Big Little Books (BLB) have had a tremendous appeal to collectors since they first appeared featuring the likes of Mickey Mouse, Buck Rogers, Flash Gordon, Dick Tracy, Orphan Annie, The Phantom, Donald Duck, and so many others. In the course of this column, we’ll take you through a selection of them and explore some of the many nuances to collecting BLBs.

Initially introduced by creator Roy Crane in 1929 as another in a series of sidekicks for the eponymous star of Wash Tubbs, Captain Easy quickly established himself as a breakout star with his Southern charm and sketchy past.

His popularity even inspired a prequel Sunday strip, Captain Easy, Soldier of Fortune, which began in 1933 and took a look at the character’s pre-Wash adventures. Crane’s strips showcased innovative and intricate artistic layouts a la Winsor McKay’s Little Nemo in Slumberland design work. When his syndicate decreed in 1937 that the Sunday strips had to follow a rigid grid pattern, Crane turned them over to an assistant and continued with the dailies.

Captain Easy eventually enlisted in the Army, leaving Wash behind at home to get married and settle down while Easy tackled new challenges during World War II. Easy segued into a job as a private detective after the war. Crane then turned the daily over to his assistant as well, who carried the strip forward well into the ‘60s.

Easy’s charisma-fueled escapades lasted for nearly sixty years before ending in 1988. 

If you’d like to know more about Big Little Books, check out The Big Big Little Book Book – An Overstreet Photo-Journal, which is an amazing compendium of information and images about Big Little Books and other publications associated with the form. It’s full color, 272 pages, and it’s packed with the history of these little classics. And it’s only $19.95!