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Frederick Burr Opper (January 2, 1857 – August 28, 1937) is regarded as one of the pioneers of American newspaper
1901-1902 edition to work as a printer's apprentice at the local ''Madison Gazette'', and at 16, he moved to New York City where he worked in a store and continued to draw. He studied briefly at
comic strip
A comic strip is a sequence of drawings, often cartoons, arranged in interrelated panels to display brief humor or form a narrative, often serialized, with text in balloons and captions. Traditionally, throughout the 20th and into the 21st ...
s, best known for his comic strip '' Happy Hooligan''. His comic characters were featured in magazine gag cartoons, covers, political cartoons and comic strips for six decades.
Born to Austrian-American
Austrian Americans (, ) are Americans of Austrian descent, chiefly German-speaking Catholics and Jews. According to the 2000 U.S. census, there were 735,128 Americans of full or partial Austrian descent, accounting for 0.3% of the population. The ...
immigrants Lewis and Aurelia Burr Oppers in Madison, Ohio
Madison is a village in Lake County, Ohio, United States. The population was 3,184 at the 2010 census.
Madison was incorporated as a village in 1867.
Geography
Madison is located at .
According to the United States Census Bureau, the village ...
, Frederick was the eldest of three children. At the age of 14, he dropped out of school"Marquis Who's Who in America"1901-1902 edition to work as a printer's apprentice at the local ''Madison Gazette'', and at 16, he moved to New York City where he worked in a store and continued to draw. He studied briefly at
Cooper Union
The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art (Cooper Union) is a private college at Cooper Square in New York City. Peter Cooper founded the institution in 1859 after learning about the government-supported École Polytechnique in ...
, followed by a short stint as pupil and assistant to illustrator Frank Beard.
Opper's first cartoon was published in ''Wild Oats'' in 1876, followed by cartoons and illustrations in ''Scribner’s Monthly
''Scribner's Monthly: An Illustrated Magazine for the People'' was an illustrated American literary periodical published from 1870 until 1881. Following a change in ownership in 1881 of the company that had produced it, the magazine was relaunch ...
'' and ''St. Nicholas Magazine
''St. Nicholas Magazine'' was a popular monthly American children's magazine, founded by Scribner's in 1873. The first editor was Mary Mapes Dodge, who continued her association with the magazine until her death in 1905. Dodge published work by th ...
''. He worked as illustrator at '' Frank Leslie's Weekly'' from 1877 to 1880. Opper was then hired to draw for '' Puck'' by publishers Joseph Keppler and Adolph Schwarzmann. He stayed with ''Puck'' for 18 years, drawing everything from spot illustrations to chromolithograph covers.
Opper married Nellie Barnett on May 18, 1881. They had three children, Lawrence, Anna and Sophia.
Career
''Happy Hooligan''
In 1899, Opper accepted an offer by William Randolph Hearst for a position with the ''New York Journal
:''Includes coverage of New York Journal-American and its predecessors New York Journal, The Journal, New York American and New York Evening Journal''
The ''New York Journal-American'' was a daily newspaper published in New York City from 1937 t ...
''. His ''Happy Hooligan'' strip first appeared in the ''New York Journal'' in 1900, and it ran until 1932. Hooligan was a tramp with a little tin can hat whose gentle simplicity and bumbling good nature made him a success. On Happy's 30th birthday, Opper threw a party attended by President Hoover, former President Coolidge, Charles Schwab, Alfred E. Smith and others.
Opper's other popular strips were ''Alphonse and Gaston
''Alphonse and Gaston'' is an American comic strip by Frederick Burr Opper, featuring a bumbling pair of Frenchmen with a penchant for politeness. It first appeared in William Randolph Hearst's newspaper, the ''New York Journal'' on September 22 ...
'', ''And Her Name Was Maud
''And Her Name Was Maud'' is a comic strip by Frederick Burr Opper. It first appeared in the Hearst newspapers on July 24, 1904.topper to ''Happy Hooligan'', where it ran until both strips came to a conclusion on October 14, 1932.
Opper's strips were very popular in Italy, where Hooligan was th
most loved strip character in Italy
before the coming of
Among Opper's contributions for Puck was a cartoon that satirized the rise of sensationalism in journalism: this cartoon, from March 7, 1894, shows a newspaper mogul (possibly Joseph Pulitzer) raking in the profits, yet misleading the public. Noteworthy in this political cartoon is an early use of the term " fake news." In addition, Opper drew influential political cartoons supporting Hearst's campaign against the "trusts" with characters "Willie and Teddy", depicting William McKinley and Theodore Roosevelt, "Willie and his Papa", satirizing McKinley and "Papa Trusts", and "Nursie", a depiction of Cleveland industrialist Mark Hanna. Opper's other characters included Mr. Common Man, which is believed to be the origin of 
online
* Opper, Frederick Burr. ''Happy Hooligan: A Complete Compilation, 1904-1905'' (Hyperion Press, 1977). * Robb, Jenny E. "The Opper Project: Collaborating with Educators to Promote the Use of Editorial Cartoons in the Social Studies Classroom." ''RBM: A Journal of Rare Books, Manuscripts, and Cultural Heritage'' 10.2 (2009): 70-94
online
ridiculing TR and McKinley as pawns of Trusts and Sen. Hanna
Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum
at The Ohio State University
Britannica Student Encyclopedia: brief biography
''Stripper's Guide''
blog by Allan Holtz (blogspot.com) *
*
*
* ttp://www.toonopedia.com/antedilu.htm ''Our Antediluvian Ancestors''at
Archived
from the original on April 4, 2012 * {{DEFAULTSORT:Opper, Frederick Burr 1857 births 1937 deaths People from Madison, Ohio American people of Austrian descent American comics artists American comic strip cartoonists Artists from New Rochelle, New York
most loved strip character in Italy
before the coming of
Mickey Mouse
Mickey Mouse is an animated cartoon Character (arts), character co-created in 1928 by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks. The longtime mascot of The Walt Disney Company, Mickey is an Anthropomorphism, anthropomorphic mouse who typically wears red sho ...
