Cartoonist, created the comic strip Boofhead, which ran in the Sydney Daily Mirror (published by Ezra Norton) from 12th May 1941 until 25th July 1970. Boofhead was also published in other Norton owned print media; the Sunday Mirror, Truth and Sportsman.
When first published the vast majority of cartoon strips in the Mirror were sourced in Australia. After the last Boofhead strip was published it was replaced by the American Tumbleweeds and the only Australian strip left in the paper was Bluey and Curley.
Clark’s graphic style was static and it is often written that he asked management for permission to take drawing lessons to attain more fluidity. These requests were refused as Boofhead was popular as he was (story quoted in Sun Herald column by Mike Gibson 11th November 1979).
And Boofhead was popular, at least 30 Best of Boofhead annuals (c.1957-1962) and Boofhead comic books (1945-c.1962) were published by Invincible Press, according to Mick Stone. An original Boofhead strip about cutting off signature on cheque for $100 to put in autograph book is in SLQ. ML has (at least) three originals of 1960, 1964 (both PXD 764) and 1968: “There’s far too many bottlenecks in this factory”, published Sydney Daily Mirror 20 February 1968 (presented ML Feb 1999, SV/78).
Clark’s Boofhead is the reason why Australians use the term Boofhead to describe someone who is foolish or dim, and in a more recent extension of meaning, ill-mannered, uncouth and boorish.
Boofhead appears in the works of Australian artist Martin Sharp; in his Eternity Haymarket poster, in his reworking of Hokusai’s “Wave”, in his reworking of Rodin’s “The Thinker” and in a series of Boofhead portraits. Australian artist Peter Kingston has produced several small Boofhead sculptures. Clive Evatt had a 4.5 metre statue of Boofhead erected at his property in Leura, NSW; it is still there.
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- Writers:
- Kerr, Joan
- Date written:
- 1996
- Last updated:
- 2012
