Omaha the Cat Dancer
Encyclopedia
"Omaha" the Cat Dancer is an erotic
comic strip
created by artist Reed Waller
and writer Kate Worley
. Set in the fictional Mipple City, Minnesota
(a pastiche of Minneapolis derived from its one-time postal abbreviation of MPLS) in a universe populated by anthropomorphic
funny animal
characters, the strip is a soap opera
which focuses on Omaha, a feline exotic dancer
, and her lover, Chuck, the son of a powerful business tycoon.
The strip debuted in the funny animal magazine Vootie, and a number of underground comix
in the late 1970s and early 1980s. "Omaha" the Cat Dancer became the subject of the eponymous comic book
series, which was published from 1984 until 1993 through Kitchen Sink Press
; it was relaunched by Fantagraphics Books
until 1995. The final chapters of the strip's storyline were published in Sizzle magazine, beginning in 2006.
"Omaha" the Cat Dancer was the first of several comic books published in the early 1980s which integrated explicit sex into their storylines, rather than utilizing sex for shock value. The comic was the subject of a number of obscenity
controversies, and was nominated for multiple Eisner Award
s in 1989 and 1991.
funny animal characters. The story began as a satire of local blue law
s, before evolving into a comic book soap opera
.
founded Vootie, a fanzine
intended to promote funny animal
comics. Waller began developing the concept for "Omaha" the Cat Dancer after one of the magazine's contributors said that there wasn't enough sex in the genre. Inspired by Robert Crumb
's Fritz the Cat
, Waller began looking for a theme for his new comic. He visited local strip clubs in St. Paul with his sketchbook, and read newspaper articles about attempts to shut the bars down. Another contributor to the magazine, Jim Schumeister, proposed a comic called Charlie's Bimbos, in which "a bevy of strippers champion liberty in the face of Puritan oppression". This proposal sparked the idea for Omaha.
After two chapters had been completed, Waller was unable to continue with the story. The third chapter was completed with help from Kate Worley
, who continued to write the series thereafter. In August 1988, Worley was injured in a car accident; the series' frequency slowed as a result of her recovery process. In November 1991, Waller was diagnosed with colon cancer; two issues of Images of "Omaha" were published in 1992 to pay for Waller's medical expenses, featuring art and writing by several major comic creators. In 1995, Waller and Worley ceased production of the series. In 2002, Waller and Worley agreed to complete the story; Worley was diagnosed with lung cancer, and began chemotherapy and radiation treatments in that year. On June 6, 2004, Worley died before completing the story; her husband, James Vance began to edit and complete the final chapters.
and new in the town of Mipple City, Minnesota
. The story starts out as Susie uses her modeling to begin working at the strip club "Kitty Korner Klub" with her newfound friend Shelly Hine, where she now goes by the stage name of "Omaha". Omaha starts to become well known after she is featured for the first time in Pet Magazine, an adult entertainment magazine as the centerfold "Kitten of the Month".
After working as a locally popular dancer, she and Shelly meet Chuck Katt, an artist who begins to fall in love with Omaha and whom she considers "normal". After a new blue law
is passed, "all strip club
s are to be closed down", Omaha and Shelly are put out of work. Shelly soon finds a hidden sub-basement at a restaurant that is owned by a man named Charles Tabey, a powerful, yet mentally ill business tycoon, whom Shelly is his lover in secret. With Omaha out of work, Chuck Katt starts working for his former boss, Andre DeRoc, a media mogul in the town and the arch-rival of Charles Tabey. He is also re-acquainted his old girlfriend, JoAnne Follett who is the personal secretary of Andre DeRoc. Charles Tabey, the wealthy and influential businessman, falls in love with Omaha as a dancer, and arranges for her to dance at the grand opening of a new secret strip club. Charles, who has control over the local police, is able to open the club which is meant exclusively for the most powerful of the city. However, DeRoc sabotages the opening night by placing a chemical in the liquor turning the crowd into a sexually violent mob aimed at Omaha. All three rush to escape through the back door. Upon exiting, a hitman hired to kill Charles Tabey mistakes Chuck Katt for him and accidentally shoots Shelly Hine. She then tells the two to find JoAnne Follett.
