Holy Moley

Holy Moley! is a fictitious magazine devised by drunken reprobate maverick cartoonist Simon Kirby. Following in the steps of SK's earlier pastiche Glory Bea, Holy Moley is an affectionate tribute to the postwar children's genre of the 1950s. Drawing inspiration from Audrey, Jinx, and similar juvenile characters, Moley! features such "unforgettable" classics as Tessa & Babs, Duke's Little Angel, Emmi & Yippa and Those Ryan Girls.

As with most of SK's comic-strip pastiches, Holy Moley! is provided with a detailed faux history reflecting trends and developments in the real-world publishing industry. The fictitious timeline covers a transitional period from 1947 to 1955, during which female characters rose from relative obscurity to become one of the dominant genres of the Golden Age.

Historical Background
Although female characters had always played an important role in juvenile media, comics aimed specifically at a young female audience didn't appear until the late 40s. As interest in superheroes waned during the post-war era, publishers began experimenting with previously unexplored genres. As noted by various sources, crime and horror titles rose to market dominance, closely followed by romance and teen Humor. Cinematic licensing also proved a lucrative option, leading to numerous cartoon characters being adapted into comic book format.

By the mid 40s, female characters were beginning to attract national attention, particularly after the launch of Famous Studio's Little Lulu series. The result was a "rush" of Lulu imitators in printed media, as Timely, Harvey, Archie and Dell all took aim at the junior market. The animated debut of Little Audrey in 1947 ignited a "second wave" at the end of the decade. Audrey was licensed by St John's Publications in 1948, followed by Harvey in 1952. Many of Harvey's existing characters were subsequently redesigned to conform to the "Audrey" model.

Following the economic slump of the mid-fifties, child-friendly titles quickly overtook the more controversial crime/horror genre (effectively wiped out by the Comics Code controversy). Boosted by parental approval and increased sales, many companies concentrated on child-oriented storylines free of sex, violence and bloodshed. By 1956, juvenile humor was firmly established as a major player in the field. Significantly, while adult themes were strictly forbidden under CCA guidelines, corporal punishment was considered perfectly acceptable for juvenile characters. Subsequently, spanking became a recurring plot device during the post-code period (1955-1972).

Headline characters
Tessa & Babs chronicled the (mis)adventures of Tessa Hartford and her bookish classmate, Babette Walters. Storylines typically revolved around Tessa getting up to her "usual mischief" with Babs shaking her head in disapproval. Constantly ignoring her friend's advice, Tessa inevitably found herself on the receiving end of an extremely public.

Emmi and Yippa combined juvenile humor with funny animals, featuring "a cute little girl and her weird yellow puppy." Despite playing second fiddle to a talking mutant dog, Emmi became something of a headliner, eventually receiving her own short-lived series in 1953. Drawn in traditional style by industry legend Ray Harradine, the strip employed suitably madcap comedy, usually leading to a well-smacked bottom for Emmi.

Hector Gilbert's Those Ryan Girls initially appeared as a back-page filler in 1947, then went on star in their own title in 1951. Published in various forms until 1954, the strip was notable for its simple linework, crazed fifties perspectives, and totally gratuitous spanking scenes (sometimes up to three per story). The lead characters, Patsy and Katsy, are widely regarded as the most frequently spanked twins in the history of comics.

Duke's Little Angel was a cross-genre strip about a Texas ranger who tracks some varmints to the big city and ends up adopting his long-lost younger cousin. In keeping with the "urban cowboy" theme, Duke dispensed frontier justice on a regular basis, spanking Angel's white cotton knickers at least once per episode, generally as last panel finale.