Katy Keene Pin up Parade Number 1, 1955
Katy Keene- Movie Pin-ups For You!
Exactly who is Katy Keene? That’s what I wondered aloud to myself the first time I saw her comic books next to my usual Archie titles in the newsstand at LaGuardia Airport. I was 7 or 8 years…
Katy Keene- The Fashion Pin-up Queen!
Katy Keene Pin-up Parade #10 Spring 1960
Katy Keen, Jungle Queen by Bill Woggon
The most popular Out of This World blog post for a long time time was actually about paper dolls in comics. I made a one-off post about this topic as a 'thank you' to a fellow blogger who was very kind enough to allow me to use her scan of a newspaper comic strip for a project I was working on. Since then, paper doll fans have been among my most frequent visitors. So I thought it was about time I followed up on that success with some more paper dolls. In today's post I'm using other people's scans that have been passed on to me, and they are all from various Katy Keene issues from the original series and annuals. In the next post I'll be featuring some Millie the Model and Patsy Walker paper dolls from my own collection. Katy Keene was published by Archie Comics. Katy Keene is something of a phenomenon. Bill Woggon has that 'good girl' look just right, with Katy sort of somewhere between Fritzi Ritz and Torchy. So here's a selection of material from some classic Katy Keene comics - wedding dresses, some covers, a cool beatnik story, and of course, lots of paper dolls! Enjoy! First here's the story from the beatnik issue: Next, some examples of those word and picture narratives that were frequently included in Katy Keene comics. This first one is again from Katy Keene 50: and this one is from Katy Keene Annual 3: and this from Katy Keene 45: Now some paper dolls. From Katy Keene 62: and this one from Katy Keene 50: Here's a bunch from Katy Keene Annual 3: and Katy Keene Annual 4: Some really old ones, from Katy Keene 16: and finally (for the paper dolls in this post), I don't know if these aprons are supposed to be paper dolls but I'll put them here anyway, from Katy Keene 45: Katy Keene (the character) is a model and movie star, pretty much like Millie the Model and other 'model' characters in girls' comics from the Golden and Silver Age. Katy Keene comics have tons of fashion features and reader participation in providing ideas and designs. As an example, here's some Katy Keene wedding dresses, from Katy Keene Annual 3: from Katy Keene 16: and Katy Keene Annual 4: Well that's pretty much it for this one. I found that an interesting jaunt through some of Bill Woggon's Katy Keene artwork, and I hope you all enjoyed it too. Paper dolls seem to have quite an incredible following, so I hope some of those fans stumble across this post. Paper dolls are an interesting piece of culture, and it heartens me to know that there are people dedicated to preserving and perpetuating them for future generations to appreciate and enjoy. Until next time, hopefully you'll think these paper dolls are Out of This World! I <3 Katy Keene!?
Katy Keene
Katy Keene: Issue No. 8 Comic Book - "Fan Club Form" (Archie Romance Series) 1985 JillyBean's "FLAT CHICKS" The World of Paper Dolls
Katy Keen- I think she's Keen! Katy Keene From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Katy Keene Archie character Katy Keene Special #2 (1984), art by John S. Lucas. First appearance Wilbur Comics #5 (Summer 1945) Created by Bill Woggon Information Occupation Model, actress, singer Katy Keene, a character created by Bill Woggon, has appeared in several comic book series published by Archie Comics since 1945. She is a model/actress/singer known as America's Queen of Pin-Ups and Fashions. Her comics were interactive in that readers were encouraged to submit original drawings of outfits and accessories for her and her friends to wear, as well as designs for automobiles, homes, interiors, rocket ships, trailers and boats. These designs were used in the comics with credit given to published submissions. Many issues featured paper dolls of Katy in various costumes.[1] The character was ranked 57th in Comics Buyer's Guide's "100 Sexiest Women in Comics" list.[2] Publication history Katy Keene was introduced in Wilbur Comics #5 in the summer of 1945, and appeared in subsequent issues of Wilbur and various anthology comic series in the 1940s including Archie, Jughead, Betty and Veronica and Ginger, eventually receiving her own title in 1949 which ran for 12 years. Specials such as Katy Keene Pin Up Parade and Katy Keene Fashion Book Magazine, Annuals and specials including Katy Keene Spectacular (1956), "Glamour" (1957) and Charm (1958), continued through the 1950s, but the character was not seen for about 20 years after the early 1960s. In the book From Girls to Grrrlz: A History of Women's Comics from Teens to Zines by Trina Robbins Katy Keene is called a Bettie Page look-alike. "... but the resemblance ended there. Katy Keene was no bimbo and she had a good job (she was a movie star.)" [3] 1980s revival In 1979, with Archie's permission, Katy fan Craig Leavitt published the Katy Keene Fan Magazine, which ran 18 issues until 1983. Having been a lifelong fan of the character, John S. Lucas's art was instrumental in the revival, as his work was featured in the magazine