Question: Syd Hoff's Cartoon Strips

TetrisKid — Thu, 10 Mar 2005 10:10:52 -0800

I'm interested in finding old syndicated newspaper strips drawn by well known children's author and illustrator Syd Hoff.

Hoff is best known for his collection of childrens books (the most popular being Danny the Dinosaur & Grizzwold) but he also drew two different comic strips for King Features Syndicate.

Tuffy (1939-1949)
Laugh It Off (1958-1978)

Unfortunately King Features does not have any information on these strips. I was able to find a collection belonging to Syracuse University and The University of Southern Mississippi but they are merely listed and I hardly want to travel across the country.

Is anyone familiar with these strips or know of a way of finding them without having to travel across the country?

By: lilnemo

lilnemo — Thu, 10 Mar 2005 13:34:59 -0800

I went through a similar process to this when I was trying to track down Eisner's Spirit (before the DC reprints became available).

Your first step would be to determine which papers the strips were syndicated in. Since Hoff was syndicated by King Features, you have pretty good odds at finding something closer to you. You have 2 options, both involve your local library.

1. Select a major newspaper in your area (and a few Nationally syndicated papers, read: NYT) that published during the aforementioned time periods. Consult your local library as to the availability of copies of that paper for a given year (more likely than not, if it is available its on microfilm), if they don't have it they might be able to direct you to another local library that does. Ask if the paper has an index, you'll save time by looking for mentions of the strip in the index rather than sifting through reels of microfilm; though some papers might not index them at all. Request a copy of the paper from the librarian. 'The only "hard" part is sitting at the microfilm machine looking for the strips themselves.

2. If the strip doesn't run in your local "major" paper, see if your library has "Editor and Publisher", they have some information in regards to syndication, though I can't guarantee that they'll list the publications you're seeking.

Good Luck.

Comments on: Syd Hoff's Cartoon Strips

Question: Syd Hoff's Cartoon Strips

By: lilnemo