Friday, September 27, 2013

My Heroine Addiction : Rulah, Jungle Goddess


In an earlier MHA posting I mention how ubiquitous that Jungle strips were in the Golden Age and the inherent racist elements that they feature. It’s a bitter irony that the pioneering black cartoonist, Matt Baker wound up producing so much work in the milieu. He guided the adventures of Sheena, Jo-Jo, Camilla, Tiger Girl and Voodah at various times. But of all the serial character strips he worked on, it was Rulah, Jungle Goddess that he spent the most time on. According to the GCD he is believed to have done over 500 pages of art on the strip between 1947 and 1949.



 
Rulah debuted in the Fox title ZOOT COMICS issue 7, in June of 1947. The following year that comic book was remained RULAH, JUNGLE GODDESS in honor of it’s most popular strip. Rulah also saw some page time in the concurrent, sister magazine ALL TOP COMICS.

Here is the Baker drawn origin story from ZOOT COMICS #7.




Again let me extend an apology about the racism. But I gotta tell you, there is a lot of charm exuding in this tale and I found more memorable than most in the genre.

Pat

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