Associated Newspapers, Inc. was a print syndication service of

columns A column or pillar in architecture and structural engineering is a structural element that transmits, through compression, the weight of the structure above to other structural elements below. In other words, a column is a compression membe ...

and comic strips that was in operation from 1912 to c. 1966. The syndicate was originally a cooperative of four newspapers: ''

The New York Globe ''The New York Globe'', also called ''The New York Evening Globe'', was a daily New York City newspaper published from 1904 to 1923, when it was bought and merged into ''The New York Sun''. It is not related to a New York City-based Saturday fami ...

'', the ''

Chicago Daily News The ''Chicago Daily News'' was an afternoon daily newspaper in the midwestern United States, published between 1875 and 1978 in Chicago, Illinois. History The ''Daily News'' was founded by Melville E. Stone, Percy Meggy, and William Doughert ...

'', ''

The Boston Globe ''The Boston Globe'' is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes, and has a total circulation of close to 300,000 print and digital subscribers. ''The Boston Glob ...

'', and the '' Philadelphia Bulletin''. Associated Newspapers was led by Henry Herbert McClure (1874-1938), a cousin of S. S. McClure, founder of the

McClure Syndicate McClure Newspaper Syndicate, the first American newspaper syndicate, introduced many American and British writers to the masses. Launched in 1884 by publisher Samuel S. McClure, it was the first successful company of its kind. It turned the marke ...

, the first American newspaper syndicate. In 1930, Associated Newspapers was acquired by and became a subsidiary of the

Bell Syndicate The Bell Syndicate, launched in 1916 by editor-publisher John Neville Wheeler, was an American syndicate that distributed columns, fiction, feature articles and comic strips to newspapers for decades. It was located in New York City at 247 West 4 ...

. The syndicate's most successful, long-running strip was Gladys Parker's '' Mopsy''.

History

H. H. McCure joined the staff of the McClure Syndicate in 1899, bringing the writing of

Willa Cather Willa Sibert Cather (; born Wilella Sibert Cather; December 7, 1873 – April 24, 1947) was an American writer known for her novels of life on the Great Plains, including '' O Pioneers!'', '' The Song of the Lark'', and '' My Ántonia''. In 192 ...

to the McClure Syndicate. Eventually becoming managing editor, he left in 1906 when the writing staff of ''

McClure's Magazine ''McClure's'' or ''McClure's Magazine'' (1893–1929) was an American illustrated monthly periodical popular at the turn of the 20th century. The magazine is credited with having started the tradition of muckraking journalism ( investigative, wat ...

'' defected over disputes with S. S. McClure and formed ''

The American Magazine ''The American Magazine'' was a periodical publication founded in June 1906, a continuation of failed publications purchased a few years earlier from publishing mogul Miriam Leslie. It succeeded ''Frank Leslie's Popular Monthly'' (1876–1904), ' ...

''. That same year, he founded his own syndication service, H. H. McClure and Co.. In 1912, he resigned his interest in H. H. McClure and Co. and joined the newly formed Associated Newspapers Syndicate. Associated Newspapers jumped into the comic strip syndication business immediately; strips the company distributed beginning in the period 1912–1913 included William James Sinnott's ''Dickey Dippy's Diary'', Leo O'Mealia's strips ''Wedlocked'' and ''Little Pal'', and the syndicate's most notable strip, Arthur R. "Pop" Momand's ''

Keeping Up with the Joneses Keeping is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Charles Keeping (1924–1988), British illustrator, children's book author and lithographer * Damien Keeping (born 1982), Australian rules football coach * Frederick Keeping (1867 ...

''. Columns syndicated by Associated Newspapers included the columns of ''

New York Globe ''The New York Globe'', also called ''The New York Evening Globe'', was a daily New York City newspaper published from 1904 to 1923, when it was bought and merged into ''The New York Sun''. It is not related to a New York City-based Saturday fami ...

'' publisher Jason Rogers, H. H. McClure, J. G. Lloyd, and the Rev. Dr. Frank Crane. From 1924 to c. 1926 the syndicate distributed a semi-weekly series of "human interest" cartoons by a rotating cast of artists, including C. D. Batchelor,

Sid Greene Sidney Greene (June 18, 1906 – October 1972)Sidney Greene
at the

Frank Moser,

Robert Ripley LeRoy Robert Ripley (February 22, 1890 – May 27, 1949) was an American cartoonist, entrepreneur, and amateur anthropologist, who is known for creating the ''Ripley's Believe It or Not!'' newspaper panel series, television show, and radio show, ...

