REG'LAR FELLERS

'Reg'lar Fellers' was a long-run newspaper comic strip adapted into a feature film, a radio series on NBC and an animated cartoon. Created by Gene Byrnes (1889-1974), the comic strip offered a humorous look at a gang of suburban children (who nevertheless spoke like New York street kids). Syndicated from 1917 to 1949, Byrnes' strip was collected into several books.
While working as a sports cartoonist with the ''New York Telegram'', Byrnes created his cartoon panel ''It's a Great Life If You Don't Weaken'' which introduced the ''Reg'lar Fellers'' characters in 1917. He began ''Wide Awake Willie'' as a ''New York Herald'' Sunday page in 1919, and this too featured ''Reg'lar Fellers'' characters. With ''Reg'lar Fellers'' running as a daily strip in 1920, he changed the name of the Sunday strip to ''Reg'lar Fellers''. At its peak, the strip was syndicated in 800 newspapers.
The characters includes leader Jimmy Dugan, sidekick Puddinhead Duffy, Puddinhead's little brother Pinhead, Bullseye the dog and the gang's girl member, Angie Riley. In addition to book reprints and comic books, the strip was adapted to both animation and live-action films. Arthur Dreifuss' feature ''Reg'lar Fellers'' (1941) stars Billy Lee and Carl "Alfalfa" Switzer. Ub Iwerks produced the animated adaptation, ''Happy Days'' (1936). One curious book published during World War II brought together colorful ''Reg'lar Fellers'' episodes of kids playing soldiers in backyards with black-and-white WWII combat photographs.
The ''Reg'lar Fellers'' comedy radio series, sponsored by Jello, aired Sunday nights on NBC from June 8, 1941 to August 31, 1941, as a summer replacement for ''The Jack Benny Program''. Dickie Van Patten and Dickie Monahan starred as Jimmy and Dinky Dugan. Others in the cast included Joyce Van Patten, Patsy O'Shea and Skippy Homeier.

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Reference

Strickler, Dave. ''Syndicated Comic Strips and Artists, 1924-1995: The Complete Index''. Cambria, CA: Comics Access, 1995. ISBN 0-9700077-0-1.

External link

★ Superhero Lives: ''Reg'lar Fellers''