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The Universally Favorite Five-Year-Old Menace
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The little boy who never fails to raise a chuckle. His freckled face
has been a hot favorite for fifty years now. Dennis the menace, the
five-year-old storehouse of mischief was created in 1951 and his
creator Hank Ketcham has assured worried fans that Dennis will never
show the passage of time, he will always remain five years old.
Changes, if any, will be made only to the items that he has access
to. When Dennis first made his appearance, there was no television
in his house. Now, in keeping with the changing times, he gets his
hands on his father’s digital diary, palm pilot, PC and what not.
And his famous neighbors the Wilsons are very much there too, they
shall not bow to the passage of time either. |
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Proving predictions wrong
The longevity of the Dennis cartoon strip is an achievement in
itself. When the idea was first mooted, the publishers had their own
reservations. Predictions were made about how it would last for a
very short while. As it turned out, the antics of this five-year-old
were grossly underestimated. And now an estimated one thousand
newspapers run the Dennis cartoon panel daily. These newspapers are
spread out in forty-eight countries all over the world. And Dennis’
vocabulary is not restricted to plain English. He makes people laugh
in fourteen different languages.
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How Dennis the menace was created
Hank Ketcham, whose deft pen strokes and witty mind gave birth to
Dennis, has had to bow before the passage of time and is 81 years
old now. His inspiration for the character was his own four-year-old
son. And no prizes for guessing his son’s name, yes it is Dennis.
The title ‘Dennis the menace’ was coined by Ketcham’s wife in a
moment of utter despair. Ketcham found the words interesting and it
started a trail of thoughts that created the chirpy mischievous
cartoon strip built around the activities of Dennis the menace.
Hank Ketcham set the story in Witchia, Kansas. A grateful community
that could easily identify with the characters made him the honorary
Mayor of Witchia! Henry Mitchell Dennis’ father is an aeronautical
engineer and so are many others in Witchia as there are quite a few
aeronautical firms there. Ketcham has never portrayed Alice, Dennis’
mother as a working woman as she already has a full time job –
Dennis. True for the mothers of lively five-year-olds the world
over!
The work behind the chuckle
A lot of hard work goes into the cartoon strip that brings a smile
to our faces. Ketcham, no longer able to work alone owing to
advancing age, has two assistants with whom he works in close
co-ordination. They work three weeks in advance and are always
prompt in giving the strip the background of the season – snow,
Santa and the works for Christmas and flowers aplenty in spring and
so on.
Dennis has made an appearance in comic panels in newspapers, comic
books – hard cover editions and paperbacks, an immensely popular
television series, animated cartoons and quite naturally a
full-length movie.
Showcasing the creator
Hank Ketcham has published his autobiography The Merchant of
Dennis and another book called Dennis the Menace – His first
40 years. |
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