The couple soon go to find JoAnne and are almost killed on the way there by the man aiming for Charles. Instead they walk in on JoAnne in bed
with Charles Tabey. Chuck then reluctantly reveals to Omaha that his real name is Charles Tabey, Jr. and that he is Charles' son. After everything that has happened, the two return to their car and drive off to San Francisco. On the way to the city, their car breaks down. The two are then picked up by a man and woman, who claim to run a modeling agency in San Francisco and promise work for Omaha. She and Chuck, feeling relieved, settle in a penthouse apartment belonging to the seemingly kind pair.
While Chuck is out running errands, the real owner returns. It is revealed to be JoAnne Follett. She explains that she has quit working for Andre DeRoc and now works for Charles Tabey. She brings them money from Charles so Chuck and Omaha can hide out for as long as they need to. After Chuck comes back, the three go out shopping and drinking later that night. Afterwards, at the apartment, JoAnne and Omaha begin to sexually experiment with each other while Chuck is passed out drunk. Upon Chuck's waking, the experimentation turns into an all out threesome
between the pair and JoAnne. After Omaha and Chuck fall asleep leaving JoAnne alone, she is surprised by the man who claimed to run a modeling agency, but is in fact working for DeRoc. He nearly throws JoAnne off the balcony, but Omaha wakes up in time and knocks him out with a liquor bottle. He escapes, the two then go to bed together leaving Chuck to sleep on the living room floor.
After the threesome with Chuck and Joanne, Omaha has a nightmare about Shelley. Waking up and finding Joanne in bed with her, the shock and brandy from the night before makes her ill. So she decides to write a note and takes a walk. Chuck wakes to a closing door, looking for Omaha. But finding Joanne instead, the two make coffee and fetch aspirin. After wandering into Chinatown
Omaha is enticed into a restaurant for lunch. While she is studying the menu a young Chinese man makes a call to Mipple City. Omaha finds a large chauffeur who forces her outside to a car belonging to Charles Tabey Sr, who takes her to a private estate near San Pedro
, whare she meets Pamela, Charles Tabey Sr's personal assistant. Back in San Francisco Chuck and Joanne hear a messenger, with a note saying that Charlie has taken Omaha for her own protection, Chuck is now angry at his father's meddling, but Joanne agrees with Charlie's good intentions. Chuck refuses to believe in his father's good intentions, Joanne loses patience with him, Chuck apologizes to her and the two wind up in bed. At the private estate of Charles Tabey Sr all three have dinner. Later Pamela shows Omaha a special workout studio, so she can stay in shape for the re-opening of the Underground. Horrified she runs back to her room and cries herself to sleep. Later she is awakened by a storm, she undresses for bed fantasizing about Chuck and masturbating. She hears a noise and finds Charles in the room. Terrified, she refuses to listen as he grabs her and drags her showing her the real reason for the abduction "Shelley is alive".
Kurt Huddle tells Jerry (an old friend of Shelley) that she is now in a wheelchair
and how he came to work for Charles Tabey, Sr. Back in San Francisco JoAnne and Chuck go shopping and meet Rob Shaw, a gay photographer for pictures for his portfolio. Later she runs an ad in the classifieds. Back at Charles Tabey Sr's private estate Omaha meets Jerry for a 2nd time and all five sit down for lunchtime.
in Bizarre Sex #9 in 1981. A five page untitled story appeared in Bizarre Sex #10 in 1982, as a followup to the first chapter. In 1983, a one-page parody strip starring Omaha, titled "Hotsizz Twonkies", was published in E-Man #5 by First Comics. Another five page untitled story, identified as "Shelly and Omaha" in The Collected Omaha Volume 1, appeared in Dope Comix #5; it was reprinted in Bizarre Sex Series #5. In 1991, the Omaha story "A Strip in Time" appeared in Munden's Bar Annual #2, published by First Comics.
