Polly and Her Pals

Cliff Sterrett's *Polly and Her Pals* debuted in 1912 and ran for decades, making it one of the longest-lived newspaper comic strips in American history. This daily strip follows the household chaos surrounding Polly and her mother, Ma, whose oversized hat and rotund figure are rendered in Sterrett's characteristically busy crosshatch line. Across five panels, the gag turns on a missing reticule (a small drawstring purse): Ma panics, the menfolk disclaim knowledge, the bag is produced intact, and a man promptly offers to help find it — only to be told he owes a 'V' (five dollars). Sterrett's crowded, expressive figures and rhythmic panel pacing exemplify the daily strip formula that newspaper syndicates refined into the direct visual ancestor of the comic book format.