The ‘Puck – The Comic Weekly’ Ruler was released by King Features Syndicate in New York, USA in the later part of the 1950s.
The history of ‘Puck’ magazine is long and unrivalled. Puck, no longer in print, was a famous weekly magazine, making its publishing debut in Germany, 1871. The German periodical was short lived, but founder Joseph Keppler soon thereafter created a new satirical magazine; an English version called ‘Puck’. Pucks humorous comics and witty dialogue quickly became a great success. Its first edition sold for 16c and was 16 pages. For forty years, under various owners and editors, it endeared its readers and became one of United States most renowned weekly publications.
In 1916, William Randolph Hearst acquired the company, and under his management, the publication began printing a 32-page magazine with both B&W and color pages; consisting of illustrated advertisements and comic strips as well as editorials of current events. It is unknown exactly why the publication ceased in Sept of 1918.
Thirteen years later the ‘Puck’ name was revived and became a part of the ‘Comic Weekly Sunday Comic Section’ which ran in Hearst’s newspaper chain until the mid-1970s. For over a decade, the Puck name laid dormant again, until the early 1980’s when Hearst’s Los Angeles Herald Examiner picked it up again. Finally, in 1989 its 118-year stint had ended, leaving behind a long and rich history of excellence in publication history.
The ruler measures 30cm in length and is made of aluminum. The rear side of the ruler is left blank, with a strip of comic book characters found along the top of the ruler, running along its length in the center.
A total of 15 comic book characters are found on the ruler, including Popeye, Prince Valiant, Archie, Snuffy Smith, Beetle Bailey, Dagwood, Henry, Little Iodine, Jiggs, Blondie and Flash Gordon. The Phantom is also featured.
On the top of the ruler, in the center, we also see the wording ‘Puck – The Comic Weekly’.
The Phantom 