Dennis vaults into the 1960s with his anarchic spirit still intact. As always, this book is a series of unrelated panel gags (with the exception of one week-long story involving Dennis’s mild-mannered grandpa), but what gags! Hank Ketcham is legendary for being one of the most exquisitely skilled cartoonists of all time, and each and every panel is a small masterpiece of design and draftsmanship.
Dennis the Menace 1961-1962 features Dennis’s long-suffering parents, the Wilsons, his dog Ruff, his best pal Joey, his nemesis Margaret, and a seemingly endless parade of babysitters, as well as hapless shopowners, policemen, teachers, and family friends, all of whom come to realize that it’s Dennis’s world... they just live in it!
Ketcham drew Dennis the Menace from 1951 to 1994, when he retired and let his assistant take over the strip. This sixth volume of Hank Ketcham’s Complete Dennis the Menace publishes every single panel strip from 1961 and 1962 in one handsome brick of a hardcover. Ketcham’s legendary pen and ink work achieves its full flowering in this volume as do the various situations and themes that Ketcham would return to again and again.
Download an EXCLUSIVE 30-page PDF excerpt (868 KB) with a FULL MONTH worth of strips!
The U.S. Postal Service honors Bill Mauldin and his creations Willie & Joe with this first-class stamp, available March 2010.
And Hank Ketcham's Dennis the Menace gets his own stamp as part of the "Sunday Funnies" pane going on sale in July, along with Mort Walker's most famous creation, and hopefully that's a Dan DeCarlo Archie drawing. (Can anyone knowledgable out there confirm it?)
These items are scheduled to be in stock and ready to ship later this month and in stores (excluding the slipcase by itself, which is only available directly from us) shortly thereafter (subject to change).
View photo & video slideshow previews of the book and the box set embedded here. Click the preceding links if they are not visible, and/or to view them larger in a new window (recommended).
We just turned in our listings for the October issue of Previews, for our releases scheduled for December. The issue won't be out for a few more weeks, but you can get a first look at what's on tap right here! Spoiler alert: it includes King: The Special Edition by Ho Che Anderson, the Newave! anthology of 1980s underground minicomix, the new volume of Hank Ketcham's Complete Dennis the Menace, a new edition of the out-of-print 12th volume of The Complete Crumb Comics, Uptight #4 by Jordan Crane, and Chocolate Cheeks by Steven Weissman! Another great month full of great comics -- the Fantagraphics juggernaut juggers on!
All last week and this week we're bringing you a sneak peek at our Fall 2009 - Winter 2010 schedule of releases! Today's excerpt from our latest book distributor's catalog includes the anthology Newave! The Underground Mini Comix of the 1980s; reprints of two volumes of The Complete Crumb Comics; Hank Ketcham's Complete Dennis the Menace 1961-1962 (Vol. 6); and Krazy and Ignatz 1916-1918: "Love in a Kestle or Love in a Hut." (Note that all the info in this catalog is subject to change along the way to the books' release, including release dates, prices, cover art, book specs, etc.) Click here to download the PDF!
• Review: Bookgasm says of Supermen!: "...any self-respecting comics fan is going to eat [these stories] up like a Saturday-morning bowl of sugared cereal … and slurp up any leftover milk. If there’s a better gift of comics history this year… well, I’d no doubt fall in love with that one, too... Fantagraphics has done an amazing job in assembling this unique and colorful curio."
• Review: Comics Worth Reading gives "a big tip of the hat to the fine folks at Fantagraphics for getting Sam's Strip back into print after all these decades. As usual, they have spared no expense in putting together a visually excellent package... If you ever had more than a passing interest in newspaper strips, you owe it to yourself to check out this collection."
• History: In his Savage Critics post about "vaporware" comics projects culled from the pages of mid-1980s Amazing Heroes Preview Specials, Douglas Wolk digs up our never-produced Alan Moore anthology series and a choice quote from Kim Thompson
We've been busy bees making downloadable PDF excerpts available for several new and upcoming books. Unlike previously, when PDF previews were only available to registered users, these downloads are available to everyone (and of course they're free)! Download links are available on the product listing pages for the books listed and linked below. Try before you buy with these nice juicy chunks:
• Blurbs: At Robot 6, Chris Mautner and Richard Thompson (Cul de Sac) both declare that they're currently reading recent volumes of The Complete Peanuts
• Birthday: On the Jim Flora blog, Irwin Chusid commemorates the 95th anniversary of Flora's birth yesterday
We are proud to present the fifth volume of Hank Ketcham's phenomenal panel covering the end of the Postwar Era, 1959-1960. Ketcham captured the mischievousness, rambunctiousness, and anarchy of a kid's world better than any other cartoonist. The strip appeals to both parents and children — while parents shake their head ruefully at how accurately Ketcham caught the essence of children's natural zest for mayhem, children identify with Dennis and the chaos that he leaves in his wake. Ketcham's gags are funny, subtle and touching, and executed with a vivacious, exquisite line.
Ketcham drew Dennis the Menace from 1951 to 1994, when he retired and let his assistant take over the strip. This fifth volume of Hank Ketcham's Complete Dennis the Menace publishes every single panel strip from 1959 and 1960 in one handsome brick of a hardcover. Ketcham's legendary pen and ink work is in full flower in this volume as are the various situations and themes that Ketcham would return to again and again, featuring Dennis and his regular group of supporting players: his long-suffering parents, the even longer-suffering neighbors Mr. and Mrs. Wilson, Dennis's dog Ruff and his best pal Joey, the annoying Margaret, the adorable Gina, and more.
The 2013 Fantagraphics Ultimate Catalog of Comics is available now! Contact us to get your free copy, or download the PDF version (9 MB).
Preview upcoming releases in the Fantagraphics Spring/Summer 2013 Distributors Catalog. Read it here or download the PDF (26.8 MB). Note that all contents are subject to change.
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