The Little King
Encyclopedia
The Little King was a comic strip
created by Otto Soglow
, famously telling its stories in a style using images and very few words, as in pantomime.
and soon showed signs of becoming a successful strip. The Little King began publications in comic book issues from 1933, was licensed for a 1933-34 series of animated cartoons by Van Beuren Studios
and featured in an advertising campaign for Standard Oil
.
It became evident early on that William Randolph Hearst
was determined to add The Little King to his King Features Syndicate
newspaper strips, but he was hindered by Soglow's contractual obligations with The New Yorker. While seeing out the final period of the contract, Soglow produced a placeholder strip for King Features, The Ambassador
, quite similar to The Little King in characters, style and story situations. One week after its final publication in The New Yorker, The Little King resumed as a King Features Sunday strip
, on September 9, 1934.
The strip continued a successful run with several more animated cartoon appearances and advertising campaigns, and Soglow was awarded the 1966 National Cartoonists Society
Reuben Award for the strip. The Little King ran until Soglow's death in 1975.
except where otherwise noted. All of the theatrical shorts were released to DVD by Thunderbean Animation. As in the comic strips, the Little King never speaks.
1933
1934
1936
Comic strip
A comic strip is a sequence of drawings arranged in interrelated panels to display brief humor or form a narrative, often serialized, with text in balloons and captions....
created by Otto Soglow
Otto Soglow
Otto Soglow was an American cartoonist best known for his comic strip The Little King.Born in Yorkville, Manhattan, Soglow grew up in New York City, where he held various jobs as a teenager and made an unsuccessful effort to become an actor. His first job was painting designs on baby rattles...
, famously telling its stories in a style using images and very few words, as in pantomime.
Publication history
Soglow's character first appeared in 1931 in The New YorkerThe New Yorker
The New Yorker is an American magazine of reportage, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons and poetry published by Condé Nast...
and soon showed signs of becoming a successful strip. The Little King began publications in comic book issues from 1933, was licensed for a 1933-34 series of animated cartoons by Van Beuren Studios
Van Beuren Studios
Van Beuren Studios was an American animation studio that produced theatrical cartoons from 1928 to 1936.Producer Amedee J. van Beuren first became involved in the animation industry in 1920, when he formed a partnership with Paul Terry and formed the "Aesop's Fables Studio" for the production of...
and featured in an advertising campaign for Standard Oil
Standard Oil
Standard Oil was a predominant American integrated oil producing, transporting, refining, and marketing company. Established in 1870 as a corporation in Ohio, it was the largest oil refiner in the world and operated as a major company trust and was one of the world's first and largest multinational...
.
It became evident early on that William Randolph Hearst
William Randolph Hearst
William Randolph Hearst was an American business magnate and leading newspaper publisher. Hearst entered the publishing business in 1887, after taking control of The San Francisco Examiner from his father...
was determined to add The Little King to his King Features Syndicate
King Features Syndicate
King Features Syndicate, a print syndication company owned by The Hearst Corporation, distributes about 150 comic strips, newspaper columns, editorial cartoons, puzzles and games to nearly 5000 newspapers worldwide...
newspaper strips, but he was hindered by Soglow's contractual obligations with The New Yorker. While seeing out the final period of the contract, Soglow produced a placeholder strip for King Features, The Ambassador
The Ambassador (comic strip)
The Ambassador is a short-lived newspaper comic strip created by Otto Soglow in 1933.In 1931, Soglow introduced his Little King character in The New Yorker. William Randolph Hearst was determined to see The Little King syndicated by his own King Features Syndicate, but contractual obligations...
, quite similar to The Little King in characters, style and story situations. One week after its final publication in The New Yorker, The Little King resumed as a King Features Sunday strip
Sunday strip
A Sunday strip is a newspaper comic strip format, where comic strips are printed in the Sunday newspaper, usually in a special section called the Sunday comics, and virtually always in color. Some readers called these sections the Sunday funnies...
, on September 9, 1934.
National Cartoonists Society
The National Cartoonists Society is an organization of professional cartoonists in the United States. It presents the National Cartoonists Society Awards. The Society was born in 1946 when groups of cartoonists got together to entertain the troops...
Reuben Award for the strip. The Little King ran until Soglow's death in 1975.
Format
The strip is notable for having virtually no dialogue; the title character never speaks. The Ambassador was nearly identical in format, and the main characters of the two strips were similar. When The Ambassador gave way for The Little King in 1934, the reader could not be certain if it was the Little King who had arrived into Hearst syndication or the Ambassador who had removed some disguise.Theatrical shorts
All cartoon shorts were produced by Van Beuren StudiosVan Beuren Studios
Van Beuren Studios was an American animation studio that produced theatrical cartoons from 1928 to 1936.Producer Amedee J. van Beuren first became involved in the animation industry in 1920, when he formed a partnership with Paul Terry and formed the "Aesop's Fables Studio" for the production of...
except where otherwise noted. All of the theatrical shorts were released to DVD by Thunderbean Animation. As in the comic strips, the Little King never speaks.
1933
- A.M. to P.M. (Part of Aesop's Fables SeriesAesop's Film FablesAesop's Film Fables was a series of animated short subjects, created by American cartoonist Paul Terry. Terry came upon the inspiration for the series by young actor-turned-writer Howard Estabrook, who suggested making a series of cartoons based on Aesop's Fables. Although Terry later claimed he...
) - A Dizzy Day (Part of Aesop's Fables SeriesAesop's Film FablesAesop's Film Fables was a series of animated short subjects, created by American cartoonist Paul Terry. Terry came upon the inspiration for the series by young actor-turned-writer Howard Estabrook, who suggested making a series of cartoons based on Aesop's Fables. Although Terry later claimed he...
) - The Fatal Note
- Marching Along
- On the Pan
- Pals (aka Christmas Night)
1934
- Jest of Honor
- Jolly Good Felons
- Sultan Pepper
- A Royal Good Time
- Art for Art's Sake
- Cactus King
1936
- Betty Boop and the Little KingBetty Boop and the Little KingBetty Boop and the Little King is a 1936 Fleischer Studio animated short film, starring Betty Boop and featuring Otto Soglow's Little King.-Plot:...
(Produced by Fleischer Studio)