Today in Comics History, March 28: Happy birthday, Betty Betz!

Born on this day in 1920: cartoonist, magazine columnist, and television host Betty Betz, who created columns and artwork in the 1940s for Seventeen and Woman's Home Companion that eventually evolved into a line of cxards, books, dresses and staionary — think the 1940s equivalent of 1970s Holly Hobbie! Her cartoon creation "Dollface" was featured in an issue of Dell's Four Color. That's Betty herself on the cover (top photo):


cover of Four Color #309 (Dell, January 1951) [Betty Betz' Dollface and Her Gang], pencils and inks by Betty Betz



Betty's artwork utilized gentle teen humor and a fairly simple-lined, exaggerated human f igure style. In fact, it reminds me a bit of one of my modern favorites, Angel Love!


from "Picnic Time" in Four Color #309; script, pencils, and inks by Betty Betz
Part of the appeal of Doillface to girls was the frequent publicity events Betty herself appeared at. The comic features three pages of photographs from these, letting the reder imagine she could meet Betty Betz at one in her own area soon.




Despite the cover blurb of "All Comics!," Four Color #309 spotlighted events liek that plus the usual necessary text pages: in this case a Betty-written (or ghosted) advice column to letter writers. Except, judging by the first line of the (unsigned) reply in the right-hand column, this page may have actually been written by Wolverine, who's the only other person I've seen using the word "frail."


Betty even received her own comic book biography, highlighting her success as a young woman!




from "Once a Pigtailer" in Polly Pigtails #29 (Parents' Magazine Press, June 1948), creators uncredited and unknown
Happy birthday, Betty Betz!