur Pollock upon viewing "The Corn Is Green," now playing at the National Theatre. Miss Barrymore, playing a bicycle-riding turn-of-the-century social worker in Wales, enacts her role with that rich voice and those sidelong glances which have always been her stage trademark....

With sincere respect to Ms. Barrymore, even in 1940, somebody would have had to pay me money to see a play about "a bicycle-riding turn-of-the-century social worker in Wales."

...Duke Ellington, his band, and his stage revue will appear next week at the Flatbush Theatre. (Joe and Sally nod in simultaneous agreement: "We're goin'!")...

Now, this I'd pay money to see.

...Brooklyn's own Elaine Carrington, award-winning writer of the "Right To Happiness" and "Pepper Young's Family" radio serials is moving her office to Manhattan -- but she reassures her neighbors and friends that she will continue to live in the Heights. Miss Carrington says working at home offers too many distractions, and she believes she will be more productive in meeting her daily scripting obligations by following a regular office routine....

Only 80 years later and she'd be back working from home.

... ("Hey!" says Chief Brandon, relaxing over lunch with his newspaper. "I wonder where he got that!")...

Didn't we see Tracy buying the chief a knock-off, second-rate piece of luggage the other day? Has the store not delivered it yet? Darn that Larceny Inc. luggage store - who'd a thunk there'd be something not above board with a luggage store run by Edward G. Robinson an Edward Brophy?

...
Wait, whaaaaat?....

So, the mayor's salary is $25,000, about $460,000 in 2020 dollars (he only draws $22,500 of it - okay). But his pension would be based on a $40,000 a year salary - huh?

By the way, the NYC mayor's salary today is about $250,000; interestingly, adjusted for inflation, it's less than in 1940. That said, that is a job that, today, you can make millions from after you leave office, which was not as easy to do back in 1940.

...[ "Everything will be in abeyance until well after his next picture is released." And speaking of pictures, Elaine, who released that one? Jeeeeeeez.....

Ya think Angier Biddle Duke has a type?

I get it, but kind of an out-of-left-field "The Neighbors" today.

... Sandy's getting fed up with all this hooey. "Wonder if they can use a good dog in 'Terry and the Pirates?'" he thinks. "Me and that Dragon Lady, now that'd be something."....

Sandy's been quietly shopping his resume to the other strips ever since Nick left. I heard he put in a call to Nick the moment he learned that Nick got the "Mary Worth" gig. I think Sandy would be better off with Nick at "Mary Worth;" his life expectancy would drop significantly working for the Dragon Lady. Nick liked Sandy.

And I just got to say it, who are these parents that assume their kid is always right? Mine did not assume - at all - that I was in the right when stuff happened. They weren't the awful parents that assumed their kid was always wrong, but no way did I get the benefit of the doubt, let alone the ridiculous see-no-evil Slag approach.

... "City Milk Co." huh? Nice to see the municipal-milk movement is gaining traction in Tracy's city. A Sheffield guy never would've even stopped.....

Can't say yes or no about the milkman, but the real-life corporate laundry guy brought the sick girl to her missing dog Poochie just a week or so ago.

And, apparently, the story device of crooks being pulled over for having a taillight out goes back to, at least, 1940.

...
Somehow I don't find that the least bit hard to believe.....

Hu Shee's awesome. Let's not kid ourselves, she has to be or the Dragon Lady wouldn't have her on the team.

That said, Hu Shee had better be careful with, what I'm guessing is, virginal Terry, as she might break him if she gets her way. I don't think he's ready for a Hu Shee.

Think about what Caniff is effectively saying, in 1940, about race and sex stereotypes. The man was way ahead of his time. And he does it the right way, by showing not telling.

... "And, golly, Mr. Wallet, I'm sure sorry to have to say this, an' everything, but, gee whiz, you an' me are gonna have to step outside."....

If this was 2020, Horace's character would be more open about himself.

... Mamie and Willie are the only comic-strip couple we ever see sharing the same bed. Ah, romance.....

So, separate beds in comic-strip land wasn't a rule or even an agreed-upon code, it was just something all the other writers did owing to the times. Interesting.

