Mopsy was a Newspaper Comic strip created in 1937 by Gladys Parker, who was one of the few female cartoonists of the era. The strip had a long run over three decades before ending in 1966 with Parker's death. Parker modeled the character of Mopsy after herself. In 1946, Parker recalled:
"I got the idea for Mopsy when the cartoonist Rube Goldberg said my hair looked like a mop. That was several years ago, and she has been my main interest ever since."
Mopsy is an independent and witty, if ditzy, woman with an extremely active life with countless hobbies including fishing, archery, golf, horseback riding, skiing, gardening and hunting. In between all this she somehow also managed to fit numerous jobs and boyfriends. She was also always fashionably dressed, as Gladys Parker (who based Mopsy on herself) was a successful fashion designer.
What set Mopsy apart from other Slice of Life comic strips was how surreal it could get. Mopsy had a unique view of the universe that on a good day might be merely airheaded but more often was full blown Cloud Cuckoolander. Upon going on a picnic and finding it infested by ants she'd steal an anteater from the zoo and bring it along on a dog leash on her next picnic. Trying to hang a painting of a landscape and accidently knocking a hole in the drywall she'd take the painting out of the frame and hang the empty frame over the 'window' she'd created. Occasionally her activities would cross over into being a Reality Warper.
The strip ran on Negative Continuity with Mopsy herself as the only real permanent character.
Tropes found in Mopsy:
- Anti-Hero: Mopsy was not a career criminal but she rarely let petty things like the law get in her way
- Brainless Beauty: Mopsy is attractive, boy crazy and fashionable but while she can be witty she has a tenuous grasp of reality or indeed much of anything.
- Ink-Suit Actor: Very much modelled after her creator Gladys Parker.
- Vague Age: Beyond the general range of 'young woman' Mopsy's apparent age could range widely. In some strips she is college age or even a teen but most have her as a working adult.
