SATIRE 545
Kennedy, and Fidel Castro. Th eir ineptitude in contrast to Herbie’s capability, itself
contrasted with Herbie’s ludicrous appearance, gives the stories a satiric bite.
Another signifi cant comic character using wit and satire as ongoing weapons, debut-
ing in the same time frame, is Th e Spirit. Th is aspect of the character, created by Will
Eisner, evolved over the course of his 17-year run in a comic book that was distributed
as a Sunday newspaper supplement. Th e character’s origin story, dated June 1940, is
rather straightforward; but within two months of beginning his weekly adventures, Th e
Spirit ventured into the realm of parody with “Th e Kidnapping of Daisy Kay,” a story
that parodied Li’l Abner.
Th e latter strip was itself a continuous vehicle for satire and made a signifi cant
impact in the United States in the 1940s, contributing phraseology and social conven-
tions to the public consciousness. Its creator, Al Capp, routinely used his characters as
vehicles to show scorn and ridicule for greedy corporations and arrogant politicians,
often with specifi c real-life models. Capp appeared on the cover of Time magazine on
November 6, 1950.
Wa l t K e l l y ’s Pogo is another overt example of comics satire from the same era. From
its comic-book origins to its transition to the daily and Sunday funnies, Pogo was, like
Li’l Abner, a vehicle for political commentary within the framework of an ongoing comic
strip. Pogo hit its satiric peak with Th e Jack Acid Society, a storyline that ridiculed the
McCarthy hearings. Within this narrative, Pogo uttered the phrase “we have met the
enemy and he is us.” Th is resonated in the public mind, and was resurrected as part of
Kelly’s work dealing with the burgeoning environmental crisis of the early 1970s.
Th e line between parody and satire is perhaps fi ner in comics than in other art forms.
Parody deals largely in stylistic imitation, while satire is concerned with themes. Obvi-
ously, when dealing in an art form that incorporates word and image, the overlap is
inevitable. Th e best satirists in comics are also often necessarily dealing in parody. For
example, Supersnipe must be mentioned in the context of satire. Appearing a mere three
years after Superman, this character existed primarily in the imagination of another
fi ctional character. Koopy McFad, a prepubescent boy who “owns the most comic
books in America,” dresses in red long johns and a domino mask and imagines he is a
superhero. His misadventures, which run from 1942–49, involve slapstick crime bust-
ing coupled with fl ights of super-powered fantasy. Th is motif is revisited in the Marvel
character Forbush-Man from the 1960s parody title Not Brand Ecch, and in Don Mar-
tin’s creation Captain Klutz. A later DC character, ‘Mazing Man, is a melding of the
superhero- fantasy parody character and the more gentle populist tone of Th e Spirit.
Similarly, the 1960s superhero team Th e Inferior Five was a satiric vehicle for DC.
Not only did the title aff ord the opportunity to satirize the concept of generational
heroes (the fi ve are less successful off spring of Golden Age heroes), as well as heroic
teams, but the storylines served as vehicles to poke fun at Marvel heroes and tele-
vision. One issue parodied Marvel’s Th or, another the X-Men, still another Th e
Fantastic Four. Satiric reference to Th e Man From U.N.C.L.E., a popular spy show of
the mid-1960s and a comic from Dell, also appeared.
