She precedes Archie’s Veronica by over 20 years, and she was just as
fabulous, “high-maintenance” and beautiful as her successor, without ever having
to compete with the girl next door.

Lillums emerged as the girlfriend of the original American teenager, Harold
Teen, in 1919. With her stylishly short black tresses and wide onyx eyes, she
proved to be time enough for her typically short-sighted high school
man.

In the two short strips seen below, Harold and Lillums engage in somewhat
lighthearted battle of the sexes banter. Where Lillums asserts that there’ll one
day be a female president, Harold jokes that no woman will ever admit to being
over 35. Where Harold claims that the advent of the frozen foods market will
make women’s lives easier, Lillums becomes irate and leaves Harold reeling from
her sudden departure.

Each of these strips sums up our heroine’s character better than any short
bio ever could. Creator Carl Ed provided us one forward-thinking “secondary”
girlfriend character whose assertive views still stand up in today’s gender
equality-seeking society.

And for that, we’re ever grateful.