| Dirty Duck | |
|---|---|
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | National Lampoon (1972–1976) Playboy (1977–c. 2011) |
| First appearance | Los Angeles Free Press (Spring 1971) |
| First comic appearance | Air Pirates Funnies #1 (Last Gasp, July 1971) |
| Created by | Bobby London |
| In-story information | |
| Species | Duck |
| Place of origin | Earth |
| Partnerships | Weevil |
Dirty Duck is a fictional character created byunderground comix artistBobby London. The style of the strip is an homage toGeorge Herriman'sKrazy Kat.[1]
The character is not related to the 1975 filmDown and Dirty Duck. While promoted under the abbreviated titleDirty Duck, the film has no connection to London's character or comics.[2]
London originally created the Dirty Duck character in 1970 to appear in an unsigned "basement" strip that would run underneathDan O'Neill's syndicatedOdd Bodkins strip. The cartoon strips planned to run underneathO'Neill's "Odd Bodkins" never saw print. The first person who succeeded in helping the strip see print wasGilbert Shelton, who ran it under hisFat Freddy's Cat strip in theLos Angeles Free Press in early spring of 1971.[3]
The character's first long-form appearance was inAir Pirates Funnies #1 (Last Gasp, July 1971). John Bagley's San Francisco-basedCompany & Sons publishedThe Dirty Duck Book #1 in December 1971.
Shortly afterwards, London was contacted by the publishers ofNational Lampoon, whereDirty Duck ran monthly for several years alongside the work of London's wifeShary Flenniken, who was drawingTrots and Bonnie for them. London moved the strip toPlayboy magazine around 1976, where it ran until 1987.[3]Dirty Duck later returned toPlayboy and continues to run there as of 2011.[4]
Almost all of the strips would have been collected in a hardcover collection fromIDW Publishing under theTop Shelf imprint, but it has continuously been delayed since 2017.
The main characters are twoanthropomorphic animals, a cigar-smokingduck (usually referred to as "Mr. Duck") and his assistant,Weevil. They live in human society and are often seen in the company of naked human women. In the comic strip running inPlayboy, Mr. Duck is a wealthy and elderly gentleman with a lecherous streak and a sharp (if sardonic) wit. Weevil is his long-suffering butler.