In 1984, SteelDragon Press published the first issue of "Omaha" the Cat Dancer, which featured the second chapter of the story. The series lasted 19 issues before being cancelled in 1993. Fantagraphics Books
later relaunched the series, but it only lasted four issues, the last published in 1995. In 1994, Rob, a supporting character from the series, appeared in Gay Comics #22. The final chapters of the story were serialized in Sizzle, beginning in 2006.
From 1987 until 1998, Kitchen Sink, and later Fantagraphics, published six volumes of the Omaha strips under the title The Collected "Omaha" the Cat Dancer. From 2005 to 2008, NBM Publishing
imprint Amerotica published seven volumes of strips under the title The Complete Omaha the Cat Dancer.
was formed. In 1990, issues of "Omaha" the Cat Dancer were seized by New Zealand
authorities; the country's Obscene Publications Tribunal declared that the series was not indecent. In the same year, police in Toronto seized issues of the comic, claiming that it depicted bestiality
.
In Graphic Novels: A Bibliographic Guide to Book-Length Comics, D. Aviva Rothschild praised the series, writing "the plot is always strong, and the characters are always three-dimensional and appealing." Entertainment Weekly
writer Alex Heard panned the comic, writing that "The story moves very slowly [...] one can readily agree with the disgruntled fan who wrote, 'My God! Where did you dredge up those horrid characters?'"
In 1992, Kitchen Sink published two volumes of Images of "Omaha" as a benefit to pay for the treatment of Waller's bowel cancer. The volumes featured contributions by major comic book artists, such as Dave Sim
, Alan Moore
and Frank Miller
. Trina Robbins
, James Vance
and Neil Gaiman
have provided introductions to collected editions of the series. "Omaha" the Cat Dancer was nominated for Eisner Award
s for Best Continuing Series, Best Black-and-White Series, and Best Writer/Artist in 1989; in 1991, the series received Eisner Awards for Best Black and White Series and Best Writer.
Erotic art
Erotic art covers any artistic work that is intended to evoke erotic arousal or that depicts scenes of love-making. It includes paintings, engravings, drawings, sculptures, photographs, music and writing.-Definition:...
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....
created by artist Reed Waller
Reed Waller
Reed Waller is an American comic book artist best known for his work on Omaha the Cat Dancer, together with Kate Worley.-Omaha the Cat Dancer:...
and writer Kate Worley
Kate Worley
Kate Worley was an American comic book writer best known for her work on Omaha the Cat Dancer. She was a writer and performer for the science fiction comedy radio program Shockwave Radio Theater.-Early life and career:...
. Set in the fictional Mipple City, Minnesota
Minnesota
Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
(a pastiche of Minneapolis derived from its one-time postal abbreviation of MPLS) in a universe populated by anthropomorphic
Anthropomorphism
Anthropomorphism is any attribution of human characteristics to animals, non-living things, phenomena, material states, objects or abstract concepts, such as organizations, governments, spirits or deities. The term was coined in the mid 1700s...
funny animal
Funny animal
Funny animal is a cartooning term for the genre of comics and animated cartoons in which the main characters are humanoid or talking animals, with anthropomorphic personality traits. The characters themselves may also be called funny animals...
characters, the strip is a soap opera
Soap opera
A soap opera, sometimes called "soap" for short, is an ongoing, episodic work of dramatic fiction presented in serial format on radio or as television programming. The name soap opera stems from the original dramatic serials broadcast on radio that had soap manufacturers, such as Procter & Gamble,...
which focuses on Omaha, a feline exotic dancer
Exotic dancer
The terms exotic dancer and exotic dance can have different meanings in different parts of the world and depending on context. In the erotic sense, "exotic dance" is a often used to refer to practitioners of striptease...
, and her lover, Chuck, the son of a powerful business tycoon.
