Willie and Joe are stock characters representing United States infantry soldiers during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. They were created and drawn by American cartoonist

Bill Mauldin William Henry Mauldin (; October 29, 1921 – January 22, 2003) was an American editorial cartoonist who won two Pulitzer Prizes for his work. He was most famous for his World War II cartoons depicting American soldiers, as represented by the ...

from 1940 to 1948, with additional drawings later. They were published in a

gag cartoon A gag cartoon (also panel cartoon, single-panel cartoon, or gag panel) is most often a single-panel cartoon, usually including a caption beneath the drawing. A pantomime cartoon carries no caption. In some cases, dialogue may appear in speech b ...

format, first in the ''45th Division News'', then '' Stars and Stripes'', and starting in 1944, a syndicated newspaper cartoon distributed by

United Feature Syndicate United Feature Syndicate (UFS) is a large American editorial column and comic strip newspaper syndication service based in the United States and established in 1919. Originally part of E. W. Scripps Company, it was part of United Media (along wit ...

History

Mauldin was an 18-year-old soldier training with the 45th Infantry Division in 1940. He cartooned part-time for the camp newspaper. Near the end of 1941 the Japanese attacked

Pearl Harbor Pearl Harbor is an American lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. It was often visited by the Naval fleet of the United States, before it was acquired from the Hawaiian Kingdom by the U.S. with the signing of the Re ...

, and the USA entered

. Mauldin was sent to combat, influencing his cartoons. They gradually became darker and more realistic in their depiction of the weariness of the enduring miseries of war. He extended the bristles on their faces and the eyes – "too old for those young bodies", as Mauldin put it – showed how much Willie and Joe suffered. In most cartoons, they were shown in the rain, mud, and other dire conditions, while they contemplated the whole situation. In the early cartoons, depicting stateside military life in barracks and training camps, Willie was a hook-nosed, smart-mouthed Chocktaw Indian, while Joe was his red-necked

straight man The straight man is a stock character in a comedy performance, especially a double act, sketch comedy, or farce. When a comedy partner behaves eccentrically, the straight man is expected to maintain composure. The direct contribution to the ...

. But over time, the two became virtually indistinguishable from each other in appearance and attitude. While Mauldin was praised for his realistic depictions of what most soldiers felt during war-time, he was less popular with some officers, however. General

George S. Patton, Jr. George Smith Patton Jr. (November 11, 1885 – December 21, 1945) was a General (United States), general in the United States Army who commanded the Seventh United States Army in the Mediterranean Theater of Operations, Mediterranean Theater ...

in particular felt offended by the cartoons. Mauldin was ordered to meet him in March 1945 in Patton's quarters in Luxembourg, where Patton complained about the scruffiness of the characters and blamed Mauldin for disrespecting the army and "trying to incite a

mutiny Mutiny is a revolt among a group of people (typically of a military, of a crew or of a crew of pirates) to oppose, change, or overthrow an organization to which they were previously loyal. The term is commonly used for a rebellion among member ...

". But

Dwight Eisenhower Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; ; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was an American military officer and statesman who served as the 34th president of the United States from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, ...

, Supreme Commander European Theater, told Patton to leave Mauldin alone, because he felt that Mauldin's cartoons gave the soldiers an outlet for their frustrations. The War Department supported their syndication. The cartoons helped publicize the ground forces and showed the grim side of war, demonstrating that victory would require repeated sacrifices.

Stephen Ambrose Stephen Edward Ambrose (January 10, 1936 – October 13, 2002) was an American historian, most noted for his biographies of U.S. Presidents Dwight D. Eisenhower and Richard Nixon. He was a longtime professor of history at the University of New Or ...

, author of '' Band of Brothers'', praised Mauldin's work: "More than anyone else, save only

Ernie Pyle Ernest Taylor Pyle (August 3, 1900 – April 18, 1945) was a Pulitzer Prize–winning American journalist and war correspondent who is best known for his stories about ordinary American soldiers during World War II. Pyle is also notable for the ...

, he caught the trials and travails of the GI. For anyone who wants to know what it was like to be an infantryman in World War II, this is the place to start – and finish."

Publication history

The cartoons were published in the ''45th Division News'' from 1940 until November 1943, when the Mediterranenean edition of the '' Stars and Stripes'' took them over. Starting April 17, 1944, Mauldin's editor arranged for syndication by

as ''Up Front.'' As of 1945, according to a ''

Time Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, to ...

