''Sad Sack'' is an American

comic strip A comic strip is a Comics, sequence of drawings, often cartoons, arranged in interrelated panels to display brief humor or form a narrative, often Serial (literature), serialized, with text in Speech balloon, balloons and Glossary of comics ter ...

and

comic book A comic book, also called comicbook, comic magazine or (in the United Kingdom and Ireland) simply comic, is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are of ...

character created by Sgt. George Baker during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

. Set in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, ...

, ''Sad Sack'' depicted an otherwise unnamed, lowly private experiencing some of the absurdities and humiliations of military life. The title was a euphemistic shortening of the military slang "sad sack of shit", common during World War II. The phrase has come to mean "an inept person" or "inept soldier".

Comic strip

Originally drawn in

pantomime Pantomime (; informally panto) is a type of musical comedy stage production designed for family entertainment. It was developed in England and is performed throughout the United Kingdom, Ireland and (to a lesser extent) in other English-speakin ...

by Baker, ''The Sad Sack'' debuted June 1942 as a comic strip in the first issue of ''

Yank, the Army Weekly ''Yank, the Army Weekly'' was a weekly magazine published by the United States military during World War II. History The idea for the magazine came from Egbert White, who had worked on the newspaper Stars and Stripes during World War I. H ...

''. It proved popular, and a hardcover collection of Baker's wartime ''Sad Sack'' strips was published by Simon & Schuster, Inc. in 1944, with a follow-up, ''The New Sad Sack'' (1946). The original book was concurrently published as an Armed Services edition

mass market paperback A paperback (softcover, softback) book is one with a thick paper or paperboard cover, and often held together with glue rather than stitches or staples. In contrast, hardcover (hardback) books are bound with cardboard covered with cloth, lea ...

, in that edition's standard squarebound, horizontal, 5 5/8" × 4" format, by Editions for the Armed Services, Inc., a

non-profit organization A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

of The Council on Books in Wartime; it was #719 in the series of Armed Service editions. After the war ended, ''The Sad Sack'' ran in newspaper

syndication Syndication may refer to: * Broadcast syndication, where individual stations buy programs outside the network system * Print syndication, where individual newspapers or magazines license news articles, columns, or comic strips * Web syndication, ...

in the United States from May 5, 1946 until 1958. Baker then sold the rights to

Harvey Comics Harvey Comics (also known as Harvey World Famous Comics, Harvey Publications, Harvey Comics Entertainment, Harvey Hits, Harvey Illustrated Humor, and Harvey Picture Magazines) was an American comic book publisher, founded in New York City by A ...

, which produced a large number of commercial spin-offs.

Comic book

published original Sad Sack stories in the ''Sad Sack Comics''

series, which ran 287 issues, cover-dated September 1949 to October 1982. Sack was a civilian until he re-enlisted in issue #22 (February 1953). Harvey also published the

one-shot comic In comics, a one-shot is a work composed of a single standalone issue or chapter, contrasting a limited series or ongoing series, which are composed of multiple issues or chapters.Albert, Aaron"One Shot Definition" About Entertainment. Retrieved ...

''The Sad Sack Comes Home'' in 1951."Sad Sack" (title)
at the

Grand Comics Database The Grand Comics Database (GCD) is an Internet-based project to build a database of comic book information through user contributions. The GCD project catalogues information on creator credits, story details, reprints, and other information useful ...

Spin-off series were: * ''Sad Sack's Funny Friends'' #1–75 (Dec. 1955 – Oct. 1969) *''Sad Sack and the Sarge'' #1–155 (Sept. 1957 – June 1982) *'' Sad Sack Laugh Special'' #1–93 (Winter 1958/59 – Feb. 1977) *''Sad Sack's Army Life Parade'' #1–57 (Oct. 1963 – circa 1975) *''Little Sad Sack'' #1–19 (Oct. 1964 – Nov. 1967), featuring a child version of the character *''Sad Sad Sack'' (Oct. 1964 – Dec. 1973) commonly known as Sad Sad Sack World *''Sad Sack Navy, Gobs 'n' Gals'' #1–8 (Aug. 1972 – Oct. 1973) *''Sad Sack USA'' #1–7 (Nov. 1972 – Nov. 1973) *''Sad Sack USA Vacation'' one-shot (Oct. 1974) *''Sad Sack Fun Around the World'' one-shot (1974) *''Sad Sack's Army Life Today'' #1–4 (circa mid-1975 to Nov. 1975, and May 1976) Supporting characters included the Sarge (Sack's First Sergeant, the potbellied and tough but reasonable Sergeant Circle); Slob Slobinski and Hi-Fi Tweeter (Sack's bunk buddies); the General (Brigadier General Rockjaw, always drawn with dark glasses, cigarette holder and

Ascot tie An ascot tie or ascot is a neckband with wide pointed wings, traditionally made of pale grey patterned silk. This wide tie is usually patterned, folded over, and fastened with a tie pin or tie clip. It is usually reserved for formal wear with mo ...

