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Kathleen O'Brien

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Not to be confused withKate O'Brien,Katie O'Brien,Katharine O'Brien,Katherine O'Brien,orCathy O'Brien.
For the New Zealand film director, seeKathleen O'Brien (film director).For the Irish suffragist and Irish language advocate, seeKathleen Cruise O'Brien.

Kathleen O'Brien
Born(1914-10-18)18 October 1914
Mackay, Queensland,Australia
Died8 May 1991(1991-05-08)(aged 76)
Hazelbrook, New South Wales,Australia
Pen nameKate O'Brien, Kath O'Brien
OccupationComic book/strip artist, commercial artist, book illustrator,
Period1943–1984

Kathleen O'Brien(1914–1991), was an Australian comic book artist, book illustrator and fashion artist. O'Brien is most notable for her 1943comic strip,Wanda the War Girl,the first Australiancomic stripto present an account of life during and afterWorld War IIfrom a female perspective.[1]

Biography

Kathleen Mary O'Brien was born inMackay, Queensland[1](in her grandfather's hotel[2]) on 18 October 1914, the daughter of Patrick and Kathleen Mary O'Brien.[3]

As a young girl, she travelled all over Australia with her parents, whilst her fatherprospected for gold,broke horsesand worked in theoutback.[2]Her mother's interest in art inspired her to become an artist. O'Brien boarded at aBrisbaneconvent[3]and studied art at theBrisbane Central Technical College,[1][4]before moving to Sydney in 1937, where she studied for three years with noted Australian artist J.S. (John Samuel) Watkins (1866–1942).[1][5]

In 1942, the editor ofThe Sunday Telegraph,Cyril Pearl, was looking for a newstripto replaceMaryandElizabeth Durack'sNungulla and Jungalla.[3][4]Journalist, Bob Slessor, suggested to O'Brien that she think about coming up with something.[3][4]Her idea was a girl in the armed services, Pearl liked the samples and asked her to prepare a strip for the paper.[4]

Wanda is not a portrait of any real person, but she represents the spirit of Australian girls I know, who have done such wonderful work in uniform. I first thought of Wanda when I was watching a march of service girls. I spent days and nights sketching girls before I was satisfied I had found a true type of real Australian girl.

— Kathleen O'Brien (1943)[2]

Wanda was a tough independent[6]young, long-legged curveous redhead,[1]whose series of adventures had her encountering Japanese soldiers and German spies.[7]The early stories were written by journalist, Clifford William Brain,[8]but O'Brien took over the writing of the strip after the war.

ProfessorJane Chapman,in her 2011 lecture atMacquarie University,considers that Wanda was inspired byTarpé Mills' comic strip,Black Fury[9](a syndicated American strip, which appeared inThe Sunday Telegraph) andJaneby Norman Pett (which appeared in the UKDaily Mirror[10]). According to John Ryan in his Australian Comic anthology,Panel by Panel,"O'Brien developed a unique style which resembled some of the work ofWilliam Dobell."[4]

Wanda the War Girlfirst appeared inThe Sunday Telegraphon 18 July 1943.[2]Wanda was reputed to be more popular with school children thanSuperman.[11]Wanda also had a similar appeal with servicemen, with her image often painted on the sides of tanks and planes.

After the end of theSecond World Warthe strip was renamedWandaand took on the mantle of an adventure/detective strip before it was abruptly terminated mid-story on 25 November 1991.[12]O'Brien basing her storylines on books byAshton Wolfe,the head of the FrenchSûreté,combining methods he detailed with current newspaper stories, thus Wanda was involved in struggles withblack-marketeers,foreign spies and smugglers.

The strip was subsequently collected into several comic books.Wanda the War Girlwas published as a one-shot byConsolidated Press,whilstThe Wanda Comicwas the first and the fifth in Consolidated Press' Supercomic Series.[13][14][15]

At the same time, O'Brien worked as a commercial artist and book illustrator,[3]illustrating twelve books, includingHans Christian Andersen'sThe Little Mermaid(1943), Australia's first unabridged version ofLewis Carroll'sAlice's Adventures in WonderlandandThrough the Looking Glass(1943), Ella Greenway'sPeter Cat(1950)[16]and Nourma Handford'sCarloola Backstage: A Career Novel for Girls' (1956).[17]

In 1947, she married Robert Blanche.[3]O'Brien briefly taught art at Springwood Ladies College and had a notable career as a fashion artist.[3]O'Brien's illustrations appearing in advertisements forMyer,David Jones,Georges and Farmers department stores.[3]

Kathleen O'Brien (Blanche) died in herHazelbrookhome on 8 May 1991.[3]

References

  1. ^abcdeShiell, Annette (1998).Bonzer: Australian Comics 1900s–1990s.Redhill, South Australia:Eluga Media. p. 77.ISBN1-876308-12-5.
  2. ^abcd"Introducing" Wanda the War Girl "".The Sunday Times.Perth, WA:News Limited.11 July 1943. p. 3.Retrieved29 May2012.
  3. ^abcdefghiKerr, Joan; Kerr, James Semple (19 October 2011)."Kate O'Brien".Design and Art Australia Online.Retrieved28 May2012.
  4. ^abcdeRyan, John (1979).Panel by Panel: An Illustrated History of Australian Comics.Cassell Australia. p. 53.ISBN0-7269-7376-9.
  5. ^Clifford-Smith, Silas (2009)."John Samuel Watkins".Design and Art Australia Online.Retrieved29 May2012.
  6. ^"Keeping in Touch".War & Peace – Rationing & Rebuilding.John CurtinPrime Ministerial Library.Retrieved30 May2012.
  7. ^Robbins, Trina; Yronwode, Catherine (1985).Women and the comics.Eclipse Books. p. 92.ISBN0-913035-02-5.
  8. ^Minell, Merilyn."A Nation's Imagination: Australia's Copyright Records, 1854–1968"(PDF).National Library of Australia.Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 11 April 2015.Retrieved30 May2012.
  9. ^Markstein, Don."Miss Fury".Toonopedia. Archived fromthe originalon 25 May 2024.Retrieved30 May2012.
  10. ^Markstein, Don."Jane".Toonopedia.Retrieved30 May2012.
  11. ^Ciddor, Anna (1998).Australia in the Twentieth Century.South Yarra: MacMillan Education. p. 23.ISBN0-7329-4198-9.
  12. ^Kerr, Joan (1995).Heritage: the National Women's Art Book: 500 works by 500 Australian Women Artists from Colonial Times to 1955.G+B Arts International. p. 256.ISBN9766410453.
  13. ^O'Brien, Kath (1945).Wanda.Consolidated Press.Retrieved29 May2012.
  14. ^O'Brien, Kath (April 1948),The Wanda Comic,Consolidated Press,retrieved29 May2012
  15. ^"Wanda Comic".Sunday Times.Perth, WA. 11 January 1948. p. 14.Retrieved29 May2012.
  16. ^Greenway, Ella; O'Brien, Kath (1950).Peter Cat.Colorgravure Publications.Retrieved30 May2012.
  17. ^Handford, Nourma; O'Brien, Kate (1956).Carcoola Backstage: a Career Novel for Girls.Dymock's.
  • Chapman, Jane (November 2011). "Representation of female war-time bravery in Australia's Wanda the War Girl".The Australian Journal of Popular Culture.1(2).ISSN2045-5852.
  • Unger, Ingrid; Shiell, Annette (1994). Annette Shiell; Ingrid Unger (eds.).ACE biographical portraits: the artists behind the comic book characters: the Australian comic book exhibition, Australian comics 1930s–1990s.National Centre for Australian Studies,Monash University.
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