The estimable Allan Holtz, comic strip historian and proprietor of The Stripper’s Guide, has invited CIDU readers to join in trying to make sense of these example panels from the vintage series Papa Knows. He provides an historical deep-dive and some interpretive overview in last Friday’s blog column, in the Obscurity of the Day series, but leaves these four as examples where it seems no genuine attempt at a gag can be found. — What we like to call Comics I Don’t Understand!
(As Allan explains, “Obscurity of the Day is just posts about rare and overlooked newspaper comics; generally speaking if they’re hard to understand it’s because of the gulf between our time and theirs. Papa Knows, on the other hand, seems to be downright weird no matter when you might have read it!”)
Comics I Don't Understand 
I kinda get the first and last. Pneumatics can be used to help an action such as lowering something heavy go slowly, have a soft landing. And the Fallen star is presumably a reference to the meteor that killed the dinosaurs. But I’ve got no clue about the others.
Okay, I’ve checked out the article at The Stripper’s Guide, and the comments there. I agree that understanding these panels is pretty non-immediate (hence, obscure), but I can’t go along with the idea that they are entirely inscrutable, such as Mark Johnson’s (!) remark that they are just non-sequiturs. I suggest that they do yield sense under extended or repeated metaphorical interpretation.
Take the second one down. Generally “gait” means mode or style of walking or running. For horses there is an apparently official system classifying possible gaits by the order and timing of which legs move when, and how high — I mean things like walk, canter, gallop, trot … Now consider a playful little lamb, running to and fro, jumping on its companions, having a good time. What term could encapsulate this behavior (or “gait”)? Well, how about “gambolling”? I think it fits. The format puts it in the opposite order, and it is more giving an example than a definition. But all the same, pretty close, no?
@Wendy, I entirely go along with your comment about “pneumatic”, and would add that there is a semi-technical sense of “answer” that fits very well with that.
The dinosaur theory doesn’t work as well. As our own(?) Mitch4 seems to have commented on that site, it would involve some anachronism. But the panel isn’t therefore relegated to totally opaque. Setting aside our scientific knowledge that a “falling star” is not at all a star, if we accept the popular metaphor then a star “lives” while it is fixed in the sky and shines, but has dies (or goes extinct) when it becomes a falling star.
These probably predate the comet theory of the K-T boundary. However, Revelations has a star falling to Earth and wiping out a third of everything.
What makes this weird is that some of them are very straightforward…gamboling is indeed a lamb’s gait. Others seem like complete nonsequiturs, like composure. It’s possible that this is playing on slang that’s completely dead?
These remind me of S J Perelman, the famous humor writer ( he wrote some Marx Brothers movies ) who started his career as a cartoonist. The drawings in his cartoons often had nothing to do with the captions, which were usually just corny vaudeville-style two-line jokes. These cartoons seem about that same vintage ( 1920’s – ’30’s ).
Washington’s Bust: Calm poser
“And the Fallen star is presumably a reference to the meteor that killed the dinosaurs”
But this is decades before the Alvarezes, et al. floated the idea of a meteor-driven extinction to a skeptical world. That was around 1980.
He’s carrying eggs, so do we get anywhere with eggs-tinction? And the fact that a sunny-side up egg looks like a star (the sun, obviously) that’s fallen into a skillet?
Wendy’s right about pneumatics. It was John Dunlop’s invention of the pneumatic tube (1887) that greatly improved the comfort of bicycles by providing a softer surface for the bicycle wheel (and eventually other wheeled vehicles).
Gambol seems pretty straightforward. Gambol is defined as:
run or jump about playfully:
“the mare gamboled toward her”
Only a short jump from mare to lamb.
Of course, if the boy is asking the question, it will sound like “What is a gamble”? The gamble is that the newspaper audience will understand the comic.
Yes, I was coming here to say that. Gambol is a term used (most often) to describe a lamb’s jumping about in a field.