The strip debuted in the funny animal magazine Vootie, and a number of underground comix
Underground comix
Underground comix are small press or self-published comic books which are often socially relevant or satirical in nature. They differ from mainstream comics in depicting content forbidden to mainstream publications by the Comics Code Authority, including explicit drug use, sexuality and violence...
in the late 1970s and early 1980s. "Omaha" the Cat Dancer became the subject of the eponymous comic book
Comic book
A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...
series, which was published from 1984 until 1993 through Kitchen Sink Press
Kitchen Sink Press
Kitchen Sink Press was a comic book publishing company founded by Denis Kitchen in 1970. Kitchen owned and operated Kitchen Sink Press until 1999. Kitchen Sink Press was a pioneering publisher of underground comics, and was also responsible for numerous republications of classic comic strips in...
; it was relaunched by Fantagraphics Books
Fantagraphics Books
Fantagraphics Books is an American publisher of alternative comics, classic comic strip anthologies, magazines, graphic novels, and the adult-oriented Eros Comix imprint...
until 1995. The final chapters of the strip's storyline were published in Sizzle magazine, beginning in 2006.
"Omaha" the Cat Dancer was the first of several comic books published in the early 1980s which integrated explicit sex into their storylines, rather than utilizing sex for shock value. The comic was the subject of a number of obscenity
Obscenity
An obscenity is any statement or act which strongly offends the prevalent morality of the time, is a profanity, or is otherwise taboo, indecent, abhorrent, or disgusting, or is especially inauspicious...
controversies, and was nominated for multiple Eisner Award
Eisner Award
The Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards, commonly shortened to the Eisner Awards, and sometimes referred to as the Oscar Awards of the Comics Industry, are prizes given for creative achievement in American comic books. The Eisner Awards were first conferred in 1988, created in response to the...
s in 1989 and 1991.
Overview
"Omaha" the Cat Dancer takes place in the fictional Mipple City, Minnesota. The comic's universe is populated by anthropomorphicAnthropomorphism
Anthropomorphism is any attribution of human characteristics to animals, non-living things, phenomena, material states, objects or abstract concepts, such as organizations, governments, spirits or deities. The term was coined in the mid 1700s...
funny animal characters. The story began as a satire of local blue law
Blue law
A blue law is a type of law, typically found in the United States and, formerly, in Canada, designed to enforce religious standards, particularly the observance of Sunday as a day of worship or rest, and a restriction on Sunday shopping...
s, before evolving into a comic book soap opera
Soap opera
A soap opera, sometimes called "soap" for short, is an ongoing, episodic work of dramatic fiction presented in serial format on radio or as television programming. The name soap opera stems from the original dramatic serials broadcast on radio that had soap manufacturers, such as Procter & Gamble,...
.
Characters
- Omaha is the stage name of Susan "Susie" Jensen (though very few of the other characters know her real name), an anthropomorphic feline stripperStripperA stripper is a professional erotic dancer who performs a contemporary form of striptease at strip club establishments, public exhibitions, and private engagements. Unlike in burlesque, the performer in the modern Americanized form of stripping minimizes the interaction of customer and dancer,...
. She has a pet ferretFerretThe ferret is a domesticated mammal of the type Mustela putorius furo. Ferrets are sexually dimorphic predators with males being substantially larger than females. They typically have brown, black, white, or mixed fur...
named Squeak. She was previously married years before meeting Charles Jr., but a divorce was later amicably arranged with her separated husband. - Charles "Chuck" Tabey, Jr. AKA Chuck Katt, who turns out to be the heir to Charles Tabey, Sr. and lover to Omaha.
- Charles Tabey, Sr., a powerful, yet mentally ill business tycoon.
- Shelly Hine, a bisexualBisexualityBisexuality is sexual behavior or an orientation involving physical or romantic attraction to both males and females, especially with regard to men and women. It is one of the three main classifications of sexual orientation, along with a heterosexual and a homosexual orientation, all a part of the...
exotic dancer and Omaha's best friend. She was caught in the line of fire and gunned down by a man named "Andre DeRoc" and is now in a wheelchair. Shelly was Charles Tabey, Sr.'s lover and confidante. In the very early comics that appeared in Vootie magazine, she and Omaha were lovers. - JoAnne Follett, a prostituteProstitutionProstitution is the act or practice of providing sexual services to another person in return for payment. The person who receives payment for sexual services is called a prostitute and the person who receives such services is known by a multitude of terms, including a "john". Prostitution is one of...