); Captain Softseat; Muttsy the dog (whose dog tag # was K-9); Sadie Sack (Sad's redheaded female cousin in the WACs); Ol' Sod Sack (Sad's

hillbilly Hillbilly is a term (often derogatory) for people who dwell in rural, mountainous areas in the United States, primarily in southern Appalachia and the Ozarks. The term was later used to refer to people from other rural and mountainous areas we ...

uncle); and Little Sad Sack (Sad as a kid, before his army induction). The spin-off ''Sad Sack Navy, Gobs 'n' Gals'' had the supporting character Gabby Gob. The army camp where most of the action took place was usually named Camp Calamity, but was sometimes called Camp Browbeat. The

and newspaper strip were aimed at younger readers than Baker's wartime originals, and the style of the strip changed dramatically. In the newspaper strip, the pantomime style was abandoned in favor of a more conventional comic-story format. In the mid-1950s, Harvey Comics and Baker brought in Paul McCarthy to draw the Sad Sack titles, followed by

Fred Rhoads Fred Rhoads (October 17, 1921 – February 26, 2000) was an American cartoonist best known for his contributions to George Baker's '' Sad Sack''. Born in Shamokin, Pennsylvania, Rhoads studied illustration in New York from 1940 to 1942, at which ...

, Jack O'Brien, and Joe Dennett. Others who periodically drew for the titles include

Warren Kremer Warren Kremer (June 26, 1921 – July 24, 2003)Warren Kremer
at the

and Ken Selig. Baker retained editorial control and continued to illustrate the covers of ''Sad Sack'' comics until his death in 1975. La Prensa, a Mexican publisher, released the Spanish language editions of the Sad Sack comics under the title ''Tristán Tristón.'' In addition to Sad Sack strips, other strips within each ''Tristán Tristón'' issue included ''Tristána Tristóna'' (Sad Sack's cousin, Sadie Sack) and ''Capulín'' which was about a boy who had overly large feet. The latter two strips were often only one page and used as filler. Other filler strips included ''Firulais'' and ''Chiquilladas''.

Litigation

In late 2000, Alan Harvey (eldest son of Harvey Comics founder

Alfred Harvey Alfred Harvey (born Alfred Harvey Wiernikoff; October 6, 1913 – July 4, 1994), was the founder of comic book publisher Harvey Comics and the creator of the comic book characters Little Dot, Richie Rich, and Adam Awards. He was born to Russian ...

) sued Steve Geppi (owner of

Diamond Comics Distribution Diamond Comic Distributors, Inc. (often called Diamond Comics, DCD, or casually Diamond) is an American comic book distributor serving retailers in North America and worldwide. They transport comic books and graphic novels, as well as other p ...

and many other properties), charging that Geppi had plundered Harvey's warehouses in the mid-1980s, specifically of original art from Harvey's ''Sad Sack'' comic books. Geppi countersued, claiming that he had legal title to the original art thanks to a 1984 agreement he had made with Steve Harvey—at the time President of Harvey Publications, Inc., as well as President of Sad Sack, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Harvey Publications, Inc. The suit was settled in late 2002; at the time of the settlement, the

New York Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the State of New York is the trial-level court of general jurisdiction in the New York State Unified Court System. (Its Appellate Division is also the highest intermediate appellate court.) It is vested with unlimited civ ...

had dismissed Harvey's claims against Geppi. The settlement agreement allowed Geppi to keep the art, with no money changing hands. The rights to Sad Sack are still owned by Alan Harvey, and have since been published under the name of ''Lorne-Harvey Publications'' and ''Re-Collections''.

Radio

Private Sad Sack (played by

Mel Blanc Melvin Jerome Blanc (born Blank ; May 30, 1908July 10, 1989) was an American voice actor and radio personality whose career spanned over 60 years. During the Golden Age of Radio, he provided character voices and vocal sound effects for comedy r ...

) made an appearance with

Bob Hope Leslie Townes "Bob" Hope (May 29, 1903 – July 27, 2003) was a British-American comedian, vaudevillian, actor, singer and dancer. With a career that spanned nearly 80 years, Hope appeared in more than 70 short and feature films, with ...

and

Betty Grable Elizabeth Ruth Grable (December 18, 1916 – July 2, 1973) was an American actress, pin-up girl, dancer, model, and singer. Her 42 films during the 1930s and 1940s grossed more than $100 million; for 10 consecutive years (1942–1951) she reign ...

on the April 29, 1944, episode of ''G.I. Journal''. The voice Blanc used was a stuttering delivery similar to

Porky Pig Porky Pig is an animated character in the Warner Bros. ''Looney Tunes'' and '' Merrie Melodies'' series of cartoons. He was the first character created by the studio to draw audiences based on his star power, and the animators created many criti ...

