From the Dick Buchanan Files: The Old Joke Cemetery: Laugh In Peace

Dateline Greenwich Village, NY: From the amazing Cartoon Clip File of Dick Buchanan, here is a lovingly curated selection of moldy oldies. There are over two dozen of these old bon mots, these groaners, these dreadful old jokes. You have been warned! 

But, hey, if you haven't heard these before, then they are all new to you. Thanks and take it away, Dick:

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THE OLD JOKE CEMETERY
Laugh In Peace


In 1922, Fred Allen commissioned comic-strip artist Martin Branner (Winnie Winkle) to cover a theater curtain with an elaborate mural painting depicting a cemetery with a punchline on each gravestone and crypt. This was the "Old Joke Cemetery," where overworked gags go to die.

Sadly, Fred Allen’s curtain no longer exists. But, thanks to the Old Joke Recovery Act of 1953, the Old Joke Cemetery has been revived by the Cartoon Clip File. Today it consists of an assemblage of vintage gag cartoons clipped from old magazines and haphazardly pasted on the walls of Cartoon Clip File headquarters.

These are the gag cartoon versions old jokes now interred in the Old Joke Cemetery. No one recalls when or where these gags first appeared but they did and they’ve been with us ever since.

Here’s a chance to say goodbye to some favorite old jokes now interred in the Old Joke Cemetery . . . and keep in mind, some of these old jokes are merely resting and will likely re-appear now and again.


1. AL JOHNS. The Saturday Evening Post December 22 – 29, 1962.

 2. SYD HOFF. True Magazine June, 1952.

3. WALTER GOLDSTEIN. The Saturday Evening Post October 16, 1951.

4. PHIL INTERALNDI. Look Magazine December 31, 1962.

5. KAZ. Larry Katzman’s Nurse Nellie cartoons appeared in magazines, book collections and greeting cards. The Saturday Evening Post May 27, 1961.

6. MARTHA BLANCHARD. Look Magazine May 9, 1961.

7. GLENN BERNHARDT. Bernhardt was a West Coast cartoonist who founded the Northern California Cartoon & Humor Association in 1954. Collier’s May 20, 1950.

8. GARDNER REA. Look Magazine April 9, 1963.

9. NED HILTON. Collier’s March 11, 1950.

10. WILLIAM von RIEGEN. Collier’s November 4, 1950.

11. GLENN BERNHARDT. American Magazine June, 1953.

12. BORIS DRUCKER. The Saturday Evening Post June 11, 1949.

13. MICHAEL BERRY. Collier’s December 21, 1946.

14. BRAM. Martin Brammier, Jr. The Saturday Evening Post June 11, 1960.

15. JERRY MARCUS. Here! December, 1951.

16. SYD HOFF. Collier’s March 19, 1949.

17. HERB GREEN. The Saturday Evening Post July 20, 1957.

18. CHON DAY. Collier’s July 18, 1953.

19. PETER WYMA. The Saturday Evening Post April 18, 1959.

20. KATE OSANN. Collier’s April 15, 1950.

21. TUP. Bob Tupper was a popular “men’s interest” magazine cartoonist. a-Laugh-a-Minit January, 1956.

22. GARDNER REA. Collier’s June 26, 1948.

23. JEFF MONAHAN. 1000 Jokes Magazine March-May, 1958.

24. BILL KING. American Legion Magazine May, 1949.

25. JOHN NORMENT. The Saturday Evening Post June 15, 1957.      

- Edited from a blog entry of January 10, 2020

From the Dick Buchanan Files: Old Joke Cemetery: Gag Cartoons from the Crypt 1947 - 1967

Old jokes, bad old puns - they all tend to survive because people who put these jokes out there like to see others groan. Below are some old groaners that'll make you shake your head and wonder why these are still a "thing." But moldy oldy humor lives and occasionally sees the light of day. Thanks to Dick Buchanan, this is one of those days. Read and groan. I know you love it! Actually, a couple of these made me laugh, like Frank Baginski's cartoon and George Gateley's and Bob Schroeter's and ....  Well. OK. Thanks, and take it away, Dick!

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OLD JOKE CEMETERY
GAG CARTOONS FROM THE CRYPT
(1947 – 1967)


Spring is here. As is our custom, the staff of the Cartoon Clip has been busy Spring Cleaning. In our case that means moving everything from the den to the library and vice versa. It’s the vice versa that thwarted us this year. That, plus the fact we have no den. So, we moved everything into the dining room. Along the way we came across some sure-fire gag cartoons which we are fast tracking for internment in the Old Joke Cemetery. Take a look . . .