. - Kurt Huddle, Shelly's nurse and later lover. Huddle was the personal assistant and valet to Tabey, Sr.
- Rob Shaw, a gay photographer.
- Maria Elandos Tabey, Chuck Tabey's mother, whom he has not seen for years. She was blackmailed into leaving by Calvin Bonner over her gay brother. She also bears a very striking resemblance to Omaha.
- Senator Calvin Bonner, a state senator and business tycoon. A vocal public moralityPublic moralityPublic morality refers to moral and ethical standards enforced in a society, by law or police work or social pressure, and applied to public life, to the content of the media, and to conduct in public places...
crusader and a complete hypocrite since he is one of Joanne's regular, and more abusive, customers. Was murdered by an unknown assassin during a session set up by Joanne to compromise him by having Rob Shaw take incriminating photos of him. - George, owner of the "Kitty Korner Klub", Omaha and Shelly worked at.
- Ceecee and Angie two exotic dancerExotic dancerThe terms exotic dancer and exotic dance can have different meanings in different parts of the world and depending on context. In the erotic sense, "exotic dance" is a often used to refer to practitioners of striptease...
s who work at Mr. Pip's Nite Club.
History
In 1976, Reed WallerReed Waller
Reed Waller is an American comic book artist best known for his work on Omaha the Cat Dancer, together with Kate Worley.-Omaha the Cat Dancer:...
founded Vootie, a fanzine
Fanzine
A fanzine is a nonprofessional and nonofficial publication produced by fans of a particular cultural phenomenon for the pleasure of others who share their interest...
intended to promote funny animal
Funny animal
Funny animal is a cartooning term for the genre of comics and animated cartoons in which the main characters are humanoid or talking animals, with anthropomorphic personality traits. The characters themselves may also be called funny animals...
comics. Waller began developing the concept for "Omaha" the Cat Dancer after one of the magazine's contributors said that there wasn't enough sex in the genre. Inspired by Robert Crumb
Robert Crumb
Robert Dennis Crumb —known as Robert Crumb and R. Crumb—is an American artist, illustrator, and musician recognized for the distinctive style of his drawings and his critical, satirical, subversive view of the American mainstream.Crumb was a founder of the underground comix movement and is regarded...
's Fritz the Cat
Fritz the Cat
Fritz the Cat is a comic strip created by Robert Crumb. Set in a "supercity" of anthropomorphic animals, the strip focuses on Fritz, a feline con artist who frequently goes on wild adventures that sometimes involve sexcapades. Crumb began drawing this character in homemade comic books when he was a...
, Waller began looking for a theme for his new comic. He visited local strip clubs in St. Paul with his sketchbook, and read newspaper articles about attempts to shut the bars down. Another contributor to the magazine, Jim Schumeister, proposed a comic called Charlie's Bimbos, in which "a bevy of strippers champion liberty in the face of Puritan oppression". This proposal sparked the idea for Omaha.
After two chapters had been completed, Waller was unable to continue with the story. The third chapter was completed with help from Kate Worley
Kate Worley
Kate Worley was an American comic book writer best known for her work on Omaha the Cat Dancer. She was a writer and performer for the science fiction comedy radio program Shockwave Radio Theater.-Early life and career:...
, who continued to write the series thereafter. In August 1988, Worley was injured in a car accident; the series' frequency slowed as a result of her recovery process. In November 1991, Waller was diagnosed with colon cancer; two issues of Images of "Omaha" were published in 1992 to pay for Waller's medical expenses, featuring art and writing by several major comic creators. In 1995, Waller and Worley ceased production of the series. In 2002, Waller and Worley agreed to complete the story; Worley was diagnosed with lung cancer, and began chemotherapy and radiation treatments in that year. On June 6, 2004, Worley died before completing the story; her husband, James Vance began to edit and complete the final chapters.
