Jiggs and Maggie are the two main characters in the American comic strip “Bringing Up Father”, created by cartoonist George McManus. The strip ran for 87 years, from January 1913, to May 2000. The humor in the strip centers around working class Irish immigrant Jiggs, a former hod-carrier, who wins a million dollars in the lottery. Despite his new found wealth, Jiggs simply wants to continue his former habits and lifestyle, to the frustration of his social-climbing wife, Maggie. The title refers to Maggie’s efforts to elevate Jiggs to upperclass standards.
The popular comic strip presented multiple perceptions of Irish Catholic immigrants during the early 20th century, and Jiggs gave a voice to the issues that were faced by this group. Over time, the emphasis on his ethnicity faded, and Jiggs was recognized as the rich guy that liked to hang out with a regular crowd. A surreal aspect of “Bringing Up Father” was a running gag involving subjects of hanging wall paintings to change positions or break the confines of the picture frames throughout the strip, unnoticed by the characters. Jiggs and Maggie have been immortalized in short films, animations, feature films, Broadway productions, comic books and radio, and you can see them as featured above in History Antiques and Interiors.
French ‘Dough Box”, a lesson on early baking methods
Historically, baking was an important task in households across Europe and America. A household of 10 in the 1800’s used “3 pecks” of flour on average, or 7 gallons. The dough was placed in boxes that could be moved close to the fire, helping the dough to rise for baking into nice light loaves.
This functional French ‘Dough Box’ is a new addition at History Antiques. It has beautiful detailed carvings of musical instruments on the box and stand, giving it a more decorative look than less elaborate American pieces.
Antiques with a story at History Antiques!
