Dustcap Doormat

The hypocritical next door neighbour gets clobbered by John Doormat’s battle-axe wife in “Dustcap Doormat” (1958). And only one man could have possibly come up with the kind of drawings you see below—Jim Tyer.

Mrs. Doormat starts off with a roundhouse right. Her wind-milling arm multiplies.



Tyer does something really odd. There’s no impact drawing. Actually, the neighbour’s head drops to the floor before Mrs. Doormat’s arm gets near him. But the windmill motion makes it look like she hit him, especially when Tyer adds stars in the next drawing—and her arm still isn’t near him. These are consecutive drawings. Some are on twos, others are on threes.



Tyer’s work has been discussed in a number of venues on the internet, so I won’t go into it here. A short biographical note: Jim Tyer was born on February 7, 1904 in Bridgeport, Connecticut, the seventh child of John F. and Mary Tyer; three of his brothers served in World War One. His father was a wire worker who died before Tyer turned six. The 1940 Census has him working in Detroit (Jam Handy studio) and his 1935 residence was listed as “Hollywood.” Tyer died March 23, 1976 in Fairfield, Connecticut.

P.S.: Thanks to Charles Brubaker for posting this Cinemascope version of the cartoon on-line from his collection.