| Author | Otto Soglow |
|---|---|
| Status | Concluded |
| First | September 9, 1930 |
| Last | July 20, 1975 |
| Syndicate | King Features Syndicate |
| Genre | Gag-a-day, pantomime comics |
| Preceded by | The Ambassador |
The Little King is an American gag-a-day comic strip created by Otto Soglow, which ran from 1930 to 1975. Its stories are told in a style using images and very few words, as in pantomime.[1]
Publication history
Soglow's character first appeared on June 7, 1930, in The New Yorker and soon showed signs of becoming a successful strip. The Little King began publications in comic book issues from 1933, was licensed for a 1933–34 series of animated cartoons by Van Beuren Studios and featured in advertising campaigns for Standard Oil[2] and Royal Pudding (1955).
It became evident early on that William Randolph Hearst was determined to add The Little King to his King Features Syndicate newspaper strips, but he was hindered by Soglow's contractual obligations with The New Yorker. While seeing out the final period of the contract, Soglow produced a placeholder strip for King Features, The Ambassador, quite similar to The Little King in characters, style and story situations.[3] One week after its final publication in The New Yorker, The Little King resumed as a King Features Sunday strip, on September 9, 1934.[2]
The strip continued a successful run with several more animated cartoon appearances and advertising campaigns,[4] and Soglow was awarded the 1966 National Cartoonists Society Reuben Award for the strip.[5] The Little King ran until Soglow's death in 1975. The final strip ran on July 20, 1975.[1]
Format
The strip is notable for having virtually no dialogue; the title character never speaks. The Ambassador was nearly identical in format, and the main characters of the two strips were similar. When The Ambassador gave way for The Little King in 1934, the reader could not be certain if it was the Little King who had arrived into Hearst syndication or the Ambassador who had removed some disguise.[2]
The Little King (mustachioed, bearded, and clad in velvet and ermine) was small of stature, but as wide as he was tall. He was a childlike, cheerful fellow who lived to have fun. The final panel of the comic strip often showed His Majesty pursuing a hobby, playing a children's game, flirting with a pretty woman, or otherwise enjoying himself in an unkingly fashion while neglecting his "official" duties.
Animated theatrical shorts
All cartoon shorts were produced by Van Beuren Studios except where otherwise noted.[6] All of the theatrical shorts have been released on DVD and Blu Ray by Thunderbean Animation.[7] As in the comic strips, the Little King never speaks in the 1933 and 1934 shorts except for a brief sequence in "Marching Along" (1933).
1933
| Title | Release Date | Director(s) | Distributor | Film | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | A Dizzy Day | May 5, 1933 | Harry Bailey | RKO Radio Pictures | Part Of The Aesop’s Fables Series. The First Cartoon To Feature The Little King. | |
| 2 | A.M to P.M | July 28, 1933 | Part Of The Aesop’s Fables Series. | |||
| 3 | The Fatal Note | September 29, 1933 | Vernon Stallings | |||
| 4 | Marching Along | October 2, 1933 | Vernon Stallings & James Tyer | |||
| 5 | On the Pan | November 24, 1933 | Was Later Renamed To “In Darkest Africa” For Home-Movie Release. | |||
| 6 | Pals | December 22, 1933 | Oscar E. Soglow & James Tyer | Was Later Renamed To “Christmas Night” For Home-Movie Release And Later To “Christmas Up North” For T.V Release. |
1934
| Title | Release Date | Director | Distributor | Film | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7 | Jest of Honor | January 19, 1934 | Vernon Stallings | RKO Radio Pictures | ||
| 8 | Jolly Good Felons | February 16, 1934 | ||||
| 9 | Sultan Pepper | March 16, 1934 | ||||
| 10 | A Royal Good Time | April 13, 1934 | ||||
| 11 | Art For Art’s Sake | May 11, 1934 | Not To Be Confused With The 1938 Film Of The Same Name. | |||
| 12 | Cactus King | June 8, 1934 | The Last Little King Cartoon From The Van Beuren Studio. |
1936
| Title | Release Date | Director | Distributor | Film | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Betty Boop and the Little King | January 31, 1936 | Dave Fleischer & Myron Waldman | Paramount Pictures | The Only Betty Boop, Fleischer, And Paramount Cartoon To Feature The Little King. The Only Cartoon To Feature Betty Boop And The Little King Together. |
Collections
- The Little King (1933), Farrar & Rinehart[8]
- Cartoon Monarch: Otto Soglow and the Little King (2012), IDW Publishing's imprint The Library of American Comics
References
- ^ Holtz, Allan (2012). American Newspaper Comics: An Encyclopedic Reference Guide. Ann Arbor: The University of Michigan Press. p. 239. ISBN 9780472117567.
- ^ Gardner, Jared, The Comics Journal (October 29, 2007). "Otto Soglow and The Ambassador (excerpt)" from The Comics Journal #286
- ^ Time Magazine (September 17, 1934). "Old King, New Kingdom". Archived from the original on October 23, 2007.
- ^ Gallery of classic graphic design featuring The Little King as spokesman for Royal Gelatine and Pudding
- ^ National Cartoonists Society. "The Reuben"
- ^ Lenburg, Jeff (1999). The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons. Checkmark Books. p. 99. ISBN 0-8160-3831-7. Retrieved 6 June 2020.
- ^ Stanchfield, Steve (2023-06-01). ""The Complete Animated Adventures of The Little King" on Blu-ray!". Cartoon Research. Retrieved 2023-07-14.
- ^ "GDC entry". Retrieved 25 April 2013.
External links
- Don Markstein's Toonopedia. "The Little King". Archived May 27, 2024 at the Wayback Machine.
- The Big Cartoon Database. "Aesop's Fables". Archived from the original on April 26, 2014.
- The Big Cartoon Database. "The Little King". Archived from the original on April 26, 2014.
- Stanley Stories: "Henh! Henh! Hoppin' on the Little King Bandwagon: selections from Dell Four-Color 677, 1956