New Discovery - 1855 Oscar Shangai - Closer to US Constitution than to Action 1!

[BOOT]

Recently found this 1855 edition of The Wonderful and Amusing Doings by Sea & Land of Oscar Shanghai. It is one of the earliest original American comic books/graphic novels.

 

The cover features art by Samuel Avery and the interior artwork is by "ALC".

 

Published in 1855 by Garrett & Co, 18 Ann Street, this was "entered according the Act of Congress...in the Clerk's Office of the Southern District of New York".

 

The book has 100 pages including covers, printed on one side in black and white. Very early and crude printing and production, with hand sewn binding.

 

In the vein of the earliest graphic novels/comics, it features a full length cartoon story/graphic novel about an epic journey by the title character. He starts out a bumbling soft young man (as pictured on the left of the cover). By the end, he is older and wiser to the ways of the world (as shown on the right of the cover).

 

The narrative is full of funny and thrilling situations, usually made worse by Oscar's bad decisions.

 

Oscar fights a duel, flies in an airship, and meets natives of foreign lands. And he gets swallowed by a whale, which seems to be a common theme in early cartoon stories.

 

There was a later reprint in the 1870s-1880s.

 

In the Victorian Era section, Overstreet says this about the first edition:

 

Not much is known of this first edition as the data comes from a recently discovered Brother Jonathan catalog issued 1853-1855. No original known yet to exist.

 

We know now that at least one copy does indeed exist.

 

Amazing to think this came out 68 years after the U.S. Constitution was written, but 83 years before the publication of Action Comics #1.

 

And oh yeah, it has a skull cover!

[BOOT]

Some interior pages...

[BOOT]

A few more pages...

[porcupine48]

awesome

[tb]

Thank you so much for sharing this.

 

The panel with the punishment of the cook left me somewhere in the range between speechless and sick to my stomach: it's certainly memorable and a real little historical gem.

[pmpknface]

This is fantastic! Thanks a ton!

[Straw-Man]

how many million would beerbong want for one of those?!?!?!?

[sfcityduck]

Very cool item!

 

These precursors to comics are historically interesting and significant.

[BOOT]

Thank you so much for sharing this.

 

The panel with the punishment of the cook left me somewhere in the range between speechless and sick to my stomach: it's certainly memorable and a real little historical gem.

Yes, that panel sent me to the dictionary. Oscar was trying to be tough...he paid the price.

[porcupine48]

ive found a few books of this era in the wild,,,most exciting thrift store finds.....

[mwotka]

Very cool find, thanks for sharing! I love seeing the great history of the comic medium. Curious where you found this? (hoping for a great flea market discovery story)