218) Little Lulu…

Marjorie Henderson Buell (1904-1993), who signed her work as “Marge,” created Little Lulu for the Saturday Evening Post in 1935. The single panel feature continued in the magazine until 1944.

Reproduction of first Little Lulu panel by Marge

The popularity of the panel gave rise to a variety of adaptations and merchandising opportunities overseen by Marge herself. Little Lulu was the mascot for Kleenex tissues during the 40s and 50s and also represented Pepsi Cola for a time.

Twenty six theatrical animated shorts were produced by Paramount Pictures between 1943 and 1948, with two additional shorts made in the 1960s. These cartoons were introduced by a catchy little theme song that was adapted for the opening of the HBO animated series produced in 1995.

One of the most popular interpretations of Little Lulu and her gang was a series of comic books as imagined by artist/writer John Stanley with other artists following Stanley’s lead.

A syndicated comic strip version of Little Lulu appeared in newspapers from 1950 to 1969, handled by a few different cartoonists.

Little Lulu also had a large international following.

As you may note, Marge’s drawings had a more illustrative style with Lulu being rather gangly.

Original comic strip art for Little Lulu daily (6-30-1958) signed Marge, but possibly done by cartoonist Ward Kimbrell

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