. The character as voiced by Blanc appeared in multiple other broadcasts of "G.I. Journal". Sponsored by

Old Gold Cigarettes Lorillard Tobacco Company was an American tobacco company that marketed cigarettes under the brand names Newport, Maverick, Old Gold, Kent, True, Satin, and Max. The company had two operating segments: cigarettes and electronic cigarettes. The ...

, ''The Sad Sack''

radio program A radio program, radio programme, or radio show is a segment of content intended for broadcast on radio. It may be a one-time production or part of a periodically recurring series. A single program in a series is called an episode. Radio netwo ...

ran in 1946 as a summer replacement series for ''The Frank Sinatra Show''. It starred

Herb Vigran Herbert Vigran (June 5, 1910 – November 29, 1986) was an American character actor in Hollywood from the 1930s to the 1980s. Over his 50-year career, he made over 350 television and film appearances. Early years Vigran was a native of Cin ...

in the title role with

Jim Backus James Gilmore Backus (February 25, 1913 – July 3, 1989) was an American actor. Among his most famous roles were Thurston Howell III on the 1960s sitcom ''Gilligan's Island,'' the father of James Dean's character in '' Rebel Without a Cause, ...

Sandra Gould Sandra Gould (July 23, 1916 – July 20, 1999) was an American actress, perhaps best known for her role as Gladys Kravitz on the sitcom ''Bewitched''. Gould was the second actress to portray the role, debuting at the start of the third season. L ...

Ken Christy Robert Kenneth Christy (November 23, 1894 – July 23, 1962) was an American television, film, and radio character actor. Early life Born Robert Kenneth Christy, he was the second of three children of Alice Christy and Olivier B. Christy. ...

and Patsy Moran.

Dick Joy Dick Joy (December 28, 1915 – October 31, 1991) was an American radio and television announcer. A journalism major at the University of Southern California, he went on to become well known on network radio and television. Early years Joy's in ...

was the announcer for the series which began June 12, 1946, with the episode "Sack Returns Home from the Army" and continued until September 4 of that year.

Film

announced a forthcoming movie in their Sad Sack issue #32 (March 1954). At

Paramount Pictures Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film and television production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the main namesake division of Paramount Global (formerly ViacomCBS). It is the fifth-oldes ...

, Baker's strip was adapted by screenwriters Edmund Beloin and Nate Monaster for George Marshall's film '' The Sad Sack'' (1957), in which WAC Major Shelton ( Phyllis Kirk) has the assignment to turn bumbling Private Meredith C. Bixby (

Jerry Lewis Jerry Lewis (born Joseph Levitch; March 16, 1926 – August 20, 2017) was an American comedian, actor, singer, filmmaker and humanitarian. As his contributions to comedy and charity made him a global figure in popular culture, pop culture ...

) into a good soldier. The supporting cast includes

David Wayne David Wayne (born Wayne James McMeekan, January 30, 1914 – February 9, 1995) was an American stage and screen actor with a career spanning over 50 years. Early life and career Wayne was born in Traverse City, Michigan, the son of Helen M ...

Peter Lorre Peter Lorre (; born László Löwenstein, ; June 26, 1904 – March 23, 1964) was a Hungarian and American actor, first in Europe and later in the United States. He began his stage career in Vienna, in the Austro-Hungarian Empire, before movin ...

and Joe Mantell.

References

External links

*
Sad Sack
at

Don Markstein's Toonopedia Don Markstein's Toonopedia (subtitled A Vast Repository of Toonological Knowledge) is an online encyclopedia of print cartoons, comic strips and animation, initiated February 13, 2001. Donald D. Markstein, the sole writer and editor of Toonopedi ...

* {{cite web, url=http://www.vintageradioplace.com/broadcast/arcglowingdial0402.html , publisher=Jerry Haendiges Vintage Radio Logs (episode guide), title=Series: ''The Sad Sack'', archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110720091909/http://www.otrsite.com/logs/logs1038.htm, archive-date=July 20, 2011 1940s American radio programs 1942 comics debuts 1944 books 1946 radio programme debuts American comedy radio programs American comic strips American comics adapted into films American comics characters CBS Radio programs Comics adapted into radio series Comics characters introduced in 1942 Fictional American people Fictional World War II veterans Fictional soldiers Harvey Comics series and characters Harvey Comics titles Humor comics Male characters in comics Military comics Military humor in film Military humor Pantomime comics Radio programs based on comic strips