, and John Terry. Associated Newspapers syndicated '' Ripley's Believe It or Not!'' panel from 1924 to 1929, when he was lured away by King Features Syndicate. The Great Depression brought hard times to Associated Newspapers (among many others). In 1930, Associated Newspapers was acquired by

John Neville Wheeler John Neville Wheeler (April 11, 1886 – October 13, 1973) was an American newspaperman, publishing executive, magazine editor, and writer. He was born in Yonkers, New York, graduated Columbia University (which holds a collection of his papers ...

to become part of the Bell-McClure Syndicate,Saunders, David
"SAMUEL S. McCLURE (1857-1949),"
Field Guide to Wild American Pulp Artists. Accessed Nov. 1, 2018. although it continued to syndicate material under the Associated Newspapers name. In 1933, just as the concept of " comic books" was getting off the ground,

Eastern Color Printing The Eastern Color Printing Company was a company that published comic books, beginning in 1933. At first, it was only newspaper comic strip reprints, but later on, original material was published. Eastern Color Printing was incorporated in 19 ...

published '' Funnies on Parade'', which reprinted in color several comic strips licensed from the

Ledger Syndicate The Public Ledger Syndicate (known simply as the Ledger Syndicate) was a syndication company operated by the Philadelphia '' Public Ledger'' that was in business from 1915 to circa 1950 (outlasting the newspaper itself, which ceased publishing in ...

, the McNaught Syndicate, the

, and Associated Newspapers' ''

'' and ''Holly of Hollywood'', both by Arthur R. "Pop" Momand. Eastern Color neither sold this periodical nor made it available on

newsstands A newsagent's shop or simply newsagent's or paper shop (British English), newsagency (Australian English) or newsstand (American and Canadian English) is a business that sells newspapers, magazines, cigarettes, snacks and often items of local ...

, but rather sent it out free as a promotional item to consumers who mailed in coupons clipped from

Procter & Gamble The Procter & Gamble Company (P&G) is an American multinational consumer goods corporation headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio, founded in 1837 by William Procter and James Gamble. It specializes in a wide range of personal health/consumer he ...

soap and toiletries products. The company printed 10,000 copies, and it was a great success.Brown, Mitchell. Eventually, Gaines and Eastern Color collaborated in 1934 to publish the ongoing title ''

Famous Funnies ''Famous Funnies'' is an American comic strip anthology series published from 1934 to 1955. Published by Eastern Color Printing, ''Famous Funnies'' is considered by popular culture historians as the first true American comic book, following semin ...

'', which ran for 218 issues using a mixture of newspaper strip reprints and some original material, and is considered the first true American comic book. The Associated Newspapers division continued to syndicate material, the last major comic strip being Gladys Parker's '' Mopsy'' (1939–1965), which appeared in 300 newspapers by the end of the 1940s.

Associated Newspapers strips and panels

* ''Dickey Dippy's Diary''Markstein, Don
"Reg'lar Fellers,"
''Toonpedia''. Accessed Nov. 1, 2018. by William James Sinnott (1910–1927) * ''Holly of Hollywood'' by Arthur R. "Pop" Momand (c. 1933–c. 1938) * ''Keen Teens'' by Stookie Allen (1950s) * ''

'' by

Pop Momand Arthur Ragland
by Alex Jay, at Bob Oksner (1945–1947) * '' Mopsy'' by Gladys Parker (1939–1965) * '' Reg'lar Fellers'' by Gene Byrnes (1942–1949)George Carlson entry
''Who's Who of American Comic Books 1928–1999''. Accessed Nov. 1, 2018. — came over from King Features Syndicate * '' Ripley's Believe It or Not!'' by

(1924–1929) * ''Wedlocked'' by Leo O'Mealia (1912–1929)O'Mealia entry
Lambiek's ''Comiclopedia''. Accessed Nov. 1, 2018.

References

{{reflist Comic strip syndicates Companies based in New York City Mass media companies established in 1912 The Boston Globe