David Law (1908 – April 1971) was a
Scottish cartoonist best known for creating ''
Dennis the Menace'' and ''
Beryl the Peril
Beryl the Peril (or simply Beryl) is a fictional character created by David Law, the creator of Dennis the Menace, for issue 1 of '' The Topper'' comic
a Media (communication), medium used to express ideas with images, often combined ...
'' for
Dundee
Dundee (; sco, Dundee; gd, Dùn Dè or ) is Scotland's fourth-largest city and the 51st-most-populous built-up area in the United Kingdom. The mid-year population estimate for 2016 was , giving Dundee a population density of 2,478/km2 or ...
publishers
D. C. Thomson & Co. Ltd .
Life
Law was born and raised in
Edinburgh
Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...
and educated at
Edinburgh College of Art
Edinburgh College of Art (ECA) is one of eleven schools in the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences at the University of Edinburgh. Tracing its history back to 1760, it provides higher education in art and design, architecture, histor ...
. He first worked for
Odhams Press
Odhams Press was a British publishing company, operating from 1920 to 1968. Originally a magazine publisher, Odhams later expanded into book publishing and then children's comics. The company was acquired by Fleetway Publications in 1961 and th ...
as an illustrator, before moving to D. C. Thomson in the early 1930s. He drew cartoons for Thomsons newspapers like the ''
Evening Telegraph
''Evening Telegraph'' is a common newspaper name, and may refer to:
* ''Evening Telegraph'' (Dundee), Scotland
* ''Evening Telegraph'' (Dublin), Ireland, published 1871–1924.
* ''Coventry Evening Telegraph
The ''Coventry Telegraph'' is a lo ...
'', including a strip called ''The Wee Fella''.
His most famous creation, ''Dennis the Menace'', first appeared in ''
The Beano
''The Beano'' (formerly ''The Beano Comic'', also known as ''Beano'') is a British anthology comic magazine created by Scottish publishing company DC Thomson. Its first issue was published on 30 July 1938, and it became the world's longest-runn ...
'' issue 452, dated 17 March 1951. Due to British comics being printed several days before distribution to newsagents (bearing the date of the following week to give them a longer shelf life), it seems beyond dispute that the UK Dennis saw print before
Hank Ketcham
Henry King Ketcham (March 14, 1920 – June 1, 2001) was an American cartoonist who created the '' Dennis the Menace'' comic strip, writing and drawing it from 1951 to 1994, when he retired from drawing the daily cartoon and took up painti ...
's identically named ''
Dennis the Menace'', which began syndication in the USA on 12 March 1951. It is possible that - at the very latest - the British version could have made his public debut on the same day as his Stateside counterpart, although it seems likely that he preceded him even in that. However, it is still unknown which character was actually created first. Law's ''Dennis'' was a juvenile
anti-hero
An antihero (sometimes spelled as anti-hero) or antiheroine is a main character in a story who may lack conventional heroic qualities and attributes, such as idealism, courage, and morality. Although antiheroes may sometimes perform actions ...
, uncontrollable and destructive, drawn in spontaneous, edgy lines, and was an immediate hit; the strip eventually displaced ''
Biffo the Bear
Biffo the Bear is a fictional character from the British comic magazine ''The Beano'' who stars in the comic strip of the same name, created in 1948 by Dudley D. Watkins. He was the mascot of The Beano for several decades.
Background
Biffo's c ...
'' on the comic's full colour front cover in 1974. Law went on to create ''Beryl the Peril'', a similarly anarchic female character, for the ''
Topper'' in 1953, and the accident-prone soldier ''
Corporal Clott
''Corporal Clott'' was a strip in the British comic ''The Dandy''. It started in the issued dated 12 November 1960 (issue 990) and was drawn by Dennis the Menace artist David Law. The strip was drawn by David Law until issue 1496 dated 25 July ...
'' for ''
The Dandy
''The Dandy'' was a British children's comic magazine published by the Dundee based publisher DC Thomson. The first issue was printed in December 1937, making it the world's third-longest running comic, after ''Il Giornalino'' (cover dated 1 Oct ...
'' in 1960.
He was taken ill in 1970, and his strips were taken over by other artists, including
David Sutherland on ''Dennis the Menace'' and
John Dallas
John Dewar Dallas (11 June 1878 – 31 July 1942) was a Scottish international rugby union player. Dallas played international rugby for Scotland but is more notable as a rugby referee, and his officiating of the ''" Match of the Century"'', ...
on ''Beryl the Peril''. Law returned briefly to ''The Beano'' in 1971, but died in April that year, aged 63.
References
David Lawa
Paul Morris' ''Beano'' websitea
External links
A ''Dennis the Menace'' strip drawn by David Lawa
BBC.co.uk
{{DEFAULTSORT:Law, David
1908 births
1971 deaths
Alumni of the Edinburgh College of Art
Artists from Edinburgh
The Beano people
British comic strip cartoonists
British illustrators
The Dandy people
People associated with Dundee
Scottish cartoonists
Scottish comics artists
Scottish illustrators
Dennis the Menace and Gnasher