Krazy Kat daily 'Tiger Tea' storyline July 6, 1936

I cannot describe how much this strip means to me, but let me try.

I'm one of the late comers to the Krazy Kat bandwagon and since I discovered it in 2024 I've been obsessed! I went deep -- reading many of the classic sunday stripes and dailies (much more difficult to find reprinted), Herriman's own story, and historical essays about the character and time he was created. The more I read about Krazy and Herriman, the more depth I saw in the art. For those that don't know, Herriman passed as white took this fact to his grave (it wasn't even uncovered until the 1970s!) which adds a new dimension to Krazy's "kinky" tail and his attempt to fit in by painting himself white at one point. Additionally, Krazy is non-binary - a fact that many people still struggle to accept in our society. As someone who is non-binary and queer, Krazy is a relatable character, even from 100 years ago when it was even more of a controversial subject. Above and beyond the personal connection, I find the subversive characters and gags to have a timeless etherial nature to them that both fascinate and confound me in equal measure (if you want a good assessment of the surreal nature, I recommend reading ee cummings essay on Krazy Kat).

This particular strip is from the only long form story Herriman ever drew in the strip's 30 year run. As most of his work, it's a strange story that shows Krazy hunting for an elusive "Kat Nip Tea" that when drank causes strange behavior. Some have hypothesized that it was meant as a stand in for marijuana or some sort of psychedelic (or that it was later interpreted as a standin). That's what's great about his work is how many different interpretations it offers.

This particular daily is all the more special since it's been reprinted a number of times, in Art Spiegelman's brilliant Raw Magazine (this is his favorite story Herriman did), in Craig Yoe's book on Herriman's art, and in a special printing Craig Yoe published of the full length Tiger Tea story.