Number 2475: Invisible sexy Suzie

The cute and sexy Suzie is ditzy in that dumb blonde cliché used seemingly forever in comedy. Normally Suzie isn’t that dumb, but for various reasons in this story Suzie does not see that she can’t be seen.

“Out of This World” is the lead story of Suzie Comics #49 (actual issue #1, 1945, having taken over for Laugh Comics). It was published and on sale as World War II entered its final year. Suzie was the type of gal that soldiers and sailors thought of when thinking of home; “what we’re fighting for,” as the saying went.

It was drawn by Albert (“Al”) Fagaly, a comic book artist and creator. He created and drew Super Duck for the Suzie publisher, MLJ Comics, which would become the Archie line of comic books. There has always been a tantalizing bit of sex in Archie, and Fagaly could draw a pretty girl. Suzie ends up invisible in quite a bit of the story, but readers can fill in the blank areas with their imaginations.

 

Number 1992: Happy New Year: Suzie is a doozy, and an old year comes around again

So we made it to another year, both on the calendar and for Pappy’s Golden Age.

First up for 2017 is a story from Suzie Comics #50 (1945). This story shows some changes in attitude from 1945 to now. The story, which has Suzie “disguising” herself as a “just past 10”-year-old so she can get a half-fare train ticket, becomes just past creepy to modern eyes, especially when we get to pages 8 and 9. Our faux 10-year-old ends up on an old man’s lap, then is taken to the ladies’ room by the man’s wife so she can clean Suzie “from top to bottom.” Oh, such comedy.

Drawn by Al Fagaly in his style inspired by popular newspaper cartoonist Jimmy Hatlo (They’ll Do It Every Time).

Next up for our New Year is a Katy Keene story by Bill Woggon. Woggon hit on something big with Katy: let young fashion designers send in their clothing ideas for Katy to model. It was used on other comic characters, but never with such long term success as Katy. In 1949, when the story was published in Suzie Comics #73, Katy Keene was appearing in four Archie titles, and soon got her own title.

This is also one of those fascinating calendar things, because 1950 dates are lined up the same as 2017. So print out the last page of the story and you will have yourself a 2017 Katy Keene calendar. Another perk from Pappy!

Number 1879: Suzie the chorus girl

The dumb blonde stereotype goes back quite a ways, long before Suzie was introduced in Top-Notch Laugh Comics #28 (1942), but was well established when she was awarded her own series. Suzie #50 (1945), from which this story is taken, is actually the second issue. At this time she was presented as being a young adult; later on in the series she became a teenager, right out of high school.

In this story, a broad comedy which bounces off the walls with ideas and story points not going directly to the main plot, Suzie gets a job from “Mr. Goldwater,” a talent agent. That inside joke is a reference to John Goldwater, one of the three founders of MLJ Comics, which became Archie Comics, publisher of Suzie.

Al Fagaly, a journeyman comic book man, is credited with the drawing, combining some of his faux Jimmy Hatlo (They’ll Do It Every Time newspaper comic panel) style. Later on Fagaly partnered with MLJ editor and writer Harry Shorten to do a knockoff of Hatlo’s successful panel, called There Oughta Be a Law for the McClure Newspaper Syndicate. Here is a link to examples of the Shorten/Fagaly collaboration from Hairy Green Eyeball in 2009, including one of the panels with an idea submitted by Basil Wolverton.