... View attachment 284051 Yep, if not Snipe's kid sister, than her cousin then.

But she got the cool comic-strip-character name - Lana Lanagan (way better than "Snipe") - the blond hair and the library glasses that signal a lot is going on under still waters.

Me: Let's name her 'Lana'
Girlfriend: We are not naming our child 'Lana Lanagan'
Me: Come on, it's a perfect comic-strip-character name
GF: Exactly
Me: This is going to work out like all our compromises, isn't it?
GF: Yes
Me: Sigh

 

[LizzieMaine]

To be fair, though, next time you see "The Clock," with Judy Garland and Robert Walker, take notice of the fact that the friendly milkman played by Jimmy Gleason is clearly a Sheffield employee.

Of course, any Jimmy Gleason milkman would be friendly and helpful no matter who he works for.

I don't know who books the acts for the vaudeville circuit that plays the Flatbush, but whoever it is has serious hepcat credentials. They've had Basie, Calloway, and now Ellington just since September, and that's got to be intentional. If Don Redman and Jimmy Lunceford don't show up soon, I'll be surprised.

Given how much political censorship Caniff has to deal with from his editors -- or, singular, editor -- Joseph Patterson of the News personally supervised all the New York-based artists in his stable -- it's astounding how much he gets away with on other aspects of his strip. If Harold Gray lived in New York instead of Chicago, I bet Nick Gatt would be alive and having Peter La Plata taken for a ride this very moment.

I have to wonder how much experience Terry has had in worldly matters -- with Pat around, you'd get the feeling his opportunities would be scant. He was at one time attached to April Kane, but clearly that Crispin guy is beating his time while he's off fighting the Invader and all. He also had a crush on a nightclub singer/con artist named Burma, but Pat kind of got in the way of that.

I can understand why the Bungles and the Gumps sleep in twin beds -- I mean, George is always getting up to go fight with the neighbors, and sleeping in the same bed as Andy Gump would be like sleeping with one of those folding laundry racks. Other than the Mullinses, I don't think we've seen any other bedrooms -- but I won't be surprised if we learn that Raven has a double bed. Not that she needs one.

 

[LizzieMaine]

Men who are rejected by Army doctors after quitting their jobs in preparation for induction into the Army have no legal recourse if their former employers refuse to give them their jobs back. So states Col. Arthur McDermott, New York City director of Selective Service in the face of a flood of complaints from men who have been ruled physically unsuitable for military service after winding up their affairs in order to comply with the draft. A total of 209 men in the city have been rejected by the Army after being passed in examinations conducted by their neighborhood draft boards -- among them an attorney who sold his practice in anticipation of going into the Army, and was unable to reverse the transaction when he was rejected. Under present law, a man who has completed a year of military service may appeal to the nearest United States Attorney in order to compel a former employer to take him back, but those rejected before being sworn into the arm have no such recourse. Col. McDermott has no proposal for dealing with the dilemma thus posed, other than to express the hope that Washington will insist that the Army hold its final physical examination of selectees a week or more before scheduled induction, instead of on the day of induction.

An unemployed shipping clerk from the Bronx is in custody after his attempt to hold up a Bensonhurst candy store was foiled by the wife of the owner. Twenty-year-old William Goldstien appeared at the store of Louis Pecker at 7520 20th Avenue around 1 AM today and, flourishing a pistol, demanded the contents of the cash register. His unidentified accomplice then took $10 out of the till, while Goldstein looked around the store. Mrs. Becky Pecker took that opportunity to throw a headlock around Goldstein, strangling him until he dropped the gun, and wrestled the bandit to the floor, where she sat upon him until police from the Bath Beach precinct arrived to take the bandit into custody. Examination revealed the pistol used in the robbery to be loaded with blanks. The accomplice escaped with the money, and is being sought in the neighborhood.

("Ooooweee!" says Joe, who knows Mrs. Pecker well. "She won'eenletchalookittamagazine lessyabuyitfoist." "Makes a swell egg cream too," observes Sally, who considers Mrs. Pecker a role model.)

