The Snow White "Big Little Book"

Before the general theatrical release of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, its story line was adapted by Merrill de Maris and drawn by Hank Porter for the 1937/38 Sunday newspaper comic strip. This would be reproduced as a comic book many times over starting in 1944.

Yet, the first bound publication was actually the 1938 Big Little Book (#1460) by Whitman Publishers. Copyright Walt Disney Enterprises, 288 pages. Measures 3 5/8" x 4 1/2" x 1 1/2".

Images via Timeless Classics Collectibles and Heritage Auction Galleries.

1944 Dell Comic Book

With the Disney Studio thoroughly sequestered by the US military, the deep loss of revenue from the eclipsed European market, and a shortage of top animators, 1944 saw Walt Disney once again facing a serious cash flow problem. His answer was simple yet brilliant--use what you've got. For the first time ever, he re-released a film to the theaters. Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs made a basket full of money and reignited public interest in all things Snow...one of those things being the comic book printed by Dell Publishing in that same year.

Cover Art, 1944 Dell Comic Book.

Front Endpaper, 1944 Dell Comic Book.

Page One, 1944 Dell Comic Book.

As mentioned in the previous post, staff artist Hank Porter illustrated the original Snow White newspaper comic back in 1937-38. Hank was still employed by Walt in 1944 but was assigned to oversee the department which pumped out a thousand plus insignias (many drawn by Porter himself) and other illustrations for the war effort.

So why mess with a good thing? This Snow White comic issued by Dell Publishing utilized the same Porter illustrations and Merrill de Maris story from the earlier newspaper strip. The only real changes were in the colors, e.g. Snow White's dress in the original dark forest scene was red with a white cape; in 1944 they both were painted yellow.

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Original January 23, 1938 newspaper strip illustrated by Hank Porter. 
Image courtesy of the Thom Buchanan collection via The Pictorial Arts blog.

1944 Dell Comic Book; same Hank Porter illustrations, different color painting.

According to Don Markstein's Toonopedia, the strip was "repeatedly reprinted" in comic book form by Dell, Gold Key, Gladstone and even a Marvel edition in 1995.  It was also published as a Big Little Book by Whitman Publishing. Most assuredly, Hank Porter's original 1937-38 Snow White strip will continue to live on in future forms.

Comics copyright Disney. All images (unless otherwise noted) courtesy of the Bob Fergusson Collection. Used with Permission. See Bob's blog at Allure.

For more Snow White comic book covers, see this post.

1937-38 Hank Porter Comic Strip

Distributed by King Features Syndicate, this Snow White Sunday newspaper comic strip ran for twenty weeks, from December 12, 1937 to April 24, 1938, actually beginning nine days prior to the film's colossal premiere at the Cathay Circle Theatre on December 21, 1937 and a whopping 45 days before the movie's general public release on Feb. 4, 1938. By the time the film actually appeared in theaters, devoted readers would have already been familiar with the princess, prince and queen. They'd also have had a silhouetted glimpse of the dwarfs marching home from their diamond mine.


-December 12, 1937 - week one...

- December 19, 1937 - week two...

- December 26, 1937 - week three...

- January 2, 1938 - week four...

- January 9, 1938 - week five...

- January 16, 1938 - week six...

- January 23, 1938 - week seven...

- January 30, 1938 - week eight...

- February 6, 1938 - week nine...

- February 13, 1938 - week ten...

- February 20, 1938 - week eleven...

- February 27, 1938 - week twelve...

- March 6, 1938 - week thirteen...

- March 13, 1938 - week fourteen...

- March 20, 1938 - week fifteen...

- March 27, 1938 - week sixteen...

- April 3, 1938 - week seventeen...

- April 10, 1938 - week eighteen...

- April 17, 1938 - week nineteen...

 - April 24, 1938 - week twenty...

The strip was illustrated by the talented but lesser-known Hank Porter, a staff artist in the Disney Publicity Art Department from 1935 to 1950. The story was authored by Merrill de Maris, one of several writers credited with the Snow White screenplay.

Hank Porter. Image via Walt Disney's Mickey and the Gang, p 10.

Comics copyright Disney. Images courtesy of the Thom Buchanan collection via The Pictorial Arts blog.