I agree with the gamble/gambol homonym idea… perhaps the boy is actually asking about gambling and the father sheepishly fobs him off, embarrassed about his money-losing habit (though you think that joke would work better if it is spelt gamble in the speech bubble)
I can’t really make this punnery work for others, but maybe it does. Perhaps “Washington’s bust” is less about a presidential sculpted head and shoulders and more about Washington DC being financially or morally bankrupt, but I doubt it. But I have no idea about New Matic along those lines.
What’s that thing the kid in the Pneumatic panel falling on?
The pneumatic girl may be diving onto a tire’s inner tube seen directly side-on. It’s helping her have a soft landing.
I believe Xado is on target there. She seems to be wearing old-fashioned swimming attire.
No, that is old fashioned football attire and she is attacking a tackling dummy. Rounded bottom so it will stand back up after she gets up off it.
It does kind of look like an old-time football helmet, but nothing else about the outfit does. They wore long-sleeved jerseys and heavy pants that came below the knee.
When I saw the word “gambols” I immediately went to another (older) meaning.
One of the taverns which are part of Colonial Williamsburg has evening tavern events. (The others only have dinner.) In addition to food and drink (including alcoholic) being served there are entertainments which are refereed as “gambols”.
I was not sure – it being several years since we were there due to Covid – if they still have this evening program. In looking it up online I did find this third party reference and article – https://adayawaytravel.wordpress.com/2013/12/05/tipsy-tourist-chownings-tavern/ (I trust I am not breaking rules by posting the link – if I am,, my apologies.) While I do not drink alcoholic drinks – never liked the taste of any, not a rejection of alcohol for others – they do have non-alcoholic drinks also, along with entertainment and playing of period table games. It has been great fun when we have been there.
Another thought about pneumatic… I’ve seen the suggestion online that referring to things (other than actual inflatable tyres etc) or people, especially women, as “pneumatic” came initially from Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World, published in 1932. So maybe Papa is thinking inappropriate thoughts about pneumatic women, but that would be the wrong and too adult an answer to give to a kid, so he gives a “soft answer” instead.
Brave New World apparently had a mixed reception, and was banned in many places and considered unsuitable for children, but might still have been well-known enough to inspire a surrealistic cartoonist. As opposed to George Orwell’s 1984, which has totalitarian control by oppression, it features control via pleasure and distractions so that people don’t care about the lack of personal freedom.
See eg https://study.com/academy/lesson/meaning-of-pneumatic-in-brave-new-world.html : “One of the main characters is Lenina Crowne, a woman who seems to be the perfect citizen of the World State. She enjoys the physical comforts afforded to her and rarely thinks, but she is also losing interest in promiscuity, one of the habits the World State encourages in citizens.
“Throughout the novel, the text uses the word ”pneumatic” to describe various things: machines, furniture, and Lenina herself. The word choice is deliberate and says much about Lenina and the way people interact with her.”
@narmitaj And then there is the practice of describing a woman’s appearance as “pneumatic” to suggest that some aspect of her figure has been “pumped up”. (What aspect would depend on the era.) Actually, I do think I’ve seen, maybe only in a comedy routine, where a “falsies” bra was made of inflatable elastic rather than mere foam padding.
Meryl, never any issue at all over posting a link to something you are discussing or mentioning!
Sometimes when the link target is an image, people like to use another form of linking which pulls the image right into the comment, so that readers can see it at the same time as the comment text and do not even have to click and follow the link. But (1) it’s optional, and a click link is also fine, and (2) that only makes sense for images, not a whole passage or blog post, as in your comment.
Thanks for the info on this other usage of “gambol”!
One detail that I find interesting about these ancient panels is the kid’s indeterminant gender. Allan Holtz calls him “Junior”, whereas several of the comments above assume that “she” is a girl. While I have my own opinion, I do not see any definitive evidence to prove the issue either way.
Then there is the mutilated scribble at the lower edge of the first two examples. I cannot understand why whoever wanted to obliterate whatever information was originally there did not remove it entirely.