Frontier reports today from Yugoslavia report that Greek troops have captured Argyrokastron in one of the bloodiest battles of the Italo-Greek conflict. British planes reportedly aided Greek forces as they pounded into the vital Italian base in Albania, near the Yugoslav border. An hour of intense hand-to-hand fighting forced the Italians into retreat.

(Hey all you fellas getting married to duck the draft -- have we got a deal for you!)

Selective Service authorities have announced that no men will be called up for military service between December 15th and January 3rd in recognition of the holiday season. Original plans to summon 60,000 men nationwide during that span have been deferred because many of the units to which the new selectees would be sent will be depleted over the holidays due to furloughs.

Striking members of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers have rejected a contract offer from the Leviton Manufacturing Company of Greenpoint which would have set minumum pay for experienced workers at $15 a week and $12 a week for beginners, with no pay raises, no paid vacations, and an open shop. The union maintains its demand for a $16 per week minimum and an across the board $4 raise for all present workers, time and a half for overtime, a week's paid vacation, and a closed shop.

(For twenty cents, yet. "Stump and Stumpy" alone are worth that -- an outstanding music-dance-comedy act that'll be playing top spots for years to come.)

At the Patio this week it's Charles Laughton and Carole Lombard in "They Knew What They Wanted," paired with Cesar Romero in the latest Cisco Kid adventure "The Gay Caballero."

Bob the Dog, fawn colored spitz owned by Mrs. Helen Browne of Flatbush, is heading back to court, with a Municipal Court justice having thrown out an earlier order for his release on a legal technicality. Justice Roger J. Brock ordered that Mrs. Browne surrender Bob to the ASPCA, and that he be held at its Butler Street shelter pending further action in his case, but Mrs. Browne refused to comply, stating only that Bob is presently "somewhere beyond the reach" of the authorities. Bob's year-long odyssey thru the courts after he was accused of biting three persons gained much attention, and Mrs. Browne says thousands of persons from across the country have protested the city's handling of the case.

Meanwhile, the fate of Brownie, five-year-old Cocker Spaniel owned by Miss
Ruth Fucelli of Sunset Park, remains in the hands of a city court justice who has indicated that it might be "several days" before a ruling is issued. Brownie, also, is accused of biting three persons, which, under the present city sanitation code, means a compulsory death sentence.

(There were many people in 1940 who believed that eating food prepared in aluminum pans would cause a whole range of bizarre and dangerous medical conditions. I don't think that having your entire head actually transformed into an aluminum saucepan was actually one of them, but you know how people get with conspiracy theories.)

(Just don't heat it up in an aluminum pan.)

("Oh, and if you pour any more of that tea into my lap, I'm going to brain you.")

The Eagle Editorialst praises the U. S. Supreme Court for its recent decision prohibiting the exclusion of Negroes from grand juries. "The fight against racial discrimination is a long and hard one, in which one victory does not end the struggle," he declares. "Nevertheless, progress can be seen."

Reader Hazel Jones Spence writes from Port Jefferson to urge the President to order the elimination of the Fascist-style extended-arm salute from the Pledge of Allegiance ceremony. She notes that this salute has no historical basis, and the rest of the country ought to follow New York City's example in getting rid of it.

Circus sideshow star Amanda "Jolly Irene" Siebert has died at her Coney Island home of a heart attack. Mrs. Siebert had been ill for several months. As "Jolly Irene," Mrs. Siebert, who weighed over 500 pounds, appeared with the Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus for many years at Madison Square Garden, but declined to travel with the circus because she could not fit in a regular railroad coach and refused to ride in the freight car. Until her retirement from show business five years ago, she was also a regular feature of Coney Island's sideshows. After a requiem Mass today at Our Lady of Solace Church, Mrs. Siebert will be laid to rest in a double-sized grave.

Stockholders of the Philadelphia Phillies met in closed session today with embattled club president Gerry Nugent, and emerged after the two-and-a-half-hour conference tight-lipped over what had transpired inside the locked room. It was announced that Nugent has been retained as president, but no further comment was released to waiting reporters. It is generally believed, however, that the stockholders secured a pledge from Nugent that he would discontinue the practice of selling the team's star players in order to raise operating capital, and would attempt to give long-suffering Philadelphia fans a winning club. Threats of a fan boycott of Phillies games next summer on the heels of the recent sale of Kirby Higbe to the Dodgers were seen as the catalyst for the stockholder rebellion. It is also reported that several prominent Philadelphia industrialists are willing to invest up to $400,000 to improve the club.

