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| Images copyright D.C. THOMSON & Co., Ltd |
Just sat down with my 80th anniversary boxed set of The BEANO, and am hugely disappointed to see that now the 'PC Brigade' are rewriting history. Think I'm kidding? Take a look at the facsimile cover of the first issue above. PEANUT, the little black boy who adorned the masthead has been excised from existence. The joke page which features him is also missing. (As are another 3 pages from what was originally a 28 page periodical.) So much for it having any archival value to collectors or historians.
What's the problem? The first issue has been reprinted several times over the years and Peanut has always been present, so why is he absent now? Racially sensitive perhaps? Maybe even offensive? Bollocks! A cartoon drawing of a black boy should be no more offensive to a black person than a picture of DENNIS The MENACE or FRED FLINSTONE would be to white person. What black people should be offended by is Peanut being written out of history as if he never existed.
The reprint even has a note inside saying "Some pages may contain references which are of their time, but would not be considered suitable today." Yet they omit Peanut, who - as a cartoon caricature - in no way could be considered any less suitable than any other comic strip character. Take a look at him in a pic from one of the excised pages (below). He's a cute-looking wee fella who surely wouldn't be considered offensive to black people in any way. (I think it's safe to assume that they have a sense of humour as well as perspective.)
Every single person who had a hand in the insulting decision to whitewash (no pun intended) Peanut from the comic's history should be lined up in a corridor and given a severe kicking for their seriously unsound, politically correct, pathetically patronising attitude. Remember a few years back when various council bosses and business managers issued an edict that their employees shouldn't send Christmas cards with the word 'Merry Christmas' on them? Only cards with 'Seasons Greetings' or some equally anaemic, non-specific message should be used, for fear of offending Muslims. The Islamic community's reaction? "Don't be daft - we don't care!" This is yet another example of that kind of stupidity.
The boxed set itself is otherwise excellent and good value for money, and if you're a Beano fan, you're sure to love it. However, if you expect the facsimile of the first issue to accurately capture and reflect the spirit and humour of the times, then be aware that its archival integrity has been seriously compromised. Below is how the cover looked back in 1938. It would be nice if Thomson's could remember it for the next big anniversary bash.
Posted in: Cartoons
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