Plot summary
Susan "Susie" Jensen is an aspiring model from the MidwestMidwestern United States
The Midwestern United States is one of the four U.S. geographic regions defined by the United States Census Bureau, providing an official definition of the American Midwest....
and new in the town of Mipple City, Minnesota
Minnesota
Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
. The story starts out as Susie uses her modeling to begin working at the strip club "Kitty Korner Klub" with her newfound friend Shelly Hine, where she now goes by the stage name of "Omaha". Omaha starts to become well known after she is featured for the first time in Pet Magazine, an adult entertainment magazine as the centerfold "Kitten of the Month".
After working as a locally popular dancer, she and Shelly meet Chuck Katt, an artist who begins to fall in love with Omaha and whom she considers "normal". After a new blue law
Blue law
A blue law is a type of law, typically found in the United States and, formerly, in Canada, designed to enforce religious standards, particularly the observance of Sunday as a day of worship or rest, and a restriction on Sunday shopping...
is passed, "all strip club
Strip club
A strip club is an adult entertainment venue in which striptease or other erotic or exotic dance is regularly performed. Strip clubs typically adopt a nightclub or bar style, but can also adopt a theatre or cabaret-style....
s are to be closed down", Omaha and Shelly are put out of work. Shelly soon finds a hidden sub-basement at a restaurant that is owned by a man named Charles Tabey, a powerful, yet mentally ill business tycoon, whom Shelly is his lover in secret. With Omaha out of work, Chuck Katt starts working for his former boss, Andre DeRoc, a media mogul in the town and the arch-rival of Charles Tabey. He is also re-acquainted his old girlfriend, JoAnne Follett who is the personal secretary of Andre DeRoc. Charles Tabey, the wealthy and influential businessman, falls in love with Omaha as a dancer, and arranges for her to dance at the grand opening of a new secret strip club. Charles, who has control over the local police, is able to open the club which is meant exclusively for the most powerful of the city. However, DeRoc sabotages the opening night by placing a chemical in the liquor turning the crowd into a sexually violent mob aimed at Omaha. All three rush to escape through the back door. Upon exiting, a hitman hired to kill Charles Tabey mistakes Chuck Katt for him and accidentally shoots Shelly Hine. She then tells the two to find JoAnne Follett.
The couple soon go to find JoAnne and are almost killed on the way there by the man aiming for Charles. Instead they walk in on JoAnne in bed
Sex
In biology, sex is a process of combining and mixing genetic traits, often resulting in the specialization of organisms into a male or female variety . Sexual reproduction involves combining specialized cells to form offspring that inherit traits from both parents...
with Charles Tabey. Chuck then reluctantly reveals to Omaha that his real name is Charles Tabey, Jr. and that he is Charles' son. After everything that has happened, the two return to their car and drive off to San Francisco. On the way to the city, their car breaks down. The two are then picked up by a man and woman, who claim to run a modeling agency in San Francisco and promise work for Omaha. She and Chuck, feeling relieved, settle in a penthouse apartment belonging to the seemingly kind pair.
While Chuck is out running errands, the real owner returns. It is revealed to be JoAnne Follett. She explains that she has quit working for Andre DeRoc and now works for Charles Tabey. She brings them money from Charles so Chuck and Omaha can hide out for as long as they need to. After Chuck comes back, the three go out shopping and drinking later that night. Afterwards, at the apartment, JoAnne and Omaha begin to sexually experiment with each other while Chuck is passed out drunk. Upon Chuck's waking, the experimentation turns into an all out threesome
Threesome
A threesome is a group of three engaged in the same activity. In relation to a sexual activity a threesome refer to the activity involving three people of any gender or sexual orientation...
between the pair and JoAnne. After Omaha and Chuck fall asleep leaving JoAnne alone, she is surprised by the man who claimed to run a modeling agency, but is in fact working for DeRoc. He nearly throws JoAnne off the balcony, but Omaha wakes up in time and knocks him out with a liquor bottle. He escapes, the two then go to bed together leaving Chuck to sleep on the living room floor.
