FELIX THE CAT 211
Felix’s creation has been increas-
ingly acknowledged, with claims
that he, rather than Sullivan, was
responsible for Felix. Messmer
was Sullivan’s main cartoonist, and
was indeed instrumental in Felix’s
creation and development. Among
Messmer’s many contributions
was the weekly Felix comic strip,
which, although credited to Sulli-
van, was entirely Messmer’s work.
Th e strip fi rst appeared in Eng-
land in Daily Sketch on August 1,
1923, and continued on a weekly
basis for 12 weeks. In the United
States, King Features began syn-
dicating the 12 strips starting
that very month. Eventually, over
60 newspapers would run the strip
worldwide. A daily strip was added
beginning in May 1927. Th e
weekly strip had a lengthy run until
September 1943, but it was never
particularly successful. Apparently,
many readers interpreted the strip
as mere advertisement for the
fi l m s. Th e comic was also not in
keeping with readers’ tastes, given
that only one other strip at the time, Krazy Kat , was centered on a funny animal while
most dealt with themes such as domestic life. In addition, the busy Messmer re-used
and re-worked several elements and plotlines from the Felix fi lms for the comic.
Felix’s popularity began to wane in the late 1920s, largely because Sullivan delayed
Felix’s transition from silent fi lm to sound. When the transition fi nally did occur in
1929, the results were disastrous. Attempts to revive the character onscreen following
Sullivan’s death in 1933 were unsuccessful. Messmer continued working on the comic
strip until 1943, and thereafter worked on monthly comic books for Dell Comics, but
he retired from drawing the Felix comics in 1954. His assistant Joe Oriolo replaced
him. Oriolo transitioned Felix to the small screen, where the cat starred in many short
cartoons. More recently, Oriolo’s son, Don, has continued to pursue various projects
involving Felix, among them a 1991 feature fi lm. Although those attempts at reviving
the character’s initial success have thus far failed, Felix the Cat still remains a cartoon
icon.
A poster for the 1926 cartoon Felix the Cat Shatters the
Sheik , directed by Otto Messmer and featuring Felix the Cat.
Educational/Photofest
