See also: Judge Alton B. Parker, New York Court of Appeals (1898-1904), Judge Isaac Parker, United States District Court for the Western District of Arkansas (1875-96), Judge John J. Parker, United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit (1925-58).

Harold LeDoux's Judge Parker (January 10, 1967)

Judge Parker is a soap opera-style comic strip created by Nicholas P. Dallis that first appeared on November 24, 1952. The strip's "look and content" were influenced by the work of Allen Saunders and Ken Ernst on Mary Worth.^[1]

[edit] Characters and story

Alan Parker was a widower with two children, Randy and Ann. Later, Judge Parker married a younger woman named Katherine in the strip. Initially a dashing figure who solved crimes and chased criminals, in the 1960s he became an upstanding and serious judge who didn't stray as much from his courtroom. Instead, the spotlight began to focus on handsome, successful young attorney Sam Driver, and Parker was almost entirely phased out of his own strip.

Most stories revolve around Driver, his wealthy client and now wife Abbey Spencer, and their two adopted children: volatile Neddy (who recently left to study art in Paris) and her precocious but sensible younger sister Sophie. The family lives with their maid Marie at Spencer Farms, where Abbey raises arabian horses. Some of the cast may not be seen for some time because Judge Parker stories tend to be long (an apparent week in the plot may last for months in publication time), with daily interest sustained by tense interaction, wry wit, and personal finesse; but the characters have gradually (and gracefully) aged over the years. Alan's son Randy, now grown, is Driver's law partner, and a storyline in late 2006 focused on Randy's campaign for the judicial seat from which his father is retiring, ensuring that the "Judge Parker" name will continue. The February 15, 2009 strip stated that Randy would be "the new Judge Parker."^[2]

[edit] Artists

Harold LeDoux's Judge Parker (1965), a panel showing the Judge and his daughter Ann.

Dr. Dallis, a psychiatrist who also created the comic strips Rex Morgan, M.D. and Apartment 3-G, used the pen name "Paul Nichols" writing the strip. Shortly before his death, he retired, turning over the writing chores to his assistant Woody Wilson in 1990. The strip's first artist was Dan Heilman, who left in 1965 and was replaced by Harold LeDoux. LeDoux announced he was retiring, with his last strip running on May 28, 2006. A new artist, comic book artist Eduardo Barreto, replaced him; his first strip appeared the following day. Barreto suffered a near-fatal injury in a car accident in Uruguay shortly afterwards and couldn't illustrate the strips for December 2006; as a result, Rex Morgan artist Graham Nolan did the strip for a week, and John Heebink took over the following week. Barreto resumed drawing the strip in January 2007.

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Judge Parker at Seattle Post-Intelligencer
• Toonopedia