After the threesome with Chuck and Joanne, Omaha has a nightmare about Shelley. Waking up and finding Joanne in bed with her, the shock and brandy from the night before makes her ill. So she decides to write a note and takes a walk. Chuck wakes to a closing door, looking for Omaha. But finding Joanne instead, the two make coffee and fetch aspirin. After wandering into Chinatown
Chinatown, San Francisco, California
San Francisco's Chinatown is the oldest Chinatown in North America and the largest Chinese community outside Asia. Since its establishment in 1848, it has been highly important and influential in the history and culture of ethnic Chinese immigrants to the United States and North America...
Omaha is enticed into a restaurant for lunch. While she is studying the menu a young Chinese man makes a call to Mipple City. Omaha finds a large chauffeur who forces her outside to a car belonging to Charles Tabey Sr, who takes her to a private estate near San Pedro
San Pedro, Los Angeles, California
San Pedro is a port district of the city of Los Angeles, California, United States. It was annexed in 1909 and is a major seaport of the area...
, whare she meets Pamela, Charles Tabey Sr's personal assistant. Back in San Francisco Chuck and Joanne hear a messenger, with a note saying that Charlie has taken Omaha for her own protection, Chuck is now angry at his father's meddling, but Joanne agrees with Charlie's good intentions. Chuck refuses to believe in his father's good intentions, Joanne loses patience with him, Chuck apologizes to her and the two wind up in bed. At the private estate of Charles Tabey Sr all three have dinner. Later Pamela shows Omaha a special workout studio, so she can stay in shape for the re-opening of the Underground. Horrified she runs back to her room and cries herself to sleep. Later she is awakened by a storm, she undresses for bed fantasizing about Chuck and masturbating. She hears a noise and finds Charles in the room. Terrified, she refuses to listen as he grabs her and drags her showing her the real reason for the abduction "Shelley is alive".
Kurt Huddle tells Jerry (an old friend of Shelley) that she is now in a wheelchair
Wheelchair
A wheelchair is a chair with wheels, designed to be a replacement for walking. The device comes in variations where it is propelled by motors or by the seated occupant turning the rear wheels by hand. Often there are handles behind the seat for someone else to do the pushing...
and how he came to work for Charles Tabey, Sr. Back in San Francisco JoAnne and Chuck go shopping and meet Rob Shaw, a gay photographer for pictures for his portfolio. Later she runs an ad in the classifieds. Back at Charles Tabey Sr's private estate Omaha meets Jerry for a 2nd time and all five sit down for lunchtime.
Publication history
The character debuted in The Adventures of Omaha, which was published in Vootie in 1978. The first chapter of "Omaha" the Cat Dancer was published by Kitchen Sink PressKitchen Sink Press
Kitchen Sink Press was a comic book publishing company founded by Denis Kitchen in 1970. Kitchen owned and operated Kitchen Sink Press until 1999. Kitchen Sink Press was a pioneering publisher of underground comics, and was also responsible for numerous republications of classic comic strips in...
in Bizarre Sex #9 in 1981. A five page untitled story appeared in Bizarre Sex #10 in 1982, as a followup to the first chapter. In 1983, a one-page parody strip starring Omaha, titled "Hotsizz Twonkies", was published in E-Man #5 by First Comics. Another five page untitled story, identified as "Shelly and Omaha" in The Collected Omaha Volume 1, appeared in Dope Comix #5; it was reprinted in Bizarre Sex Series #5. In 1991, the Omaha story "A Strip in Time" appeared in Munden's Bar Annual #2, published by First Comics.
In 1984, SteelDragon Press published the first issue of "Omaha" the Cat Dancer, which featured the second chapter of the story. The series lasted 19 issues before being cancelled in 1993. Fantagraphics Books
Fantagraphics Books
Fantagraphics Books is an American publisher of alternative comics, classic comic strip anthologies, magazines, graphic novels, and the adult-oriented Eros Comix imprint...
later relaunched the series, but it only lasted four issues, the last published in 1995. In 1994, Rob, a supporting character from the series, appeared in Gay Comics #22. The final chapters of the story were serialized in Sizzle, beginning in 2006.
