Dennis Ketcham
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Dennis Ketcham was born Dennis Lloyd Ketcham in 1941 to famous cartoonist Hank Ketcham and his wife Alice in Carmel, California.
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[edit] Inspiration for Dennis the Menace
He is the inspiration for the comic strip Dennis the Menace, created by his father Hank Ketcham. [1] When Dennis was four years old, when he once refused to take a nap and somehow messed up his whole room. Hank tried many possible kid names for the character he was drawing in his desktop in his home at Carmel, and translated them into some his rough pencil sketches, but they seemed unsuitable for a character of such immense depiction. Later his studio door flew open and his then-wife Alice, in utter exasperation, exclaimed, "Your son is a menace!" Thus the "Dennis the Menace" name was used. The "menace" epithet and the image of the tornado stuck. The character of Henry Mitchell bore a striking resemblance to Ketcham himself, who also became a fixture in the strip. [2] The comic strip that was inspired by Dennis, was carried by 16 newspapers within five months. By May 1953, 193 newspapers in the United States and 52 abroad were carrying the strip to 30 million readers. [3]. It is now written and drawn by Ketcham's former assistants, Marcus Hamilton and Ron Ferdinand, and distributed to more than at least 10,000 newspapers in 48 countries and 19 languages by King Features Syndicate [3]
[edit] Childhood
Unlike his cartoon alter ego, Dennis did not lead a storybook life. He had learning disabilities as a boy. An alcoholic mother and a father with a busy work schedule meant there was little time left for him.[2]
In 1959, he was sent to a boarding school after his mother filed for divorce. Soon after, his mother died from an accidental drug overdose at age 41. His father remarried to Jo Anne Stevens and moved the family to Geneva, Switzerland.[3] Dennis had a difficult time in Swiss boarding school. Thus, his father sent him to a boarding school in the United States while Hank and his new wife remained in Europe.[2]
[edit] Fights in Vietnam
After graduating, Dennis joined the Marine Corps and served in Vietnam. Upon his return, he was treated for post-traumatic stress disorder and drifted from one low-paying job to another.
[edit] Family
Meanwhile, Hank Ketcham, now a multi-millionaire, divorced and married the former Rolande Praepost with whom he had two children, Scott and Dania [3]. Hank, who died in 2001, told People magazine in 1993, "I hear from Dennis about once a year, mostly when he needs money." [2] Dennis also married, divorced, remarried and is estranged from his daughter.
