Hot Stuff, the Little Devil #3

History

Warren Kremer, Harvey's long-serving art editor and the creative force behind Richie Rich and the redesign of Casper the Friendly Ghost, created Hot Stuff from the ground up — unusual for Harvey, which normally road-tested new characters as backup features before granting them their own title. Kremer developed the character in consultation with editor Sid Jacobson, whose push for an animation-influenced visual approach had already transformed Harvey's house style. Hot Stuff's premise — a temperamental toddler devil who subverts demonic tradition by occasionally performing good deeds — drew some early public controversy over a 'devil' being marketed to children, but the character's irascible warmth defused criticism quickly and the book kept its bimonthly schedule from the outset.

Trivia · 8 facts

• Published February 1958 by Harvey Comics, the third issue in the Hot Stuff, the Little Devil series, which launched in October 1957.
• Created by Warren Kremer (1921–2003), Harvey's art editor for 35 years, who also created Richie Rich and Stumbo the Giant and redefined the visual design of Casper the Friendly Ghost.
• Hot Stuff was one of the rare Harvey characters to debut directly in his own title rather than appearing first as a backup feature or getting a trial run in the anthology Harvey Hits.
• Issue #3 features an early appearance of Stumbo the Giant as a backup strip; Stumbo — a well-meaning giant who lives beside Tinytown — debuted in Hot Stuff #2 (December 1957) and went on to headline his own title (Stumbo Tinytown) from 1963 to 1966.
• Stumbo was co-created by Warren Kremer and writer Larz Bourne, making the Hot Stuff title the launch pad for two significant Harvey characters within its first three issues.
• The series ran for 177 issues from October 1957 to January 1991, and Hot Stuff's Hot Stuff, the Little Devil title spawned at least seven spinoff titles including Hot Stuff Sizzlers (1960), Devil Kids Starring Hot Stuff (1962), and Hot Stuff Creepy Caves (1974).
• Stories from the earliest issues of the run, including this period, were later collected in Harvey Comics Classics Vol. 3: Hot Stuff (Dark Horse Books, 2008), edited by Leslie Cabarga with an introduction by animation historian Jerry Beck, reproduced from original printer's proofs and Harvey archival art.
• Hot Stuff's visual design — a vermillion red child devil in asbestos diapers carrying a sentient pitchfork called his 'trusty trident' — crossed into broader pop culture, with the image adopted as a mascot by schools, sports teams, and restaurants across the United States.