Web Page 3034 14th January 2023 First Picture: Desperate Dan

Second Picture: Cow Pie

Third Picture: The Dandy

Forth Picture: Desperate Dan statue

Desperate Dan Desperate Dan is a wild west character in the now-defunct Scottish comic magazine The Dandy, and became its mascot. He made his appearance in the first issue which was dated 4th December 1937. He is apparently the world's strongest man, able to lift a cow with one hand. The pillow of his (reinforced) bed is filled with building rubble and his beard is so tough he shaves with a blowtorch. The character was created by Dudley D. Watkins, originally as an outlaw or ‘desperado’ (hence his name), but evolved into a more sympathetic type, using his strength to help the underdog. After Dudley Watkins’ death in 1969, the cartoons were drawn by many other artists, principally Ken H. Harrison. When the Dandy became digital-only in 2012, the Desperate Dan strips were drawn by David Parkins. There is a statue of Dan in Dundee, Scotland, where his publishers, D. C. Thomson & Co. are based. Although The Dandy Annuals featured new strips from other artists from then on, the comic continued reprinting Watkins strips until 1983 (though the then Korky the Cat artist Charles Grigg drew new strips for annuals and summer specials), when it was decided to start running new strips. These were initially drawn by Peter Davidson, but Ken H. Harrison soon took over as regular artist. The following year Dan was promoted to the front cover of The Dandy, replacing Korky who had been there since issue 1. Starting from issue 2985, dated 6th February 1999, Cuddles and Dimples replaced Dan on the front cover. This didn't last long, however, as after a readers' poll in 2000, Dan returned to the cover. Although Ken Harrison was the main artist from 1983 to 2007, other artists have also occasionally filled in for Harrison. When The Dandy was redesigned and renamed Dandy Xtreme, the writers used reprints of the old comic strips, until Jamie Smart took over drawing and writing the Desperate Dan comic strips in April 2008 Desperate Dan's final appearance left his fate ambiguous after being caught in an oil well explosion. Desperate Dan's favourite food is cow pie with the horns sticking out, although the term "cow pie" has a different meaning in the American West. Much like Popeye with his spinach, Desperate Dan draws his immense power from eating these pies. Desperate Dan was voted the UK's second favourite superhero after Batman in 2011. Initially Dan was a desperado on the wrong side of the law, hence the name Desperate Dan. Later on, however, he switched sides and become a friendlier character, helping the underdog, although sometimes his great strength caused more harm than good. With the first revamp of The Dandy (from issue 3282, 16 October 2004) Dan, was redesigned slightly. His eyes and chin became much bigger and exaggerated. Dan's personality was changed to that of a bumbling fool, a change to which many fans objected. He was originally going to be left out of the revamped issues, but focus group tests objected to his absence[ A number of spin-off strips have appeared in The Dandy over the years, including Desperate Dawg in the 1970s and 80s, Danny and Katey in the late 1980s and Aunt Aggie in the 2000s (before the 2004 relaunch).[2] A statue of him (and his dog Dawg) can be found in the High Street of Dundee, Scotland – The Dandy is published by Dundee-based D. C. Thomson & Co. The Desperate Dan statue (erected as part of the Dundee Public Art Programme) is the most photographed of 120 pieces of public art in the city. After the print Dandy ended with its 75th anniversary issue. The Dandy relaunched as a digital comic. Stay in Touch Peter gsseditor@gmail.com