Nancy Classics by Ernie Bushmiller for October 03, 2018

So let’s talk about Rollo, because obviously this isn’t the Rollo we’ve come to know.

According to “official” Nancy history, Rollo the Rich Kid was originally “Marmaduke,” and at some point, somehow, he was rechristened “Rollo,” but nobody seems to know how that happened. (One thing I’ve learned lately is how badly Nancy history has been kept by its self-appointed keepers.) And I can’t say I know how that happened—right now, my dive into Bushmiller extends from 1938-48 and most of 1949-50 (dailies only). What I do know is that the Marmaduke-simply-became-Rollo story is not cut and dried, and might not be accurate at all.

Marmaduke was introduced on September 24, 1940, as Bushmiller embarked on outfitting Nancy and Sluggo with a regular “gang” that included Marmaduke, tomboy Marigold, and Chinese boy Floy Floy, and occasionally Peewee, Janie—one of a long line of poorly defined Nancy girlfriends—and Herman Floogle, Nancy’s love interest immediately prior to Sluggo’s appearance (a detail the strip swept under the rug once Sluggo made the scene).

By 1942-3, Bushmiller apparently tired of keeping the gang together. Marigold and Floy Floy disappeared after mid-1943, and seemingly so did Marmaduke; Janie and Herman still put in occasional appearances; only Peewee’s recurring frequency survived intact. Bushmiller still introduced new characters for one- or two-week stays—he was still doing storylines towards the end of the ‘40s, but now mostly just following a theme rather than an actual narrative—and so we’d be treated to the likes of Gertie the Jitterbug and Nosey Rosie and Sluggo’s Uncle Spike (home on furlough from the Navy) for short stays. Whether Bushmiller was trying out potential new recurring characters, or if they were always meant to be one-offs, none of them really stuck. (Proto-hipster Gertie makes a few reappearances after her mid-1944 run, but of course an obviously faddish character will have a limited lifespan.)

cont’d