Leo Durocher, Ducky Medwick, and Pete Reiser received a clean bill of health at the Mayo Clinic this week, although they disappointed photographers by declining to indulge in "Brooklyn-style antics" for the cameras. Durocher says he will likely not play regularly next year, with Pee Wee Reese set as the starting shortstop for the Flock in 1941, but he will remain on the active list as an occasional substitute.

The Rangers-Americans blood feud resumes tonight at Madison Square Garden, as New York's two representatives in the National Hockey League get back down to the business of slamming each other forcefully into the ice. The last time the teams met, the Rangers won 3-2, but each club lost a man to broken bones once the brawling was over.

Another whimsical tale from the pen of Dr. Seuss, magazine cartoonist turned children's author, comes to the Columbia Workshop microphone on Sunday, adapted for the air by CBS children's programming specialst Nila Mack. "And To Think That I Saw It On Mulberry Street" is the second of Seuss's books to be adapted for radio by Mack, who presented "The 500 Hats of Bartholomew Cubbins" to considerable acclaim on the Workshop some time ago. The performance will feature an original musical score by Charles Paul, who will conduct the orchestra from a separate studio in order to obtain the special effect required by Miss Mack's script.

(I bet this never happens to Hawkman.)

(Meanwhile, checkered coat man in the first panel searches desperately for a barber shop. You know George, that's a good honest line of work, maybe you oughta look into it.)

("Hah!" thinks John. "That Matchbook Academy Course of Polygraph Operation I took while I was waiting to be inaugurated will really come in handy now!")

("Secret Operative")

 

[LizzieMaine]

And in the Daily News...

No, they're making a big fuss because you're an entitled celebrity jerk who doesn't want to take responsibility. Joe Louis would never do that.

With his track record as a mediator, "Butch" would actually make an outstanding head for the National Defense program.

Thanks for sharing.

Wakey-wakey!

Gus is having way too much fun with this.

"Not to worry, yellow haired one! These new cars have full front coil spring suspension!"

Mr. King is reading Freud again.

One of the many ways in which Brother Ed set the pace for the entire generation of wholesome teen-humor comics to follow was his perfectly innocent use of cheesecake.

MAYBE RUNNING OVER A KID ON A BIKE DISCONNECTED THE WIRE

Please welcome today's special guest, Mr. Lamont Cranston -- The Shadow!

 

[MissNathalieVintage]

Thank you for sharing your memories about the afghan. Lizzie and Fading Fast.

I so would adore having the opportunity to shop by phone, as a single working woman Christmas shopping and marketing are tasks that I would like to have done for me and shipped to my home. Only reason why I cant being myself to do it is this will cause someone to steal my personal information. And even these days I do not like shopping online, and I loathe shopping on Amazon. I never give them my real info (I use Amazon gift cards that I buy with cash) and I have my items shipped to a UPS store or Amazon mailbox, which I can pick up at my own convenience.

That being said, I did have a few items shipped to my home only I used my middle initial and my last name, and the payment address is not the same on my debit card, its my Anytime mailbox address. And it worked out great getting large items sent to my home. And I am supper thankful my last name is a very common one too.

In the past I was having packages sent to my work address and I used the name Great Customer they shipped my items out with no problems. Until a new employee was hired and she was a trouble maker. I learned she stole my items and had other items of mine shipped back to the shop. I was online with the customer service and they were not able to find me even though I kept telling the lady on the phone the name the order was under. And she said their company does not ship items out under that name it has to be the name of a person. So after going back left and right she finally looked up the name and said OH.

When this happened that is when I decided it was time to get a UPS mail box and last year I got an Anytime mail virtual box so I can avoid repeats of me not getting my mail.

 

[MissNathalieVintage]

The Chicago Daily Tribune November 26, 1940...

 

[MissNathalieVintage]

 

[MissNathalieVintage]