Strip Art - Rick O'Shay and Latigo (1958-1970)

If you grew up in the Chicago area in the 60’s and 70’s and read the comics in the Chicago Tribune (like me), you were likely a fan of “Rick O’Shay.” Created by Stan Lynde and syndicated nationally by the Chicago Tribune, Rick O’Shay was a western comic that ran from 1958 to 1977 and followed the exploits of Deputy Rick O’Shay and the more interesting character, the gunslinger Hipshot Percussion, in the town of Conniption. For me, it was a must read. It had a clean, almost sparse style in terms of background, but Lynde’s precise line was usually very detailed on the characters. For this reason, the people seemed to pop out in a 3D kind of way that made you forget the background. Lynde kept enough in the frame to keep it going, but still allowed your imagination to fill in the scenery and his style worked to emphasize the story telling. Every once in a while he drew a beautiful countryside, but mostly he kept the focus on the characters.

It started as a funny comic with simple gags but eventually evolved to more thoughtful, even serious themes. Some of the strips were frankly kind of edgy. For example, compare the two Sunday strips I’ve added. The one from 1964 is a clear gag. The other, from 1969, is well, something else entirely. Same with the dallies. Look at the one from 1959. The characters are drawn in a much more exaggerated style, and it goes for a simple laugh. Or the two from August of 1972. Again, he goes for the laugh, but it’s more about showing the false bravado of the Indian Chief. Now, compare those to the storyline at the end of 1965, or the daily from 1962. There, he’s got a storyline going that would rival Caniff.

Lynde was a true outdoorsman. He grew up in rural Montana near the Crow Indian reservation and loved the west. He later created another strip, Latigo, but Rick O’Shay will always hold a place in my heart. As I understand it, Lynde (who passed away in 2013) had kept most of this originals and a fire in 1990 destroyed much of the collection. Because of that, originals have been hard to find. But, recently, a number of Sundays and dallies have been showing up and I was lucky to grab a couple of Sundays and a few dallies. Enjoy!!