You’ll probably remember me raving a few weeks back here and on message boards about the incredible book/CD project that just came out collecting all of Winsor McCay’s Dream of the Rarebit Fiend strip. This project was amazingly produced by Dr. Ulrich Merkle, who I have just learned passed away due to a heart attack while on a business trip to London Tuesday. From the biography in his book we learned that Ulrich studied art history, classical and Christian archaeology and French and Italian philology at German, French and Italian Universities. Ulrich was the author of tghree books on medieval book illumination. An addicted comic book reader since earliest childhood, Urlich was an avid collector of comic books and original art. In my correspondence with him I found Ulrich to be extremely thoughtful and generous. He was always sending me sending me scans and ideas for the Arf books. Ulrich had just accepted a VP position at MTV/Nickelodeon in Germany. Ulrich’s wife and two sons survive him and my deepest thoughts and prayers go out to them.

Every volume of the Arf books has a section called “Cartoonists Go To Hell”. In the latest Arf book, Arf Forum I featured the amazing Victorian devilish drawings of Henry Heath. In Arf Museum there were some of the many Hell-oriented drawings done by that old Commie cartoonist Art Young from mostly the 1920s (including some unpublished work). In the first Arf book Modern Arf many people were shocked to see Hatlo’s Inferno by Jimmy “They’ll Do It Every Time” Hatlo from the 1950s. I gotta admit even I was a little rattled that Hatlo got away with some of the outlandish and violent cartoons in that series appearing in conservative Sunday newspapers. Maybe the weirdest drawing of all in Modern Arf by Hatlo was a bunch of demons “mowing the heads of next door neighbors who wake you out of a sound sleep by mowing the lawn at 6 a.m.” I had never seen anything like it! Well, till now, anyway. While doing some research for the next Arf book, Comic Arf, I’ve just ran across this World War I French anti-German cartoon from 1918 which is virtually the same concept! Deja vu, as the French say, oui? Here’s the French cartoon…

(click for a closer look)

And the Hatlo cartoon printed in Modern Arf…

(click for a closer look)

— C. Yoe (in the funny papers)

Gary Taxali is one of my favortite artists. Gary did the portrait (below) of Rube Goldberg for the Arf Museum book and is working as I blog on portraying an unknown genius cartoonist for the next Arf book-details soon.

Tonight is the opening for Gary’s first solo Canadian show at the Magic Pony gallery in Toronto. The show called Last Year’s Winner will have over 60 new works and will run through September 30. An amazing on-line preview will show you all of Gary’s rambunctious delightful cartoon-fueled creativity! Go to the web preview or better yet go to the show or best yet go to the sure to be fun opening if you can! Break a leg, Gary!

(click for a closer look)

As the Beach Boys opined, the Southern Girls “knock me out”. Alas, I’ve had to admire them from afar. No so Tom Heintjes, editor of my fave magazine Hogan’s Alley. Tom writes:

Craig-

I TOLD you I’d be on the lookout for Wondrous Women at Dragon Con in Atlanta last weekend….behold my harvest! And you can note that I said each costume was an engineering marvel. In each instance, the costumes came off easily! It’s my privilege to contribute to ARFlovers!

-Tom

Tom, it is indeed a great privilege to know such an incredible Don Juan such as your studly self. Now please do me a great favor, Thomas the Tank Engine, and write me off-line with more glorious details of your Wacky Wonder Woman Conquests, Southern Style!

On the list of blogs I like in the right hand column Arnold Wagner is listed first. That’s technically due to alphabetical order, but certainly Arnold, who passed away last week due to cancer, was one of the foremost cartooning historians and certainly one of the nicest guys around. Arnold co-authored “The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Cartooning” and was himself a talented cartoonist. Arnold was very supportive of my Arf activities and always thoughtfully took the time to offer encouraging words for which I was always deeply grateful. One of the Real Good Guys-I sure hate to see Arnold go.

It was way back in 1924 that Little Orphan Annie (or Little Arfin’ Annie, as we call her here at Arf World Headquarters) made her comic strip debut. I can’t remember that far back! Here’s a sample strip from my birthday, four years before I was even born.

(click to read this comic)

But talk about longevity; Annie was still a star in her own Broadway show in 1977, and her own movie in 1982, and even a TV movie in 1999. (Don’t worry, I’m not going to make you listen to “The Sun Will Come Out Tomorrow.”) That’s 75 years and she still looks about ten years old. What’s her secret?

Here’s the opening to Annie’s radio show from the 1930′s. Note that it features the lyric “Arf says Sandy” which is significant nowhere else but here.

(click for a closer look)

(if no bar appears please click here to listen)

Who’s that little chatter box?

The one with pretty auburn locks?

Whom do you see?

It’s Little Orphan Annie.

She and Sandy make a pair,

They never seem to have a care!

Cute little she,

It’s Little Orphan Annie.

Bright eyes cheeks a healthy glow,

There’s a store of healthiness handy.

Mite-size, always on the go,

If you want to know - “Arf”, says Sandy.

Always wears a sunny smile,

Now, wouldn’t it be worth a while,

If you could be,

Like Little Orphan Annie?

We like Little Orphan Annie not just because her dog says “Arf.” We like her because her eyebones are all blunk out.

Next week, Little Annie Fanny!

Kids! Do the latest dance craze! Do what Doll Man does, put your butt in the air and do The Bird!