along with other artists' and fans' work. Several "Katy-Kons" (conventions) were held in Santa Barbara, California, and then later in conjunction with the San Diego Comic-Con celebrating Woggon and Katy. Archie Comics decided to revive the character themselves in 1983, giving the character her own title by using reprint art of Woggon's as well as new art by Don Sherwood, Vince Colletta, Hy Eisman and Dan DeCarlo. After seeing Lucas's art in the Katy Keene Fan Magazine and receiving letters from fans encouraging them to do so, Archie contacted Lucas, asking him to do the art for the revived Katy Keene Fan Club, which included pens, lapel buttons, membership cards, notepads, T-shirts, and sweatshirts. Not long afterward, Archie brought Lucas on as regular Katy artist. During the 1980s, '90s and 2000s, Lucas carried on the Katy tradition with his comics, his annual Katy Keene Christmas Cards and Paper Dolls and paper doll books from Hobby House Press. In the early 1990s, Katy once again went into retirement, except for a 1994 appearance in The Punisher Meets Archie. 2005 reintroduction Archie re-reintroduced Katy, now a high school student and aspiring model, in its 2005 Free Comic Book Day issue. She then appeared in Archie & Friends Comics #101–#110. These ten stories were then compiled in a trade paperback, Katy Keene Model Behavior, in 2008. Supporting cast Katy has a redheaded, bespectacled younger sister. In the original Woggon 1950s series, Katy's sister was a mischievous child around seven years old and known only as "Sis, the Candy Kid". In the 1980s, she was drawn as a tween or a young teen and received the name Melissa, but was still almost always called "Sis". In the short-lived 2000s series, her given name was Mackenzie. No explanation for the name change was given, although it may be due to the 1980s name's obscurity. Regardless, her real name is almost never mentioned and to both readers and characters, she is always called "Sis". Originally, the 1950s Katy was 21 years old and Sis was about seven years old. In subsequent series, Katy is roughly the same age, but Sis was reimagined as being around 15 and has been so ever since. By this point, Katy had already been discovered in college. After going to work as an aspiring Broadway star, she became very successful in her modeling and acting career, so she became her sister's legal guardian. Katy has had many recurring boyfriends over the years, the most famous of which are the redheaded and muscular boxer K.O. Kelly and his rich blond rival Randy Van Ronson. They were not often seen regularly in the 1980s when Katy dated the Latino airline pilot and talented dancer Ramon Ramirez and the Arnold Schwarzenegger parody Arnold Horsenlegger. However, K.O. and Randy became her main love interests again in the 2000s. Katy's rival in her career and love life is the wealthy and snobby blonde Gloria Grandbilt and her best friend is the superstitious redhead Lucki Lorelei. Both Gloria and Lucki are also successful models, with the level-headed brunette Katy rounding out the trio. Notes ^ "Evanier, Mark. "News From Me," POV Online (March 7, 2003)". Povonline.com. http://www.povonline.com/2003/News030103.htm. Retrieved 2011-03-13. ^ Frankenhoff, Brent (2011). Comics Buyer's Guide Presents: 100 Sexiest Women in Comics. Krause Publications. p. 40. ISBN 1-4402-2988-0. ^ Robbins, Trina. (1999) From Girls to Grrrlz: A History of Women's Comics from Teens to Zines. Chapter 1. San Francisco: Chronicle Books. References Katy Keene at Toonopedia "Katy Keene, an American Diva," Scoop (November 29, 2003) "We're Keene on Katy," Scoop Foley, Maureen. "Humble Man vs. the Diva: The Story of Cartoonist Bill Woggon," Cherry Meltdown Foley, Maureen. "Katy Keene and Bill Woggon, Straight Up," Cherry Meltdown Robbins, Trina.(1999) From Girls to Grrrlz: A History of Women's Comics from Teens to Zines. San Francisco: Chronicle Books. Spurgeon, Tom. "Obituary: Bill Woggon 1911-2003," The Comics Journal #252 (May 2003) External links Official website Archie Universe I haven't read as many Katy Keen comics as some of the other ones, but I've got a thing for keen brunettes, so I decided to do a blog about her. Of course, I've got a thing for keen blondes and keen redheads, too. I'll be getting around to them eventually. This cover shows Katie Keen, Sis, and Gloria Granbilt, who all appear regularly in these comics. There were a lot of science fiction stories in comics in this period. Katy Keen Comic Book Price Guide Cover Katie Keen Paper Doll Sis Paper Doll Readers could send in for this paper doll. Katie Keen Christmas by Ramona Fradon Another mermaid picture. Lucki Lorelei in a Halloween costume. Finally, we have another Spider Lady we somehow missed before. Gloria Granbilt is named after Gloria Vanderbilt, and in these comics is Katy Keen's rival, which is why she gets to be a Spider Lady. Here is a Katie Keene story reblogged from http://pappysgoldenage.blogspot.com/ Katy Keen: http://www.toonopedia.com/katykeen.htm Katy Keen: http://kb-outofthisworld.blogspot.com/2012/03/more-cute-girlie-stuff-katy-keene-paper.html Katy Keen: http://www.cherrymeltdown.com/galleries/katy/index.html Katy Keen Send-Away Doll: http://marlendy.wordpress.com/2010/10/09/katy-keene-send-away-paper-doll-2/
