Summary
Mr. Skygack, from Mars was a comic strip by the American cartoonist A. D. Condo. It appeared in the Chicago Day Book, a Chicago working-class newspaper, from October 2, 1907, to April 1911[1] in about 400 comic strips and single panels.[2] Like much of Condo's work in this period, the Mr. Skygack feature was syndicated and appeared in many other papers, including The Seattle Star,[3] The Milwaukee Journal, The Spokane Press, The Pittsburgh Press, The Tacoma Times and The Duluth Daily Star.
The comic followed the titular Mr. Skygack, a Martian, on his mission to study humans. Mr. Skygack's comical misunderstandings of Earthly affairs gave Condo the opportunity to comment on and criticize social norms.[2][4] Skygack subsequently appeared in Condo's ethnic-humor comic strip Osgar und Adolf.[5]
Mr. Skygack, from Mars is considered the first science fiction comic,[6] featuring the first extraterrestrial character in comics history. It also gave rise to the first recorded sci-fi cosplay when a Mr. William Fell was reported wearing a Mr. Skygack costume to a 1908 masquerade.[2]
References edit
- ^ Holtz, Allan (2012). American Newspaper Comics: An Encyclopedic Reference Guide. Ann Arbor: The University of Michigan Press. p. 274. ISBN 9780472117567.
- ^ a b c Miller, Ron (19 September 2013). "Was Mr. Skygack the First Alien Character in Comics?". io9. Retrieved 20 September 2013.
- ^ "Mr. Skygack From Mars". The Seattle Star. 15 October 1907. p. 4.
- ^ Schaefer, Fred (February 10, 1912). "Who's Who in the Comics". The Day Book. pp. 26–27.
- ^ World Wide Words: Bee's Knees, by Michael Quinion; published no later than 7 April 2010 (date of earliest version, on archive.org, of page containing relevant information); retrieved 23 February 2014
- ^ Mr. Skygak, From Mars, at the Filson Historical Society, by Michael Veach; published 28 September 2010; retrieved 9 December 2013
External links edit
- Mr. Skygack, from Mars at Barnacle Press
- Sampling of "Mr. Skygack" strips, at Chronicling America