Arf Lover Miron Murcury writes to tell me that it has just been announced that Megan Gale has been drafted to play Wonder Woman in the upcoming Justice League movie. The darn thing is that this lousy photo Miron sent along makes it really hard to visualize Megan in a Wonder Woman costume.

(click for a closer look)

Roy Williams was an animator and gagmeister in the story department for Disney. And us Baby Boomers know him as the Big Mooseketeer on the MIckey Mouse Club TV show. We’d plop in front of the TV after school and laugh at his antics (and begin to wonder about Annette Funicello). All the while sporting out Mickey Mouse Club ears-which Roy Williams invented!. It’s said that Wiliams based the idea on a gag in a Mickey Mouse animated short that he was involved with. And Williams, when he was laid to rest, went out wearing a pair of The Ears. But before he did that and in addition to all his other accomplishments Williams also did freelance magazine gag cartoons. I’m presenting a few of those below. And theres some of Roy’s racy cartoons, the kind he could nver have done at Disney, in my new book, “Clean Cartoonists’ Dirty Drawings”. The book has a special preview website. Go to http://cleancartoonistsdirtydrawings.com Have you ordered your copy yet for a holiday gift for yourself or a dirty-minded loved one?

(click for a slideshow)

(click now to order your very own copy!)

Keith Giffen, born on this day in 1952, was a one-time illustrator and writer of the long-running “Legion of Super-Heroes” series, as well as the creator of characters such as “Lobo” and “Ambush Bug.” He has worked and still works with Marvel and DC, and even writes his own online, blog-esque column. Fancy that! His style has evolved and changed greatly over the years — a testament to Keith’s ability to assume the feel of the story he’s working on. Check out the slide show to see a couple of unusual pieces of art.

(click on Keith’s version of Darkseid for a brief slide show)

Born on this day in 1888, Martin Branner is the creator of the unique comic strip, “Winnie Winkle the Breadwinner.” The protagonist of this strip was a little girl who grew up to be a career woman. In time, she was married, had a baby, and was eventually widowed during WWII. The strip continued long after Branner’s death until its end in 1996.

Now, do you want to see a pic by Branner of Winnie Winkle playing strip poker, nekid as the day she was born?! You know you do! That art is in my new book “Clean Cartoonists’ Dirty Drawings”. Order it now!

(click here to order Clean Cartoonists’ Dirty Drawings)

These Disney chipmunks made their first appearance in 1936 , but were not named Chip and Dale until this particular Donald Duck cartoon that debuted today in 1947. Their appearances became more frequent when Disney decided to use them as a foil for The Donald. Dale is the more dimwitted of the two, and Chip concocts all their brilliant plans to thwart Donald. Their main goal in life is to amass a great stockpile of acorns. They have nothing to do with the Chipendale dancers, whose nuts are of a different order.

These Wonder Women aren’t trying very hard to conceal their identities, but why bother when your non-super alter-egos are Chelsea Clinton and Barbara Bush (Jr)?

Who would you vote for?

And now for a bonus Wacky Wonder Woman: Gail Simone! This wonder woman just became the new voice behind Wonder Woman. According to DC Comics, it’s the first time the comic book series has been authored by an ongoing female writer. Congratulations, Gail!

When I began this feature I thought it would be great to share a song about Marge’s Little Lulu (or John Stanley’s Little Lulu, for us comic book readers).

(click for a closer look)

So I started searching endlessly for a Lulu tune. (We go to a lot of trouble to bring you these songs every Tuesday!)

Several songs with Lulu in the title turned up. But “Lulu’s Back in Town” predates the Saturday Evening Post gag panel and isn’t about our Lulu.

“Don’t Bring Lulu” isn’t about Little Lulu either, although the lyrics might make you think so.

And I don’t think “Shout Little Lulu” is about our Little Lulu. Some other Little Lulu, probably.

(if no bar appears please click here to listen)

An excellent article in the most recent issue of Hogan’s Alley (a magazine you should start reading immediately after you finish reading this) reveals that a song entitled “Waltz for Little Lulu” was written by Julia Smith in 1937 but I haven’t found a recording of it yet. Heck, I’d settle for the sheet music!

But here’s a song that IS about Little Lulu, although her name was changed slightly, perhaps to be more musical. I’m sure you’ve heard it before but it takes its rightful place here on Comics Tunes Tuesdays because it is a bona fide song about a comic book character.

(if no bar appears please click here to listen)

And finally, a song that IS about Little Lulu but it doesn’t mention her name. You’ll recognize the melody, though. It’s the theme from the animated cartoons, all jazzed up by Bill Evans. Little Lulu we love you-lu just the same!

(if no bar appears please click here to listen)

Walter Berndt was born on this day in 1899. Berndt penned the comic strip Smitty in 1924, which ran through 1973. Smitty was an office boy who went on brief adventures in a boxing league, baseball, camping, trips to the nation’s capitol. Berndt also drew a spin-off starring Smitty’s kid brother, Herby. He won the Reuben Award in 1969 for this strip.

(click For a closer look)

Above is my favorite piece of original art in my collection. It’s the first thing i posted on the Arf Lovers Blog, it’s the cover of the next Arf book, Comic Arf. It’s this painting by Milt Gross titled “The Melting Pot-A Gross Exaggeration”. With it’s “Right Kind of Immigrants” theme it is, as they say, “ripped from today’s headlines”. The Norman Rockwell Museum borrowed this painting for an exhibit they just opened on Graphic Novels so if you want to see it up close and personal go there. (They borrowed, too, my signed editions of He Done Her Wrong, the seminal graphic novel by Gross that Fantagraphics recently re-issued with an introduction by moi).

I thought it’d be fun to make this piece of art into a contest. Send in to yoecomix(at)hotmail(dot) com a list of the mames of all the “Useful American Citizens” that you can identify coming out of Uncle Sam’s meat grinder. At the end of this week I’ll put all the names of the Arf Lovers with the most correct guesses (you don’t have to know them all, just tie with whoever gets the most correct answers) in a beanie and draw out 3 names. The first name gets an Arf book of their choice, Modern Arf, Arf Museum, Arf Forum or the upcoming Comic Arf. The 2nd winner gets Clean Cartoonist’s Dirty Drawings the paperback edition, the third runner-up gets a copy of Weird But True Toon Factoids. All of the books will be signed. The decisions of Judge Parker is final! Send in your guesses soon to yoecomix(at)hotmail(dot)com. Employees of Yoe! Studio, wives, ex-wives, lovers and people who owe me money are ineligible. If you have won the Lottery in the past 30 days you really should be BUYING my books no entering this little pissant contest). Good luck, Arf Lover!

How many Freudian themes can you spot in this picture? Answers below — no cheating!

˙ɹǝƃuɐ pǝssǝɹdǝɹ ‘ʎʇǝıxuɐ uoıʇɐɹʇsɐɔ ‘(¡sı uıɐllıʌ ʇɐɥʇ ʎɹıɐɥ ʍoÉ¥ ǝʇou) ʎʇılɐıʇsǝq ‘ɯsıɥɔosɐɯ-opɐs ‘ǝɔuǝʇodɯı

If you scored 3 out of 5 or more, Congratulations! You are now a graduate of the Doll Man School of Psychoanalysis!