1. IRWIN CAPLAN. The Saturday Evening Post May 8, 1948.

 

 

 

2. VIRGIL PARTCH. Look Magazine May 14, 1961.

 

3. JOHN GALLAGHER. The Saturday Evening Post September 12, 1953.

 

4. GLENN BERNHARDT. Look Magazine c.1960

 

5. HANK KETCHAM. This Week Magazine May 15, 1949.

 

6. JOHN ALBANO. The Saturday Evening Post April 27, 1947.

 

7. ROBERT WEBER. Look Magazine April 7, 1964.

 

8. TOM HUDSON. 1000 Jokes Magazine Spring, 1949.

 

9. FRANK BAGINSKI. 1000 Jokes Magazine June -August, 1967.

 

10. CHON DAY. True Magazine July 1950.

 

11. LAFE LOCKE. The Saturday Evening Post September 13, 1952.

 

12. STANLEY STAMATY. Cartoon Humor November, 1949.

 

"Thanks a lot for passing on your cute saying to me. It went over big with my parents."

 

 

13. BILL KING. The Saturday Evening Post March 13, 1954.

 

14. GEORGE GATELY. 1000 Jokes Magazine December, 1959 – February, 1960.

 

15. LES COLIN. American Magazine October, 1949.

 

16. VIRGIL PARTCH. Collier’s February 19, 1954.

 

17. BOB SCHROETER. American Magazine July, 1952.

 

18. BRANDT PARKER. The Saturday Evening Post July 6, 1957.

 

19. WILLIAM CRAWFORD. Collier’s April 20, 1946.

 

20. ROWLAND WILSON. The Saturday Evening Post April 17, 1954.

 

Joe Giella 1928 - 2023

 

 

Joe Giella inks over Carmine Infantino pencils.

 

Joe Giella, long-time silver age comic book artist, known for Batman, as well as a 25 year stint on Mary Worth, passed away on Tuesday. He was 94. 

A gracious and kind gentleman, I was fortunate to know him and have lunch with him for years as fellow Berndt Toast Gang members. 

From the Giella family:

 

The Giella family wishes for all to celebrate the incredible life of Joe Giella. 

 

Joe passed peacefully on March 21st at the age of 94. 

 

Joe was such a special person. His presence alone would put you at ease. Even on the most difficult days, just being with him would make everything OK again. 

 

He was so honest and sincere, so kind and gentle and so loving and proud. 

 

He was so proud of his service for his country in the US Navy.

 

He was so proud of his long prolific career in comic books and comic strips.

 

And he was most proud of his family. To him, family was everything. Nothing made him happier than sitting around the dinner table with family and friends. Sundays and Holidays became sacred events full of laughter and great food. 

 

Joe’s legacy in comic books and comic strips will live on. Our family wishes to thank all of his friends and fans for their support. He truly was humbled by all the attention and love he received. Thank you all and when you think of Joe please try to smile. The world needs more superheroes like Joe. 

 

Joe Giella 

 

June 27, 1928 – March 21, 2023

 

 

From June Brigman's Facebook page:

 

Joe Giella passed away, March 21st, at the age of 94. I met Joe in 2016, when he handed me the reins of Mary Worth, a comic strip he had drawn for 25 years. His lovely wife shook my hand told me a very heartfelt "Thank you!" At the age of 87, Joe was finally retiring. But let me tell you, he was a hard act to follow. Joe was a consummate professional and an excellent draftsman. He did exciting, dynamic superheroes as well as the endless repetition of a syndicated comic strip and always maintained a high standard of quality. Joe told me he wanted to paint. I hope he did. I know they must be lovely paintings. 

 

 

I'm still taking this all in. Joe was unchanging. Always patient and kind. It was always a pleasure to see him. I was really thinking that he would keep on and on. This is so sad. 

 

From Berndt Toast Gang Chair Adrian Sinnott:

 

Incredibly sad news today, our beloved, Joe Giella, passed away last night. As you all know, Joe was a giant in the cartooning world and loved by all who knew him. His incredible work spanned decades and admired by all who saw it. Especially by his thousands upon thousands of fans. When Joe retired, he found himself busier than ever creating pieces for those fans. 

Those of us in the Berndt Toast Gang and the National Cartoonists Society had the extraordinary gift of knowing Joe as a friend and colleague.

 

 

A wake will be held on Friday.

Don Orehek, Joe and me at Bunny Hoest's home in 2010.

 

Related:

STRANGE ADVENTURES #237: "The Skyscraper That Came to Life!" 

