Dreams of a Rarebit Fiend
Encyclopedia
Dream of the Rarebit Fiend was a newspaper
comic strip
written and drawn by Winsor McCay
beginning September 10, 1904. It was McCay's second successful newspaper strip, after Little Sammy Sneeze secured him a position on the cartoon
staff of the New York Herald
newspaper
. Dream of the Rarebit Fiend was published in the Evening Telegram
, which was published by the Herald at the time.
The editor of the Herald required McCay to use a pseudonym for his work in the Telegram to keep it separate from his Herald strips, so McCay signed all his Dream of the Rarebit Fiend strips as "Silas", borrowing the name of a neighborhood garbage cart driver.
known as the Rarebit Fiend (who is rarely named in the comic strip, and who changes from strip to strip) in the course of strange dreams and nightmares. Upon awakening, the protagonist blames his dream on having eaten Welsh rarebit or some other dish.
McCay's famous character Little Nemo
—who later had his own strip, Little Nemo in Slumberland—first appeared in Dream of the Rarebit Fiend within the first year of its existence. Unlike Dream of the Rarebit Fiend, which was intentionally created for an adult reading audience, Little Nemo was intended for children. McCay went on to write and draw Little Nemo for the New York Herald
.
Film pioneer Edwin S. Porter
had earlier produced a film adaptation of Dream of the Rarebit Fiend in 1906. This is not considered a true animated film but rather an early exercise in trick photography.
's Dreams of the Rarebit Fiend. (ISBN 0-486-21347-1)
More recently, Checker Books began a series of Winsor McCay: Early Works, which reprints all the Rarebit Fiend in several of the volumes: Volume 1 (ISBN 0-9741664-0-5), Volume 2 (ISBN 0-9741664-7-2), Volume 3 (ISBN 0-9741664-9-9), Volume 4 (ISBN 0-9753808-1-8), Volume 5 (ISBN 0-9753808-2-6), Volume 6 (ISBN 1-933160-05-5), and maybe in volumes 7 and 8. Checker also reprinted many Saturdays in the book Dream of the Rarebit Fiend: The Saturdays.
A definitive reprint of the series was published in July 2007 by German expert Ulrich Merkl; Dream of the Rarebit Fiend (ISBN 3-0002075-1-1) includes 369 reproductions of the best episodes of the series and a DVD with high resolution scans of all 821 episodes known to exist.
Newspaper
A newspaper is a scheduled publication containing news of current events, informative articles, diverse features and advertising. It usually is printed on relatively inexpensive, low-grade paper such as newsprint. By 2007, there were 6580 daily newspapers in the world selling 395 million copies a...
comic strip
Comic strip
A comic strip is a sequence of drawings arranged in interrelated panels to display brief humor or form a narrative, often serialized, with text in balloons and captions....
written and drawn by Winsor McCay
Winsor McCay
Winsor McCay was an American cartoonist and animator.A prolific artist, McCay's pioneering early animated films far outshone the work of his contemporaries, and set a standard followed by Walt Disney and others in later decades...
beginning September 10, 1904. It was McCay's second successful newspaper strip, after Little Sammy Sneeze secured him a position on the cartoon
Cartoon
A cartoon is a form of two-dimensional illustrated visual art. While the specific definition has changed over time, modern usage refers to a typically non-realistic or semi-realistic drawing or painting intended for satire, caricature, or humor, or to the artistic style of such works...
staff of the New York Herald
New York Herald
The New York Herald was a large distribution newspaper based in New York City that existed between May 6, 1835, and 1924.-History:The first issue of the paper was published by James Gordon Bennett, Sr., on May 6, 1835. By 1845 it was the most popular and profitable daily newspaper in the UnitedStates...
newspaper
Newspaper
A newspaper is a scheduled publication containing news of current events, informative articles, diverse features and advertising. It usually is printed on relatively inexpensive, low-grade paper such as newsprint. By 2007, there were 6580 daily newspapers in the world selling 395 million copies a...
