Nancy

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In 1925, Ernie Bushmiller took over the Fritzi Ritz strip from Larry Whittington.  He took art classes at night while working as a copy boy at the New York World.  He started illustrating a weekly Harry Houdini strip and moved up to full time cartoonist.  Nancy is Fritzi Ritz's niece.  A master visual gag writer, this is what he told a reporter in 1960:
"I try to find a sight gag and draw the last panel of the strip first, then work back from that to find out how it came about. I've got a trade secret - whenever I'm really stuck for a gag, I look through a Sears Roebuck catalog. Usually my eye hits on some article, like an ironing board, for example, and my mind starts to play around with what can be done with an ironing board, and finally I've got my gag".


Mocking all that is decent!


Nothing works better in other languages than a purely visual gag, ask Otto Soglow about that.


From the descriptive to the imperative.


Easy to relate to.


Life affirming.


Clever as hell!


It is not until you try to do something that looks easy do you find out how hard it can be.  Whatta arteest dis guy is!


I was reading something by Gary Panter in which he spoke of reading Nancy panels out of context for laughs.  Art Spiegelman thinks highly of Bushmiller.  Warhol did a painting of Nancy.


Andy, we hardly knew you.  Take that, Roy Liechtenstein!


I have never thought up an original gag in my life.  How did he do it?


Cinematic!


It's a New York thing.


Prescient.


Oh, the sublimity.


Fourth wall, schmourth wall!


Living the dream.


Fer cryin' out loud!


Rule 34 in action.


23 skidoo.  Last but by no means least, here is Howard Cruse on Nancies-

http://www.howardcruse.com/comicsvault/nancies/



Ernest Paul Bushmiller Jr., 1905-1982


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