'' report, the cartoons were published in 139 newspapers. The title changed to ''Sweatin' It Out'' on June 11, 1945, then ''Willie and Joe'' on July 30, 1945. The strip lasted until April 8, 1948. Mauldin received two

Pulitzer Prize The Pulitzer Prize () is an award for achievements in newspaper, magazine, online journalism, literature, and musical composition within the United States. It was established in 1917 by provisions in the will of Joseph Pulitzer, who had made h ...

s for cartooning, one in 1945 and one in 1959. By the end of the war, he also received the Army's

Legion of Merit The Legion of Merit (LOM) is a military award of the United States Armed Forces that is given for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services and achievements. The decoration is issued to members of the eight ...

for his cartoons. Mauldin planned for Willie and Joe to be killed on the last day of combat, but ''Stars and Stripes'' staff dissuaded him. He tried to bring them into civilian life, but could not find a successful way to do that. He discusses this in his memoir, ''Back Home,'' in 1947. Mauldin occasionally drew new cartoons of "Willie and Joe" after the war. He drew them to commemorate the funerals of people he admired, such as generals

Omar Bradley Omar Nelson Bradley (February 12, 1893April 8, 1981) was a senior Officer (armed forces), officer of the United States Army during and after World War II, rising to the rank of General of the Army (United States), General of the Army. Bradley ...

and

George C. Marshall George Catlett Marshall Jr. (December 31, 1880 – October 16, 1959) was an American army officer and statesman. He rose through the United States Army to become Chief of Staff of the United States Army, Chief of Staff of the US Army under Pre ...

and fellow cartoonist

Milton Caniff Milton Arthur Paul Caniff (; February 28, 1907 – April 3, 1988) was an People of the United States, American cartoonist famous for the ''Terry and the Pirates (comic strip), Terry and the Pirates'' and ''Steve Canyon'' comic strips. Biography ...

. Mauldin retired in 1991. The pair reappeared in a 1998

Veterans Day Veterans Day (originally known as Armistice Day) is a federal holiday in the United States observed annually on November 11, for honoring military veterans of the United States Armed Forces (who were discharged under conditions other than di ...

strip of the popular comic ''

Peanuts ''Peanuts'' is a print syndication, syndicated daily strip, daily and Sunday strip, Sunday American comic strip written and illustrated by Charles M. Schulz. The strip's original run extended from 1950 to 2000, continuing in reruns afterward. ' ...

'', using art that had been copied out of a 1944 ''Willie and Joe'' panel.

Charles M. Schulz Charles Monroe "Sparky" Schulz (; November 26, 1922 – February 12, 2000) was an American cartoonist and the creator of the comic strip ''Peanuts'', featuring what are probably his two best-known characters, Charlie Brown and Snoopy. He is wi ...

, creator of ''Peanuts'' and himself a World War II Infantry combat veteran, was a personal friend of Mauldin's and considered him a hero.

Availability

In March 2008, most World War II comics by Mauldin were published in a collected

Fantagraphics Books Fantagraphics (previously Fantagraphics Books) is an American publisher of alternative comics, classic comic strip anthologies, manga, magazines, graphic novels, and the erotic Eros Comix imprint. History Founding Fantagraphics was found ...

edition.

Legacy

The films '' Up Front'' (1951) and ''

Back at the Front ''Back at the Front'' (titled ''Willie and Joe in Tokyo'' in the UK) is a 1952 American comedy film directed by George Sherman and starring Tom Ewell, Harvey Lembeck and Mari Blanchard, very loosely based on the characters ''Willie and Joe'' by B ...

'' (1952) were based on Mauldin's Willie and Joe characters; however, when Mauldin's suggestions were ignored in favor of making a

slapstick Slapstick is a style of humor involving exaggerated physical activity that exceeds the boundaries of normal physical comedy. Slapstick may involve both intentional violence and violence by mishap, often resulting from inept use of props such a ...

comedy, he returned his advising fee; he said he had never seen the result. "Willie and Joe" were satirized as "Billie and Moe" by

Warren Sattler Warren Sattler (born September 7, 1934) is an American artist and cartoonist, who contributed work to many popular publications from the early 1960s through the 1990s. Biography A lifelong Connecticut resident, Warren Sattler started cartooning a ...

in ''

National Lampoon Presents The Very Large Book of Comical Funnies ''National Lampoon Presents The Very Large Book of Comical Funnies'' is an American humor book, a book of comic strips that was published in 1975 in paperback as a spin-off of ''National Lampoon'' magazine. Although it appears to be a book, in ...

''. On Veterans' Day 1998, Willie and Joe appeared in the comic strip ''

'' in a strip that Mauldin drew with

. On March 31, 2010, the United States Post Office released a first-class denomination "$0.44" postage stamp in Mauldin's honor depicting him with Willie & Joe. Original Willie & Joe comics and other illustrations by Bill Mauldin are in the collections of the

Pritzker Military Museum & Library The Pritzker Military Museum & Library (formerly Pritzker Military Library) is a non-profit museum and a research library for the study of military history on Michigan Avenue in Chicago, Illinois. The institution was founded in 2003, and its spe ...

Sources

{{Reflist, 30em American comic strips 1940 comics debuts Comics characters introduced in 1940 1998 comics endings Fictional soldiers Comic strip duos Fictional American people Gag cartoon comics Gag-a-day comics Comics set during World War II Anti-war comics American comics adapted into films Military humor