Pin the Bow Tie on Buster Brown game heading to the Library of Congress

I picked up this cloth game over the weekend at a flea market. It's 119 years old, according to the ad that someone on the Platinum Comics history list found for me.

For modern parents who think merchandising of comics and cartoon characters are something new - nope! When characters such as Ally Sloper in the UK, and Yellow Kid, Buster Brown, and Foxy Grandpa in the US got a following in print, merchandising followed.

The Morning Call Wed Oct 18 1905

I don't know when the Library will get this cataloged but it'll be in the Prints and Photos division as of this week. Here's a few details.

Some more recent material was handed over too including the print edition of the 2023 Comics Research Bibliography, a complete set of 2024 Free Comic Book Day comics, and these gems.

From Artomatic, this print of tattooed Kewpies amused me, but I can't find the artist's name at the moment.

Life on Other Worlds, a 1978 portfolio I saw on Heritage  auctions that I was curious about so I bought it on e-bay for much less. The art by Al Williamson, Walt Simonson, Paul Gulacy, Howard Chaykin and P. Craig Russell is fine, but only Williamson's is accomplished.

And this has nothing to do with comics, but was a lovely steel engraving bookplate from Virginia Otis to add to the collection they already have.

Copyright cartoon images from Library of Congress (UPDATED)

Comics historian Warren Bernard has been volunteering at the Library of Congress for years to help them catalog their editorial collections. Now he's identifying artists in the Copyright collection. Through the official exchange program at the Library of Congress, available to any qualifying institution, duplicate material not retained by the Library has been delivered to Columbia University's Butler Library and the Norman Rockwell Museum. Here's some images of some of the early 20th century cartoon material.

Sara Duke states that researchers can always make appointments in the Prints & Photographs Division to see the items the Library retained, as not everything had duplicates. Selections will be digitized when the project is complete. "I can say on behalf of the archivist and myself, we’re thrilled that duplicate material is making its way into other institutions, where researchers who might not have access to travel to Washington will be able to consult it."

Sykes was a major Philadelphia cartoonist and this may have been for a billboard.

Edelweiss Beer hired French for an ad campaign. A lot of these joke tropes survived for a hundred years.

Warren notes John McCutcheon's influence in the art, and the dog device.

A pool hall campaign by cartoonist Chapin:

Bud Fisher, Bob Edgren, and Rube Goldberg testimonials: