The Shmoo (How Al Capp's Cartoon Critter Captured The Nation's Attention)

Self | December 10, 2002 | PJ-Comix

[PJ-Comix]

Have you ever heard of the Shmoo? You can be forgiven your ignorance on this subject since the Shmoo made its brief appearance in the newspaper comics pages over fifty years ago.

The Shmoo was the creation of cartoonist Al Capp in his popular Li'l Abner strip. With much fanfare Capp introduced the Shmoo in August 1948 and for the rest of the year the world went Shmoo crazy.

This creature inspired hundreds of Shmoo clubs all over North America as well as the "Society for the Advancement of the Shmoo." There were dozens of Shmoo products including Shmoo greeting cards, balloons, dolls, toys, jai-alai paddles, belts, suspenders, dairy goods, fountain pens, earrings, neckties, ashtrays, plant holders, soap, and curtains to name just a few. A garment factory in Baltimore turned out a line of Shmoo clothes including Shmooveralls.

The people of 1948 danced to the Shmoo Rhumba and the Shmoo Polka. The Shmoo entered our everyday language through such phrases as "What's Shmoo?" and "Happy Shmoo Year!" The best selling book, "The Life and Times of the Shmoo," was devoured by the reading public. Al Capp was even invited to go on a radio show to debate socialist Norman Thomas on the effect of the Shmoo on modern capitalism. Meanwhile in Germany, the commanders of the Berlin Airlift cabled Capp requesting a dozen inflatible Shmoos to be dropped from transport planes into Berlin as part of "Operation Little Vittles."

By now you are probably wondering why all the fuss over the Shmoo. Well, let me describe the Shmoo. It was a lovable bowling pin-shaped whiskered creature. The Shmoo yielded milk, eggs, cheesecake, and just about anything else you might desire. Shmoo meat when roasted was pork, when broiled it was steak, and when fried it was chicken. The eyes of a Shmoo made good suspender buttons and its whiskers made fine toothpicks. The skin when cut thin served as high quality cloth, cut thick it was leather, and cut in strips it became boards for housing.

Since the Shmoo was fast breeding and lived on practically nothing, it provided for almost all of society's needs. It turned out to be too much of a good thing. The Shmoos gave people all that they desired so the characters of Capp's comic strip quit their jobs. As a result of their indolence, civilization declined. Capp, himself sick of the Shmoo, finally dropped it from his strip early in 1949.

[Common Tator]

It would be a very interesting program, but nobody alive today remembers Al Capp, or Li'l Abner, for that matter.

I had totally forgotten Li'l Abner, but I remember Daisy Mae and Sadie Hawkins day.

If you want to see the influence of Al Capp's comedic genius try looking at the Nashville produced HEE HAW TV Show. The regular comic characters on that show were pure Al Capp. Hee Haw used Capp like characters including the Maw and Pa characters, the not so stupid country bumpkin, and the scantily clad young females who just appeared for the purpose of providing sex appeal. Capp got away with it by creating gorgeous sensuous hillbilly females who were totally unaware of their sexuality. Hee Haw did the same to be acceptable the Bible Belt audience it reached. The downtrodden dumb ole country boy, out smarting the educated city slicker was a part of Capp's cartoons and Hee Haw.

[PJ-Comix]

The History Channel REALLY needs to do a show about the history of American newspaper cartooning centering on Al Capp. It is an extremely FASCINATING topic. I read some of the material from one of the earliest newspaper cartoons, The Yellow Kid and it's STILL funny after all these years!

BTW, the big downfall in American newspaper cartoons came sometime in the 1970s when newspapers stupidly reduced the cartoon panel sizes in order to make space for more cartoon stories. It was counter-productive because it was hard to get the correct artwork in such small panels. Also the number of cartoon panels was reduced which hurt the flow of the stories. People nowadays don't immediately turn to the comics pages of the newspapers like they used to.

[Eric in the Ozarks]

This was tranfused into several TV shows. Beverly Hillbillies, the Dukes of Hazard, among others.

[davisfh]

Al Capp was noted for creating controversy and I laughed even harder when he did. I recall the efforts of Fearless Fosdick to track down the thief who had stolen Moishe Dyan's ham sandwich. Dyan was the Israeli defense minister and, of course, this was perceived as an affront to the Jewish folk. Personally, I think that Al always had a little fun with whoever was available at the time.

