VERY RARE ART FOR ANDY CAPP GIVEAWAY BY REG SMITH FOR U. S. PARK SERVICE
Item History & Price
| Reference Number: Avaluer:30051613 | Issue Number: #1 |
| Publication Date: 1975 | Series: #1 |
“ANDY GOES TO THE PARKS” This is the hilarious comic on park safety produced in early 1975 by COMMERCIAL COMICSfor the U.S. Department of the Interior’s NATIONAL PARK SERVICE. Written by Malcolm Ater, Sr. Original Art by Reg Smythe. Featuring theinfamous and popular English comic strip character from across the “Big Pond”, ANDY CAPP (along with his wife, Flo), is shown visiting our national parks in the states for the first time and doingvirtually everything ...a person SHOULDN’T DO to have a safe and enjoyablevisit. And this comic even comes with a warning letter on thefront inside page to all readers: “SAFETY IS NOT FUNNY BUSINESS! However, the situations that Andy gets involved with are unfortunately all too real.They represent the troubles that many visitors experience in their visits tothe parks.” How True and here's Andy to prove it!I am NOT positive, but I believe this may be the ONLY ANDY CAPP PROMOTIONAL COMIC BOOK that was not done in comic strip form, so the rarity of this Original Art cannot be understated! Also, only months before Reg Smythe did the art for this comic book, he was named in the United States by the NATIONAL CARTOONISTS SOCIETY AS "THE BEST COMIC STRIP" AWARD WINNER OF 1974! And he was so popular that the people of his hometown of Hartlepool in England even erected a statue to "ANDY CAPP." How's that for popularity? Definitely a one-of-a-kind collector's item!It seems that for every safety rule in our National Parks, Andy can find a way to break it. If a sign reads, “No Swimming!” it means thewater can be polluted or have a bad current, so Andy tests the rule by goingswimming and nearly drowning. If a sign reads, “No Fires or Have properVentilation, ” it means that dangerous winds can swoop down unexpectedly, soAndy has to build a fire inside his tent and promptly burns the place down.And, of course, there will always be signs that say, “Don’t Feed the Animals!” soAndy has to feed a hungry looking racoon and finds out, hey, these animals arewild, and a left finger or entire right hand is just as tasty as the meat youare trying to feed it! But some people, like Andy, have to find out the hardway (but at least the animals are no longer hungry).You’ll enjoy watching Andy get in one predicamentafter another, and how he manages to weasel his way out of the problem byblaming his poor wife, Flo, who always reminds him of the safety rules beforehe expertly gets in trouble. But’s that’s Andy. He’d much rather be back home to England, in the safety of his neighborhood pub, where his only worry iswatching the local bartender to be sure he isn’t shortchanged on his nextdrink. And home is where Andy finds life is safe and easy compared to thereckless wildlife that rules America the Beautiful!The original Art for page 3 that you are bidding on, done by Reg Smythe himself, is done on artboard measuring almost 14 1/2" x 17" and is EXCEPTIONALLY clean with sharp, bold art strokes highlighting the characters. Absolutely wonderful condition ready to be framed and mounted! And the low, low initial auction price allows everyone to take a crack at this one-of-a-kind comic book! This Original Art for page 3 even comes with a free copy of the fun-time read of the comic book, "ANDY GOES TO THE PARKS" that measures 7" x 10" and is 16-pages long.