Joe Giella: 'I feel that I haven't done my best work yet.' 93-year-old artist continues drawing after long career in comics

Joe Giella Interview: "Legendary Artist Stays Busy During Pandemic"

Karen Moy and Joe Giella Talk About Creating MARY WORTH

Video: The Joe Giella 1998 Shoot Interview by David Armstrong

 

 

 

 

 

Animated Short: The Interview (1960)

Via the Internet Archive, here's "The Interview," directed by Ernest Pintoff with music by Stan Getz. 

"An animated cartoon which depicts an interview between a 'square' announcer and a 'hip' jazz horn player in which each becomes confused by the other's terminology."

The Restored Laurel and Hardy Short "Battle of the Century" (1927)

 

I knew who Laurel and Hardy were when I was a little kid because they were on TV, Monday through Friday afternoons. I was allowed to watch them, but not The Three Stooges, who were violent. Laurel and Hardy made 106 shorts and features for thirty years, beginning in 1921. By the 1960s, both of them had passed away, and their output had been cut and packaged to television.

 

I still remember going to the then-new public library in Lawrence, Kansas (The older one had been in a disastrous flood in the early 1970s, shutting it down for quite a long time), and borrowing a book about their films. The library had things you could borrow that I had never heard of. I remember Dad checking out a framed painting! And there were also movies. Super 8mm movies of the silent film stars from Blackhawk films. (Located just the next state over, in Davenport, IA.)

Anyway, one thing I learned from that book was that despite how popular L&H were, a number of their films had been lost. UCLA has a Laurel and Hardy Film Preservation Fund. Here's a for instance: there was, for many decades, a missing reel for their Battle of the Century short (1927), which featured THE pie fight to end all pie fights. Even by 1927, pie fights were considered passe, but Stan Laurel (He wrote most of the gags.) conceived of an epic escalating pie battle, involving some 3,000 pies. Now who wouldn't want to see that?

Fast forward to the 21st century. Jon Mirsalis, a silent film accompanist, collector, and preservationist, found it. Here's an interview with him from 2016 where he describes how he came across it. The missing reel can be watched here, but if you want to see the whole restored short, here you go:

Video: This Is Your Life, Hal Foster - April 14, 1954

From the Dick Buchanan Files: They Came From Outer Space 1950 - 1968

Here are some otherworldly cartoons from the Golden Age of magazine cartooning courtesy of the one and only Dick Buchanan. Or maybe it's one of those Invasion of the Body Snatchers clones. Hmm. Anyway, if it is, this clone is just as terrific about sharing some of his gag cartoons from his tremendous Cartoon Clip File. Thank you, Dick/Clone! 

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THEY CAME FROM OUTER SPACE
(1950 – 1968)


Mid 20th century cartoonists were ready, quick and able to contribute their two cents worth to the furor over Unidentified Flying Objects which occurred after a flying saucer crashed in Roswell, New Mexico in the summer of 1947. Of course, right away we knew cartoonists would be on the side of the aliens.
Culled from the Cartoon Clip File, here are just a few examples of how some of the day’s best gag cartoonists, from here and abroad, covered the subject. Take a look . . .


1. ERIC ERICSON. American Magazine December, 1955.

 

2. GAHAN WILSON. For Laughing Out Loud November, 1964.

 

3. NED HILTON. Collier’s February 5, 1954.

4. BILL HEWISON. Punch January 7, 1953.

5. GLENN ZULAUF. Look Magazine January 31, 1961.

 

6. BILL HOEST. The Saturday Evening Post August 28, 1965.

 

7. JOHN NORMENT. Collier’s October 30, 1953.

 

8. JOHN GLASHAN. Punch November 25, 1953.

 

9. BRUCE PATTERSON Pictorial Review June 21, 1953.

 

10. JAN van WESSUM. Punch Almanack November 8, 1968.

 

11. ALEX GRAHAM. Punch Almanack November 2, 1963.

 

 "Lunnon folk, I expect."

 

12. GAHAN WILSON. For Laughing Out Loud July, 1964.

 

"Then it's all settled -- the entire planet for

twenty-four dollars worth of trinkets." 

 

 

13. VAHAN SHIRVANIAN. The Saturday Evening Post. August 2, 1964.

14. ALEX GRAHAM. Punch December 30, 1952.

 

15. NATE COLLIER. Boys’ Life September, 1950.

16. GEORGE GATELY. American Legion Magazine July, 1960.

17. GEORGE SPROD. Punch Almanack November 3, 1952.

 "Ah well, thank goodness we still have our sense of humour."