Re the Williamsburg thing – with the disclaimer that I really didn’t delve too deeply, it had the feel of a touristy re-enactment society froth vehicle which I saw once in a location in MA, (and the like of which I’ve seen more times than I care to remember here in the UK, lest anyone think I’m looking down my nose).
But it amused me to see an image on the home page. What’s the lamb doing?
Careful – we don’t want J K Rowling or Jordan Peterson turning up here shouting.
@ M.P. 101 (22) – That is just one of the reasons why the first comment from each new reader is always held in the moderation queue until it is approved by an editor.
P.S. re: “touristy re-enactment society” – You are probably not (yet) aware that Meryl A. (@16) has been a dedicated and enthusiastic participant in at least one, and probably several of such re-enactment communities for several decades. Chacun à son goût.
michaelperry101 – Colonial Williamsburg is a restored 18th century city. 88 of the buildings are original to the period and their location (though of course restoration work has been done on them since). Over the decades husband and I have been to a number of restored villages to the 18th or 19th century and none hold a candle to it (sorry for the period reference).
It is run as if still inhabited in period. If one goes into a building what would have been happening in the building in the period is being done. Cobbler shop has shoemaking going on. Farm is populated with period varieties of animals and period crops are being grown. Silversmith shop has same going on (and also sells items made there). One the taverns is a display building with similar work as would be done in period going on. The other 3 taverns serve as restaurants.
The employees of the restoration around the City are, of course, dressed in period clothing. All of them are well trained in the history of what they are doing and the building they are working in. Some of the employees one meets around the town are well known people who lived there in period and know nothing that day most are just average people – white, free black, enslaved black or native American.
If they build a building within the restoration area they have a period foundation and research as to what the building was in period in the 1770s and as much as possible what it looked like before they build.
A cross section of people of the 1770s is represented there – from enslaved people, native Americans, people of the “lower sorts” to those wealthy families who were the founding fathers of our country and their families.
Husband has always thought himself to be reincarnated from the period so to him going there is nirvana. I enjoy going there also. We have become friends with many of the employees over the decades also.
It is a totally different experience than visiting most restored communities
As to our being reenactors ourselves it is something Robert wanted to try and it grew out of our having been in CW during an annual reenactor event.
Believe me when he suggested I make 18th century clothing and find an 18thc reenacting unit near us I thought it a crazy idea. But he found one and it is civilian unit. – not a military unit.
We got patterns and I made our clothing – simple, really of the “lower middling sorts” as my sewing is not best (and I did use a sewing machine which did not then exist). Our unit is (not sure if the actual designation will make a problem due to a new meaning to the word – it is named after the local community and the term for it is “m.l.t.a” missing letters are all “i”) a continuation of the original unit from the 1600s – when it was not a reenactment unit.
Since it is not a military unit we can be anyone in the 18th century community. The original members of same would gather together to practice once a month or so as there was no standing British army to protect the community against – natives, Spanish, Dutch, etc, and same is who we are named after.
We have the use of a 18th century house and its small property which are owned by the local community (which also gives us an annual stipend).
I am an embroiderer by avocation and demonstrate 18th century style work at events. Over the decades Robert has demonstrated a variety of different period crafts, served in the firing line, and so on. The unit has access to a reproduction black powder cannon owned by the community which owns the house and our members will fire it – I can actually say that I have fired this cannon a number of times as we used to go to an all Long Island v all NYC charity football game (Boomer Eaison foundation) and fire the cannon for touchdowns. A couple of year it was the two of us and one other fellow and they decided I could do the least damage firing it – using a long metal pole with burning “match” (cord covered in chemicals to keep it burning) so I did – numerous times.
In late December our unit takes over a restored house in the local restored village (part of which appears in “The Gilded Age (and other movies/TV shows). The village has Candlelight Nights with tours at night. The house we interpret is the only one from the 1700s (rest are 1800s) and some of us – husband and myself included due first person interpretation – we learned same from observing at CW – we know nothing past the matching day of the year in 1775. (Hard to say “don’t shoot that camera flash at me.) (Unit is in 1775 from start of year through June, then 1776 until end of August when we go back to 1775 – based on the events we are doing.)
