'Teddy Tail'.
Charles James Folkard was a British book illustrator and comic artist. He is best remembered as the creator of 'Teddy Tail' (1915-1974), one of the earliest and longest-running British newspaper comics. 'Teddy Tail' holds further historical significance as one of the earliest British "funny animal" comics, along with Julius Stafford Baker's 'Tiger Tim and the Bruin Boys' (1904-1985). It was also one of the first British comics to feature speech balloons.
Illustration for 'Pinocchio'.
Early life and career
Charles Folkard was born in 1878 in Lewisham, London, as the son of a merchant's clerk. He attended St. John's Wood School of Art, as well as Goldsmith's College School of Art. He worked as a magician and conjuror in theaters for a while, while designing his own programmes with his drawings. His graphic career kicked off when magazines like Little Folks and the Tatler published his illustrations. With his illustrations for Johann David Wyss' classic novel 'The Swiss Family Robinson' in 1910, Folkard finally got noticed. He was asked to liven up the pages of other classic novels, fairy tales and fables soon after, incuding Carlo Collodi's 'Pinocchio' (1910), 'The Children's Shakespeare' (1910), 'Grimm's Fairy Tales' (1910), 'Aesop's Fables' (1912), 'Arabian Nights' (1913), 'Ottoman Wonder Tales' (1915), 'Mother Goose' Nursery Rhymes' (1919), 'British Fairy and Folk Tales' (1920), 'Alice in Wonderland and Alice Through the Looking-Glass' (1921), 'The Magic Egg' (1922), 'The Troubles of a Gnome' (1922) and 'The Land of Nursery Rhyme' (1932). Most of these books were published by A & C Black and later Dent's Children's Illustrated Classics.
'Songs From Alice in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass', illustrated by Charles James Folkard and set to music by Lucy E. Broadwood.
Teddy Tail
On 5 April 1915 Folkard created 'Teddy Tail', a daily comic strip about an anthropomorphic mouse, published in the newspaper The Daily Mail. Teddy is a mouse with a permanent knot in his tail, a permanent reminder of an attempt to save his friend Dr. Beetle from a hole he had fallen into. The character was named after the creator's son, Ted. All stories take place in a forest, where Teddy's friends live, among them: Dr. Beetle, the Penny Princess, Golliwog and Snail. The narratives are usually based on fairy tales, children's nursery rhymes and occasionally refer to historical events.
'Teddy Tail' is often credited with popularizing British newspaper comics. The stories were so succesful that they were made available in book format and children's annuals. They inspired toys, biscuits, jigsaw puzzles, books, Christmas annuals, a 1920 musical play and even an official fan club, The Teddy Tail League (1933). Soon the Daily Mail made room for more comics while other British newspapers also started publishing comics. Many tried to mimick 'Teddy Tail' by also making comics starring funny animals, such as Bertram Lamb and Austin Bowen Payne's 'Pip, Squeak and Wilfred' (1919-1956) and Mary Tourtel's 'Rupert Bear' (1920).
'Teddy Tail' also ran in the US newspaper The Detroit Free Press in 1919.
By 1926 Folkard passed his charming comic series on to his son Harry Folkard. In 1933 'Teddy Tail' was taken over by Herbert Sydney Foxwell who remodelled the mouse as a young child. Foxwell's run also featured new cast members, such as Mrs. Whisker the mouse, Piggy the pig, Kitty Puss the cat and Dougie the duck. During World War Two, Foxwell was drafted into military service and died in 1943. In 1945 'Teddy Tail' was resurrected once more by subsequent illustrators like Arthur Potts and William St. John Glenn. The character was given another makeover and now looked more like a typical animated cartoon character from that era. His adventures continued until 1962.
Final years and death
After leaving the comics medium, Charles James Folkard concentrated on book illustration for the rest of his career. He passed away in Hailsham, Sussex, on 26 February 1963.
'Songs From Alice in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass', illustrated by Charles James Folkard and set to music by Lucy E. Broadwood.