June 18th, 2016

Beetle Bailey Sales – 1959

by Mort Walker

The next Beetle Bailey sales brochure was mailed out by King Features Syndicate in 1959. The circulation of the strip at that point was 704 newspapers.

“It’s simply that Beetle Bailey packs a daily laugh for readers of every age group – mom, dad, junior and sis,” the copy claimed. “And Beetle Bailey doesn’t have to carry the ball alone. Famed gag writer and comic artist Mort Walker provides refreshing variety every day by peopling his strip with such mirth-provoking characters as Sgt. Snorkel, Lt. Fuzz, Zero, Cookie, Killer and General Halftrack.”

When the sales brochure was opened up the graphic cleverly revealed Beetle’s phenomenal growth.

The interior pages that followed showed samples of the strip from 1959.

In the years that followed the client list for Beetle Bailey would continue to grow.

– Brian Walker