If you have read this far - we are about to go into the 250th anniversaries of the various events of the American Revolution – lots of reenactment events.
There is a YouTube channel where a young couple does so reenactment of everyday life in the 19 Century. Mostly her cooking authentic “receipts” from the time. There’s a second channel where they try the meals and discuss various things.
She recently mentioned that a Facebook person took a bunch of their videos and edited them, then claimed that they live off-grid and reject all modern technology. None of which is true. The comments were unpleasant towards these two nice people.
Brian – not to keep running on – When I used to cook for unit (demonstration and mid day dinner for the members) I would use some old receipts that I had taken from a variety of cookbooks. I tended towards stews as they are easier to cook while outside, lasts a good part of the day for the public to see and feeds a good sized group of people (the members) later in the day.
One of the dishes I cooked was Brunswick stew – using Colonial Williamsburg recipe (had been adapted for modern and is in one of the general cookbooks). It is a “cook all day” recipe and I used to cheat a bit by boiling and de-boning the chicken at home the day before. Our headquarters is a weaver’s cottage which dates to the late 1600s and when we are away at other museums I have even less access to modern things – I bought a transmission oil funnel (the kind with a long hose) to use at one museum where water was only available from the smallest bathroom sink I have ever seen – funnel went under spout and hose into period repro bucket to get the water for cooking/cleaning. At a major museum the water source was a garden hose under the front porch - with the hose end sitting in mud much of the time. So doing more messy things is best done at home ahead of time. The beef stew I used to cook though had all done at events.
The fellow who does the cooking now is much better at the cooking, but completely ignores talking about cooking in period. (If I complain I will be cooking again – and it is a job for a much younger person than I – prefer to sit on my rear end and embroider.)
I still cook the same dishes in much smaller amounts for husband and me for dinner sometimes.
Meryl – I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to offend or upset you.
As I said, I didn’t look at the Williamsburg site in any depth (FYI the re-enactment I referred to was a group of revolutionary soldiers seeing off the British which was staged in the location around The Wayside Inn in Sudbury, MA.)
And yes, I know that “re-enactment”, which I use in quotes because it does, goes much deeper than just the military stuff
When you go to, say, an agricultural/country fair in the UK, or an outdoor concert, you’ll often see a group of people rocking up in period uniform, be it English Civil War, WW II, mediæval knights in armour, basically playing soldiers. Sadly that’s all that most people want – they don’t want to see people ploughing fields with wooden horse/ox-drawn ploughs. They don’t want to see people cooking pottage or stew. They want the “fighting”.
And unlike accurate cooking, or agricultural work, or building work, or carding and spinning wool, and so on, the military parts cannot of course be anything other than a highly sanitised representation of the real thing. I’ve never seen them even re-enact the aftermath, with people moving amongst the “dead”, salvaging equipment and clothing, harvesting teeth, cutting off fingers to get rings. However authentic the uniforms, the weapons, the tactics, it remains essentially people playing at being soldiers, and I happen not to find war a suitable topic for play beyond childhood. And in reality it’s probably the least usefully instructive activity for people to learn about real history, the day-to-day lived experience of people like them hundreds of years ago.
But on a lighter note, I don’t know if you can VPN spoof your way into access to BBC iPlayer (nor do I know if this is still available on it), but if you can and if it is you might enjoy this: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BBC_historic_farm_series
@Brian in STL
“She recently mentioned that a Facebook person took a bunch of their videos and edited them, then claimed that they live off-grid and reject all modern technology. None of which is true. The comments were unpleasant towards these two nice people.”
And so it will remain until we shut these platforms down, as it is abundantly clear that they have no interest whatsoever in regulating themselves.
When that day comes we will wonder what on earth took us so long.
@ MikeP – “…for people to learn about real history, the day-to-day lived experience of people like them hundreds of years ago…”
You might be interested in this NPR report about Guédelon castle, which is being built in France exclusively with authentic period methods.
I saw a programme about that on TV a few years ago, but I had forgotten.