I'll definitely date myself with this one, but there was t

he "nomoto" car which was Japanese made. Happened about the time the influx of Japanese cars really began to built in this country. The nomoto car had no motor and derived its propulsive energy from a harness that the driver wore around his chest. It worked well until, one day, a driver sees this "hot" chick on the street corner. The nomoto car driver's respiratory rate increased to the point where the car went out of control and crashed. That event ended the nomoto car's popularity in this country.

L'il Abner was one of my favorite comic strips and I looked forward to the politically incorrect aspect of it. No one at that time had ever heard of "political correctness" as far as I know.

FD

[PJ-Comix]

I think some of the Capp cartoon characters were used as nose art on WWII bombers.

[Charles Henrickson]

You could add The Beverly Hillbillies, too. (The BH series came out not long after the LA musical and movie.) The characters are fashioned after the Dogpatch denizens: Granny = Mammy Yokum; Jethro = Li'l Abner; Elly Mae = Daisy Mae; etc.

[Pepper's_Paw]

My favorite memory of Capp's strip was the one about General Bullmoose and his motor car company. The Japaneese brought out an auto named the No Moto Car. For power it used a strap around the chest of the driver and the breaths taken by the driver propelled the car.

General Bullmoose was being driven out of business until he came up with the idea of filling the streets with beautiful women wearing mini skirts and the male drivers of the No Moto car saw these women and breathed so fast that all the No Moto cars ran wild and wrecked.

[PJ-Comix]

The history of America from the 1930s to the 1970s could be told through a proper presentation of the Al Capp cartoon strips. I really hope the History Channel produces such a program. I really like a lot of what the History Channel does. It's my FAVORITE channel for documentaries.

[pollwatcher]

I don't remember his comics very well, but I used to collect "Underground comix" years ago (for strictly art reasons). Some of the Hippy artists were big fans of Capp when growing up, then turned on him in the 60's.

[uncbob]

Lil Abner was the greatest comic strip of all times
Capp's characters were fantastice
Remember the SCHMOO very well

[capt. norm]

"but nobody alive today remembers Al Capp"

Have I just been declared legally dead?

When I was about 5 years old, my early Sunday morning duty was to bring in the Sunday paper and divide up the sections where I would end up with the cartoon section. Lil' Abner was one of my favorites.

There may be more of us "fossils", who read Al Capp's comic strips, lurking on this very forum.

[Senator_Blutarski]

There may be more of us "fossils", who read Al Capp's comic strips, lurking on this very forum.

I resemble those remarks!

[uncbob]

Injun Joe--Moonbeam McSwine--Earthquake McGoon--Fearless Fosdick--General Bullmooose--Wolf Gal--Evil Eye Fleagle ( My favorite the only thing that counter his Double Wammy Evil Eye was the Mammy Whammy Good Eye )--Joe Misplck ( Spelling but the guy with the cloud over his head that brought doom and gloom where ever he went)

[uncbob]

Forgot the Bald Iggle

[PJ-Comix]

Lil Abner was the greatest comic strip of all times

CALLING THE HISTORY CHANNEL! CALLING THE HISTORY CHANNEL!

I've already done a lot of research on this topic and know where many of the important documents, especially as pertaining to the Capp-Fisher feud can be found. I wasn't researching this as some sort of assignment. It was sort of a hobby of mine. I became really fascinating in the relationship between Capp and Fisher and how it deteriorated to the point where it led to Fisher's suicide after he was discovered to have tried to frame Capp via forgery as the author of some "pornographic" cartoons.

[uncbob]

Injun Joe amd Earthquake McGoon brewing up their famous KICKAPOO JUICE

[carpio]

but nobody alive today remembers Al Capp, or Li'l Abner, for that mattter.

Oh!! Really??I certainly do remember the Al Capp strip. And still often chuckle over memories of it.

And I am a pretty young Guy.

[uncbob]

Only DICK TRACY could rival Lil Abner for characters

[N. Theknow]

There may be more of us "fossils", who read Al Capp's comic strips, lurking on this very forum.

I resemble those remarks!

Stupefying Jones and Jubilation T. Corpone dittos and a big ole "if your knees are weak and your brain is loose, what you need is Kickapoo Joy Juice" to those sentiments.

BTW. I'll bet you probably remember "A tip of the Hatlo Hat."

[N. Theknow]

Moonbeam McSwine, Stupefying Jones and Daisy Mae.

Going through puberty and reading the funny papers. Better than National Geographic or the Sears catalog.