From 1987 until 1998, Kitchen Sink, and later Fantagraphics, published six volumes of the Omaha strips under the title The Collected "Omaha" the Cat Dancer. From 2005 to 2008, NBM Publishing
NBM Publishing
NBM Publishing is an American publisher of graphic novels. The company specializes in non-superhero comic genres and has translated and published over 150 graphic novels from Europe and Canada, as well as several works by Americans...
imprint Amerotica published seven volumes of strips under the title The Complete Omaha the Cat Dancer.
Cultural impact
"Omaha" the Cat Dancer was the first of several comic books in the early 1980s which integrated sex into their storylines, rather than utilizing sexual explicitness for shock value. In 1988, Friendly Frank's, a comic book store in suburban Chicago, was fined $750 for selling "obscene" material, including "Omaha" the Cat Dancer; as a result of the obscenity controversy, the Comic Book Legal Defense FundComic Book Legal Defense Fund
The Comic Book Legal Defense Fund is a United States non-profit organization created in 1986 to protect the First Amendment rights of comics creators, publishers, and retailers covering legal expenses....
was formed. In 1990, issues of "Omaha" the Cat Dancer were seized by New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
authorities; the country's Obscene Publications Tribunal declared that the series was not indecent. In the same year, police in Toronto seized issues of the comic, claiming that it depicted bestiality
Zoophilia
Zoophilia, from the Greek ζῷον and φιλία is the practice of sex between humans and non-human animals , or a preference or fixation on such practice...
.
In Graphic Novels: A Bibliographic Guide to Book-Length Comics, D. Aviva Rothschild praised the series, writing "the plot is always strong, and the characters are always three-dimensional and appealing." Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
writer Alex Heard panned the comic, writing that "The story moves very slowly [...] one can readily agree with the disgruntled fan who wrote, 'My God! Where did you dredge up those horrid characters?'"
In 1992, Kitchen Sink published two volumes of Images of "Omaha" as a benefit to pay for the treatment of Waller's bowel cancer. The volumes featured contributions by major comic book artists, such as Dave Sim
Dave Sim
David Victor Sim is an award-winning Canadian comic book writer and artist.A pioneer of self-published comics and creators' rights, Sim is best known as the creator of Cerebus the Aardvark, a comic book published from 1977 to 2004, which chronicles its main character in a 6,000-page self-contained...
, Alan Moore
Alan Moore
Alan Oswald Moore is an English writer primarily known for his work in comic books, a medium where he has produced a number of critically acclaimed and popular series, including Watchmen, V for Vendetta, and From Hell...
and Frank Miller
Frank Miller (comics)
Frank Miller is an American comic book artist, writer and film director best known for his dark, film noir-style comic book stories and graphic novels Ronin, Daredevil: Born Again, Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, Sin City and 300...
. Trina Robbins
Trina Robbins
Trina Robbins is an American comics artist and writer. She was an early and influential participant in the underground comix movement, and one of the few female artists in underground comix when she started. Both as a cartoonist and historian, Robbins has long been involved in creating outlets for...
, James Vance
James Vance (comics)
James Vance is an American comic book writer, author and playwright, best known for his work from Kitchen Sink Press and in particular the lauded Kings in Disguise.-Biography:James Vance was born on April 2, 1953...
and Neil Gaiman
Neil Gaiman
Neil Richard Gaiman born 10 November 1960)is an English author of short fiction, novels, comic books, graphic novels, audio theatre and films. His notable works include the comic book series The Sandman and novels Stardust, American Gods, Coraline, and The Graveyard Book...
have provided introductions to collected editions of the series. "Omaha" the Cat Dancer was nominated for Eisner Award
Eisner Award
The Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards, commonly shortened to the Eisner Awards, and sometimes referred to as the Oscar Awards of the Comics Industry, are prizes given for creative achievement in American comic books. The Eisner Awards were first conferred in 1988, created in response to the...
s for Best Continuing Series, Best Black-and-White Series, and Best Writer/Artist in 1989; in 1991, the series received Eisner Awards for Best Black and White Series and Best Writer.