A daily Newspaper Strip about Lady and the Tramp’s son Scamp originally written by Ward Greene (the man who wrote the short story that the movie is based on) and illustrated by Dick Moores (who’s also worked on Gasoline Alley) that started in October of 1955 (only four months after the release of the movie it’s spun off of) and ran until 1988. In its heyday, Scamp had his own comic book series, and remained a common feature in Walt Disney Comics and Stories up until and including the last issue published by Gemstone before Boom! took over. Which isn’t bad for a comic starring a character that only appeared in the final scene of a movie.
A continuation of the film, the comic follows the lives of Lady and the Tramp as they deal with their children, particularly their son Scamp, who always seems to be getting into some kind of adventure.
Characters include:• Lady: Slightly over-protective mother of four, she always frets over her children and tries to get her husband to be more involved in their lives.
• Tramp: Former stray dog turned father of four, Tramp tends to have a more hands-off approach about raising his children, which he and Lady get into arguments about. His abilities as a father sometimes come into question, but he’ll quickly jump in to help his children if they get into too much trouble.
• Scamp: The star of the series, Scamp is rarely satisfied with simply staying in his yard, and is always out exploring, and learning new things about the world, even if he comes off as a little stupid in the process?.
• Fluffy: Scamp’s sister, named after Fluffy Ruffles, a girl Tramp… heard of. Like her mother, she’s a lady at heart, and thus is rarely interested in anything Scamp does.
• Ruffy: Scamp’s other sister, also named after Fluffy Ruffles. She’s a real tomboy, and is pretty much the exact opposite of her twin sister.
• Scooter: Scamp’s shy younger little brother, and the last of the puppies to be named. Due to his shy nature, his family referred to him as “the Baby”. He is thankful to have an actual name.
The comic started out with a plot-driven format (the longest running about three months), but shifted to a more gag-driven format less than a year into its run, shifting its focus almost entirely on Scamp, which caused the characterizations of Scamp’s family to become a bit less defined. Notably, Ruffy becomes less rough, while Scooter becomes less shy. The strip then begins to introduce a cast of friends for Scamp to interact with, from other dogs like Tiny and Chico, to other animals like Chatty the Squirrel and Cheeps the bird.
A Sunday Strip version was also started, but it began as a completely separate entity from the daily version, having its own contained story arc before also becoming gag driven.
The movie’s sequel, Lady and the Tramp II: Scamp’s Adventure, isn’t very related to the comic strip beyond using Scamp’s name and the basic plot of the first arc of Scamp running away from home.
52 strips Dailies 1956
234 strips Dailies 1957
279 strips Dailies 1958
153 strips Dailies 1959
Newspaper Comic Strips 