. Dream of the Rarebit Fiend was published in the Evening Telegram
New York World-Telegram
The New York World-Telegram, later known as the New York World-Telegram and Sun, was a New York City newspaper from 1931 to 1966.-History:...
, which was published by the Herald at the time.
The editor of the Herald required McCay to use a pseudonym for his work in the Telegram to keep it separate from his Herald strips, so McCay signed all his Dream of the Rarebit Fiend strips as "Silas", borrowing the name of a neighborhood garbage cart driver.
Characters and story
The strip focuses on various people who have a passion for various foods and dishes -often, but not always, Welsh rarebit. Each strip features a different protagonistProtagonist
A protagonist is the main character of a literary, theatrical, cinematic, or musical narrative, around whom the events of the narrative's plot revolve and with whom the audience is intended to most identify...
known as the Rarebit Fiend (who is rarely named in the comic strip, and who changes from strip to strip) in the course of strange dreams and nightmares. Upon awakening, the protagonist blames his dream on having eaten Welsh rarebit or some other dish.
McCay's famous character Little Nemo
Little Nemo
Little Nemo is the main fictional character in a series of weekly comic strips by Winsor McCay that appeared in the New York Herald and William Randolph Hearst's New York American newspapers from October 15, 1905 – April 23, 1911 and April 30, 1911 – July 26, 1914; respectively.The...
—who later had his own strip, Little Nemo in Slumberland—first appeared in Dream of the Rarebit Fiend within the first year of its existence. Unlike Dream of the Rarebit Fiend, which was intentionally created for an adult reading audience, Little Nemo was intended for children. McCay went on to write and draw Little Nemo for the New York Herald
New York Herald
The New York Herald was a large distribution newspaper based in New York City that existed between May 6, 1835, and 1924.-History:The first issue of the paper was published by James Gordon Bennett, Sr., on May 6, 1835. By 1845 it was the most popular and profitable daily newspaper in the UnitedStates...
.
Films
McCay produced four hand-drawn animated films based upon his Rarebit Fiend series:- How a Mosquito OperatesHow a Mosquito OperatesHow a Mosquito Operates is a 1912 animated short film, animated by Winsor McCay. An incomplete print of the film survives.A mosquito with a suitcase spots a man walking to his apartment . As the man enters, the mostuito slips through the top window over the door. The man lays down to rest while...
(1912) - Dreams of the Rarebit Fiend: Bug Vaudeville (1921)
- Dreams of the Rarebit Fiend: The Pet (1921)
- Dreams of the Rarebit Fiend: The Flying House (1921)
Film pioneer Edwin S. Porter
Edwin S. Porter
Edwin Stanton Porter was an American early film pioneer, most famous as a director with Thomas Edison's company...
had earlier produced a film adaptation of Dream of the Rarebit Fiend in 1906. This is not considered a true animated film but rather an early exercise in trick photography.
Collections
Book collections sometimes used the plural "dreams" in the title rather than "dream," and 60 strips were reprinted in the Dover PublicationsDover Publications
Dover Publications is an American book publisher founded in 1941 by Hayward Cirker and his wife, Blanche. It publishes primarily reissues, books no longer published by their original publishers. These are often, but not always, books in the public domain. The original published editions may be...
's Dreams of the Rarebit Fiend. (ISBN 0-486-21347-1)
More recently, Checker Books began a series of Winsor McCay: Early Works, which reprints all the Rarebit Fiend in several of the volumes: Volume 1 (ISBN 0-9741664-0-5), Volume 2 (ISBN 0-9741664-7-2), Volume 3 (ISBN 0-9741664-9-9), Volume 4 (ISBN 0-9753808-1-8), Volume 5 (ISBN 0-9753808-2-6), Volume 6 (ISBN 1-933160-05-5), and maybe in volumes 7 and 8. Checker also reprinted many Saturdays in the book Dream of the Rarebit Fiend: The Saturdays.
A definitive reprint of the series was published in July 2007 by German expert Ulrich Merkl; Dream of the Rarebit Fiend (ISBN 3-0002075-1-1) includes 369 reproductions of the best episodes of the series and a DVD with high resolution scans of all 821 episodes known to exist.