In a Land Where None are Known to Neatly Knot the Gnu

I posted this pic over on The Pictorial Arts blog, but seeing as this blog is aiming to post all things Kelly, I hafta duplicate it over here for the archives.

— Dedicated to 'Hun', who eats, sleeps, and breathes Kelly.

Long live Kelly!

Walt Kelly — Songs of the Pogo — endpapers

Special Art

I jes' loves and A-dores Kelly's special art for the books and such—this'n from Songs of the Pogo.

Only the Lone

Sometimes I get confuddled by Kelly's verse and feel like I'm pretty dense.

But then I read some of Kelly's 'explanations', and feel better that he confirms that it's all a bunch of stuff and nonsense. Below, from Songs of the Pogo.

Dedicated to all you Porky fans:

The entwined tree is gorgeous as are most all of Kelly's trees.

Boston Charlie

Back to Boston Charlie. There are some anecdotal theories regarding the origin and meaning of Kelly's lyrics to Deck Us All with Boston Charlie. The ones involving coded messages to prisons or such are pretty outrageous, and may or may not have credence. I do know that Kelly loved to create nonsense, and nonsense is what this song is all about.

Let's take a look at the 'official' version of Boston Charlie, as seen in Songs of the Pogo. The text piece is Kelly's first take on the song's 'origins'. He had other takes, as we will see in the next few posts.