Snuffy An’ Other Comic Strips Durin’ WWII

Inking a panel from this year’s Veterans Day Barney Google And Snuffy Smith comic strip.  Since Snuffy was fictionally in the United States Army, I try to create a Veterans Day-themed comic strip each year.

Ironically, a few weeks ago (around the time I was working on my Snuffy Smith comic strip for this coming Veterans Day, above) I was contacted by one of my editors at King Features, Jennifer Beck.  She said a friend of hers was writing an article for TESTED about comics during World War II and they would like some information from me since Snuffy Smith was in the military.  I was very honored and happy to help.

A sample strip from 1941 by the amazing Billy DeBeck when Snuffy was a yard bird in the U.S. Army.

Starting in the early 1940’s, the Barney Google and Snuffy Smith comic strip took on a military theme. Snuffy was a yard bird in the United States Army for several years.  His buddy, Barney Google, was in the United States Navy. Many other popular comic strip characters including Joe Palooka and Terry Lee (of Terry and the Pirates) also joined the military in fictional form.  To find out much more about comic strips during the WWII era, please read Terry Dunn’s wonderful article, “Funnies in Uniform: The Role Of Comic Strips During WWII” here.

If you would like to read some of the classic Barney Google and Snuffy Smith military comic strips you can find them in the Vintage Comic Strips section at ComicsKingdom.com.