This week's update is the
first of two spankings Phil S. discovered in
Polly and Her Pals. As is discussed on that page,
Polly spawned some imitators including the one that concerns us here,
Freckles and His Friends. Phil S. has found one missed opportunity and one actual spanking that unfortunately takes place off-panel, so let's take a look at them now.
In the first, Freckles' best friend
Lard (what a name!) has no money to buy a present for his girlfriend
Hilda, so
Hector (whom I think is Hilda's little brother) cooks up a scheme to get her to
bend over (smart lad
![Laughing :lol:](./images/smilies/icon_lol.gif)
). Too bad the scheme didn't involve a nice paddle instead of Lard's boot, for Hilda, rather intriguingly, doesn't mind getting kicked and so would probably have been delighted to receive swats on her fanny with a paddle.
![Very Happy :D](./images/smilies/icon_e_biggrin.gif)
This is a true "missed opportunity".
![Image](http://www.chicagospankingreview.org/forum/frecklesandhisfriends_1942-12-10_swtspt.png)
It's the old "bend over, get a swat" gag, on Dec. 10, 1942. © NEA Services
Even better, Hilda got an
actual spanking from her father of the "you're not too big to take over my knee" variety a little more than a year later in between Feb. 23-24, 1944.
![Image](http://www.chicagospankingreview.org/forum/frecklesandhisfriends_1944-02-23_swtspt.png)
© NEA Services
Interestingly, Hilda discusses her embarrassment at being spanked with her girlfriends in a scene which reminds me very much of a
Phil Overbarrel strip:
![Image](http://www.chicagospankingreview.org/forum/frecklesandhisfriends_1944-02-24_swtspt.png)
Written and drawn by
Merrill Blosser. Scans by
Phil Sweetspot, edited by
Web-Ed. © NEA Services
This time, a paddle is used, but it's an improvised one in the form of one of Hal Krooner's (evidently a teeny-bopper idol) albums. Blosser makes a joke that may need some explanation: the name of the album is "Beat me, Daddy". The spanking reference is obvious, but what is the non-spanking meaning of the phrase? The answer is that it refers in the vernacular of the era to the eight-to-a-bar
boogie-woogie rhythm, a style that was popular at the time (although
Fats Waller hated it, and so do I).
I actually transcribed one of Fats's piano solos (by listening to a CD - and at normal speed!) that used boogie-woogie for a few bars (this must have been a concession by Fats to the tastes of the period), but it would be kind of a pain to present that excerpt here. If there's anyone out there who plays the piano reasonably well and who's curious, I might be able to send the transcription to you - just drop me a line and then wait a few months for a response...
![Laughing :lol:](./images/smilies/icon_lol.gif)