Helpful Henry
Encyclopedia
Helpful Henry was a comic strip
appearing in both the UK
and the USA
. They were two different comic strips created by two different cartoonists.
in the UK
comic
The Beano
. It first appeared in Beano issue 1, dated 30 July 1938. A similarly named character had also appeared in the first issue of The Wizard under the name 'Elpful 'Enery.
The central character
is Henry, a young boy who attempts to be helpful but ends up doing more harm than good - usually as a result of a misunderstanding or misinterpretation.
He was also in The Dandy Monster Comic
1939., which came out two months after Beano #1 - it is unknown whether the character moved comic or if this was a preview. However some characters, such as Marmaduke Mean the Miser, only appeared in the annuals, so that could be the explanation. As well as this some early Dandy characters such as Podge appeared in the 1940 Beano annual so this could be the case of minor characters just appearing in any DC Thomson annual.
Helpful Henry reappeared in Sparky in issue 211 (dated 1st February 1969) drawn by Hugh Morren this strip lasted in Sparky until issue 230.
in an American
comic
. It was created by cartoonist J. P. Arnot (Paul Arnot - Born: 9/16/1887 - Died: 12/2/1951). Arnot was the artist of several newspaper features in the 1910s and 1920s. One of his many creations was Helpful Henry.
Actor Oliver Hardy
was known to have stated on many occasions, that after seeing the character Helpful Henry in a Georgia newspaper, it inspired him for his screen character. He described Helpful Henry as being big, fussy and self important, but underneath it all, he was a very nice guy.
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....
appearing in both the UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
and the USA
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. They were two different comic strips created by two different cartoonists.
UK
Helpful Henry was a comic stripComic 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....
in the UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
comic
Comics
Comics denotes a hybrid medium having verbal side of its vocabulary tightly tied to its visual side in order to convey narrative or information only, the latter in case of non-fiction comics, seeking synergy by using both visual and verbal side in...
The Beano
The Beano
The Beano is a British children's comic, published by D.C. Thomson & Co and is arguably their most successful.The comic first appeared on 30 July 1938, and was published weekly. During the Second World War,The Beano and The Dandy were published on alternating weeks because of paper and ink...
. It first appeared in Beano issue 1, dated 30 July 1938. A similarly named character had also appeared in the first issue of The Wizard under the name 'Elpful 'Enery.
The central character
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
is Henry, a young boy who attempts to be helpful but ends up doing more harm than good - usually as a result of a misunderstanding or misinterpretation.
He was also in The Dandy Monster Comic
The Dandy Annual
The Dandy Annual is the current name of the book that has been published every year since 1938, to tie in with the children's comic The Dandy. there have been 74 editions, with another presumably to follow in 2012. The annuals are traditionally published in August, in time for Christmas, and...
1939., which came out two months after Beano #1 - it is unknown whether the character moved comic or if this was a preview. However some characters, such as Marmaduke Mean the Miser, only appeared in the annuals, so that could be the explanation. As well as this some early Dandy characters such as Podge appeared in the 1940 Beano annual so this could be the case of minor characters just appearing in any DC Thomson annual.
Helpful Henry reappeared in Sparky in issue 211 (dated 1st February 1969) drawn by Hugh Morren this strip lasted in Sparky until issue 230.
USA
Helpful Henry was also a comic stripComic 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....
in an American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
comic
Comics
Comics denotes a hybrid medium having verbal side of its vocabulary tightly tied to its visual side in order to convey narrative or information only, the latter in case of non-fiction comics, seeking synergy by using both visual and verbal side in...
. It was created by cartoonist J. P. Arnot (Paul Arnot - Born: 9/16/1887 - Died: 12/2/1951). Arnot was the artist of several newspaper features in the 1910s and 1920s. One of his many creations was Helpful Henry.
Actor Oliver Hardy
Oliver Hardy
Oliver Hardy was an American comic actor famous as one half of Laurel and Hardy, the classic double act that began in the era of silent films and lasted nearly 30 years, from 1927 to 1955.-Early life:...
was known to have stated on many occasions, that after seeing the character Helpful Henry in a Georgia newspaper, it inspired him for his screen character. He described Helpful Henry as being big, fussy and self important, but underneath it all, he was a very nice guy.