Wee Peem

Wee Peem ("He's a Proper Scream") was a comic strip in the UK comic The Beano. It first appeared in Beano issue 1, dated 30 July 1938 and ran until issue 89, dated 6 April 1940. This first incarnation also appeared in the 1940 and 1941 Beano Books. The central character "Wee Peem" was a young boy who gets up to various forms of mischief in a similar way to later Beano strips such as Dennis the Menace and Minnie the Minx. The original strip was drawn by the Beano artist James Jewell.[1] These first Wee Peem strips were later reprinted in D.C. Thomson's magazine-cum-newspaper The People's Journal which were followed by new Wee Peem strips in The People's Journal this time drawn by James Malcolm.[1] The character then reappeared in issue 486, dated 10 November 1951, this time drawn by Charles Grigg, in a new strip entitled Wee Peem's Magic Pills[2] in this new strip the character was redesigned to have a massive head and took pills which gave him magic powers. This new strip lasted until issue 507, dated 5 April 1952, and appeared in the 1953 Beano Book.[2] The character then reappeared for a third and final time in 1956 in a new strip this time simply entitled Wee Peem.[3] In this final Wee Peem strip, drawn by Hugh Morren, the character was redesigned yet again and this final Wee Peem comic strip lasted until 1957.[3]

A similar character in both appearance and mannerisms appeared in the first Dandy Monster Comic under the name Dipper the Dodger.[4]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 The History of the Beano. Dundee, Scotland: D.C. Thomson & Co. Ltd. 2008. p. 305. ISBN 978-1-902407-73-9.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 The History of the Beano. Dundee, Scotland: D.C. Thomson & Co. Ltd. 2008. p. 317. ISBN 978-1-902407-73-9.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 The History of the Beano. Dundee, Scotland: D.C. Thomson & Co. Ltd. 2008. p. 323. ISBN 978-1-902407-73-9.
  4. ↑ Dandy Monster Comic No. 1. Dundee, Scotland: D.C. Thomson & Co. Ltd. in conjunction with Aurum Press Ltd. 2006. pp. 54,86,127. ISBN 1-84513-217-3.