Bringing Up Father — buf400102

George McManus launched *Bringing Up Father* in 1913, and it ran for decades as one of the most widely syndicated strips in American newspaper history. This daily strip follows the eternal domestic comedy of Jiggs — newly rich Irish-American bricklayer — and his socially ambitious wife Maggie. Here, four panels track a quick sight-gag: Maggie scolds Jiggs for laziness while their son-in-law serves as unwitting model; Jiggs spots someone to gossip with; the punchline lands on a Western thriller seen twice. McManus's draftsmanship is opulent — patterned wallpaper, candelabra, crosshatched tuxedos — reflecting his admiration for Art Nouveau. His fluid speech balloons and locked panel rhythm directly influenced the visual grammar that early comic-book editors codified into a commercial format.