, as declared by the major Italian poet Attilio Bertolucci. Hooligan's name in Italy was Fortunello (''small lucky''), and Maud's name was Checca (Francy).
Political cartoons
Among Opper's contributions for Puck was a cartoon that satirized the rise of sensationalism in journalism: this cartoon, from March 7, 1894, shows a newspaper mogul (possibly Joseph Pulitzer) raking in the profits, yet misleading the public. Noteworthy in this political cartoon is an early use of the term " fake news." In addition, Opper drew influential political cartoons supporting Hearst's campaign against the "trusts" with characters "Willie and Teddy", depicting William McKinley and Theodore Roosevelt, "Willie and his Papa", satirizing McKinley and "Papa Trusts", and "Nursie", a depiction of Cleveland industrialist Mark Hanna. Opper's other characters included Mr. Common Man, which is believed to be the origin of John Q. Public
John Q. Public (and several similar names; see the Variations section below) is a generic name and placeholder name, especially in American English, to denote a hypothetical member of society, deemed a " common man", who is presumed to represent ...
. His artwork appeared in Hearst's ''New York Journal'', ''Boston American
The ''Boston American'' was a daily tabloid newspaper published in Boston, Massachusetts from March 21, 1904 until September 30, 1961. The newspaper was part of William Randolph Hearst's chain, and thus was also known as ''Hearst's Boston Americ ...
'', ''Chicago Examiner
The ''Chicago American'' was an afternoon newspaper published in Chicago, under various names until its dissolution in 1974.
History
The paper's first edition came out on July 4, 1900, as '' Hearst's Chicago American''. It became the ''Morning ...
'', ''San Francisco Examiner
The ''San Francisco Examiner'' is a newspaper distributed in and around San Francisco, California, and published since 1863.
Once self-dubbed the "Monarch of the Dailies" by then-owner William Randolph Hearst, and flagship of the Hearst Corporat ...
'' and ''Los Angeles Examiner
The ''Los Angeles Examiner'' was a newspaper founded in 1903 by William Randolph Hearst in Los Angeles, California. The afternoon ''Los Angeles Herald-Express'' and the morning ''Los Angeles Examiner'', both of which had been publishing in the ...
''. In 1902 he published "Nursery Rhymes for Infant Industries: An Alphabet of Joyous Trusts" in which each of the 26 Alphabet letters began an anti-trust rhyme.
Opper also illustrated books for Edgar Wilson Nye, Mark Twain
Samuel Langhorne Clemens (November 30, 1835 – April 21, 1910), known by his pen name Mark Twain, was an American writer, humorist, entrepreneur, publisher, and lecturer. He was praised as the "greatest humorist the United States has p ...
, Marietta Holley
Marietta Holley (pen names, Jemyma, later, Josiah Allen's Wife; July 16, 1836 – March 1, 1926), was an American humorist who used satire to comment on U.S. society and politics. Holley enjoyed a prolific writing career and was a bestselling au ...
(ie: ''Samantha at Saratoga, or Racin' After Fashion''), and Finley Peter Dunne, and, as well, published his own books, including ''Puck's Opper Book'' (1888), ''The Folks in Funnyville'' (1900) and ''Happy Hooligan Home Again'' (1907).
Opper was a member of several New York clubs, and he painted as a hobby. He retired in 1934 due to failing eyesight. He died August 28, 1937 at his home in New Rochelle, New York
New Rochelle (; older french: La Nouvelle-Rochelle) is a city in Westchester County, New York, United States, in the southeastern portion of the state. In 2020, the city had a population of 79,726, making it the seventh-largest in the state of ...
and was cremated. Cartoonists Russ Westover and Alex Raymond
Alexander Gillespie Raymond Jr. (October 2, 1909 – September 6, 1956) was an American cartoonist who was best known for creating the '' Flash Gordon'' comic strip for King Features Syndicate in 1934. The strip was subsequently adapted into m ...
took part in an August 29, 1937 memorial to Opper broadcast on New York's WNEW.
References
Further reading
* McKinney, Mark. "After you, my dear fake Frenchmen: Frederick Burr Opper's Alphonse and Gaston—and Leon!." ''Inks: The Journal of the Comics Studies Society'' 1.2 (2017): 143-164online
* Opper, Frederick Burr. ''Happy Hooligan: A Complete Compilation, 1904-1905'' (Hyperion Press, 1977). * Robb, Jenny E. "The Opper Project: Collaborating with Educators to Promote the Use of Editorial Cartoons in the Social Studies Classroom." ''RBM: A Journal of Rare Books, Manuscripts, and Cultural Heritage'' 10.2 (2009): 70-94
online
External links
* *ridiculing TR and McKinley as pawns of Trusts and Sen. Hanna
Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum
at The Ohio State University
blog by Allan Holtz (blogspot.com) *
*
*
* ttp://www.toonopedia.com/antedilu.htm ''Our Antediluvian Ancestors''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 ...
Archived
from the original on April 4, 2012 * {{DEFAULTSORT:Opper, Frederick Burr 1857 births 1937 deaths People from Madison, Ohio American people of Austrian descent American comics artists American comic strip cartoonists Artists from New Rochelle, New York