Vol. 57 No. 1 (2009)
Research Article

A Note on the Names of Selected Characters and Villains in Dick Tracy

PDF
  • Frank Nuessel
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1179/175622709X402672

Published 2009-03-01

Keywords

  • FORENAMES,
  • GIVEN NAMES,
  • TWENTIETH-CENTURY,
  • COMPETITION,
  • AVOIDANCE,
  • NAMING BEHAVIOR
    • ...More
    Less

Copyright (c) 2009 Maney Publishing

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Abstract

Abstract

This article provides a brief history of the comic strip Dick Tracy (1931) and its creator, author, and illustrator Chester Gould (1900-1985). Gould was very inventive and creative in naming the characters that populated his strip. He provided distinctive names to the rogues that populated his strip. Their names reflected physical, psychological, or behavioral traits that emphasized deviance as a way to distinguish them from honest, hardworking citizens. In the 1930s and 1940s, the villains in Dick Tracy were distinctive and unique because of their idiosyncratic traits. The main characters also had unique names that represented positive traits. Minorities likewise had names that were stereotypic in nature. The comic strip regained its popularity in 1990 with the release of the very successful Disney movie "Dick Tracy".

PDF

References

  1. Berger, Arthur Asa. 1973. The Comic-Stripped American. Baltimore, MD: Penguin Books.
  2. Crouch, William Jr. and Lawrence Doucet. 1990. The Authorized Guide to Dick Tracy Collectibles. Radnor, PA: Wallace-Homestead Book Company.
  3. Galewitz, Herb. (ed.). 1970. The Celebrated Cases of Dick Tracy 1931–1951. New York: Chelsea House.
  4. Lemann, Nicholas. 1991. The Promised Land: The Great Black Migration and How It Changed America. New York: Alfred Knopf.
  5. Nuessel, Frank. 1984. “Linguistic Distortions and Stereotypes of Asians.” Thinker. A Literary Journal 8(2): 66–77.
  6. Nuessel, Frank. 1992. The Study of Names: An Introduction to the Principles and Topics. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press.
  7. O’Connell, Jean Gould. 2007. Chester Gould: A Daughter’s Biography of the Creator of Dick Tracy. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Company, Inc.,Publishers.
  8. Roberts, Garyn G. 1993. Dick Tracy and American Culture. Morality, Mythology, and Context. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Company, Inc.,Publishers.
  9. The Complete Chester Gould’s Dick Tracy® Dailies & Sundays 1931–1933. Volume One. 2006. San Diego, CA: IDW Publishing.
  10. The Complete Chester Gould’s Dick Tracy® Dailies & Sundays 1933–1935. Volume Two. 2007a. San Diego, CA: IDW Publishing.
  11. The Complete Chester Gould’s Dick Tracy® Dailies & Sundays 1935–1936. Volume Three. 2007b. San Diego, CA: IDW Publishing.
  12. The Complete Chester Gould’s Dick Tracy® Dailies & Sundays 1936–1938. Volume Four. 2008a. San Diego, CA: IDW Publishing.
  13. The Complete Chester Gould’s Dick Tracy® Dailies & Sundays 1938–1939. Volume Five. 2008b. San Diego, CA: IDW Publishing.
  14. The Complete Chester Gould’s Dick Tracy® Dailies & Sundays 1940–1941. Volume Six. 2009. San Diego, CA: IDW Publishing.