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Here we see the remains of Santa's crashed airship. But apparently he has yet another mode of travel, an airplane of some kind. Of course, King Morpheus has the largest Christmas tree imaginable.
Also, I continue to be amazed by McCay's architecture drawings. I think they're the best part of any of his strips.
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Santa has not yet learned to just stick with the reindeer and the sleigh. He now has another airship, which looks different from the one he had in the last strip. I really like that penultimate panel with the falling toys, though.
And... the princess of Slumberland is asking Santa for Nemo for Christmas?
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Santa has ditched his reindeer once again for an airship. Also, he apparently never uses the door, but always the chimney. I do wonder, though, why it is that King Morpheus and Santa Claus look so similar, and therefore if they're related somehow.
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Nemo's dream (or nightmare, really) demonstrates why children should go to sleep instead of staying up to see Santa Claus: One, because you'll become covered in frozen icicles, and two, because apparently even if he knows you live there, if he doesn't see you he won't leave you any gifts.
Please disregard the turn of the century racist stereotype in the penultimate panel. I love Winsor McCay, but he was a product of his time.
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Now we find out what happens when you drive your car-sleigh inside your house. Of course, it crashes and you get blown out of it. Santa wants to go back to the reindeer after this, but will he drive the sleigh in the house with them?? I hope not.
There'll be no Christmas if they don't find Nemo? Don't worry, Santa's on the job!
There is an ongoing story here involving Nemo being lost and King Morpheus trying to find him, though I guess the king doesn't care much about Flip or the imp. I love Santa's awesome car-sleigh.
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It's interesting to note that McCay's Santa Claus is not colored consistently. He wears red, blue, and green in different strips. These days, we wouldn't dream of having Santa wear anything but red and white, but it wasn't always so. McCay was probably just following the trend. His hat, and the hats of his elves, are also far pointier, and not as floppy.
I like the fact that Nemo glances at the Ladies' room and the lady tells him to keep moving.
Also... what is that outfit Nemo is wearing...??
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I imagine it would be exciting for a little kid to get to drive Santa's sleigh, but at the same time I think it would turn out just as well as it does here. I don't know if every kid would get caught on a windvane, but the sleigh would certainly be lost. Nemo lost the second bag of toys, too! Good thing it was only a dream.
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Looking at Winsor McCay's work, and especially Little Nemo, has always impressed me. It's amazing to think that this appeared in a newspaper. Look at where Santa Claus lives! I guess he would need a place that big to house all of the toys for all the children in the world.
The lettering is difficult to read, but you hardly need to. It's nice enough just to look at.
I haven't updated this blog in quite some time, and when I did it was to whine about Facebook and a single musing about my art. My end of year resolution, as it were, is to do more to share things that I'm passionate about. If there is a single thing that I could pick that I've been passionate about for the longest time, it would be comic strips. Since it's December, and I happen to celebrate Christmas, I figured it would be appropriate to post some Christmas (and New Year) comic strips from cartoonists that I admire and have influenced me, namely Winsor McCay, George Herriman, Walt Kelly, Charles Schulz, Bill Watterson, and Richard Thompson. I hope they are interesting to you, even if you don't happen to celebrate Christmas.