Katy Keene Annual #2
☆ Be the first to review + Add to your collection — Join freeKaty Keene Annual #2 (on sale July 14, 1955) represents the mid-point of one of Golden Age comics' most distinctive participatory experiments: a title where readers across North America submitted original fashion designs that creator Bill Woggon drew, credited by name and postal address, into finished stories. By the time of this second annual, the format had proven itself successful enough to generate its own dedicated oversized yearly showcase — a format Archie would sustain for six annual installments between 1954 and 1959. The issue also documents the full ensemble of Woggon's supporting cast — rival Gloria Grandbilt, comedic foil Bertha Bumples, love interests K.O. Kelly and Randy Van Ronson, and mischievous kid sister Sis — all assembled within a single bumper package at a moment when Katy Keene was expanding rapidly across multiple simultaneous Archie titles and special formats.
In "Model Bride," Gloria takes K.O. to the Van Ronson ranch, where Colossal Studios is filming a Western scene—complete with Curly slapping and Randy kissing Katy—hoping K.O. will react. Written and drawn by Bill Woggon, this 1955 annual captures the charm and drama of early Archie Comics with its signature blend of humor and backstage antics, all rendered in Woggon’s distinctive style. The cover, also by Woggon, perfectly encapsulates the playful tension of the moment.
In "null," Gloria takes K.O. to the Van Ronson ranch, where Colossal Studios is filming a Western scene—complete with Curly slapping and Randy kissing Katy—hoping to provoke a reaction from K.O. The story unfolds in the playful, fashion-forward world of 1955’s Katy Keene, where backstage drama meets Hollywood whimsy.
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We Buy Collections ▸History
Published under Archie's Radio Comics Inc. imprint, Annual #2 was edited by John L. Goldwater with Harry Shorten serving as managing editor — the same editorial team that oversaw the entire Katy Keene line during its peak years. Bill Woggon, who created the character in 1945 inspired by wartime pin-up culture and built it into a reader-participation phenomenon, handled all cover and interior art and story duties himself, consistent with his practice throughout the run. The issue opens with a note from Woggon personally acknowledging the fan response to the debut annual, underscoring how central the readers' relationship with the book was to its editorial identity.
Trivia · 8 facts
- On-sale date per GCD copyright records: July 14, 1955; published under the Radio Comics Inc. imprint with John L. Goldwater as editor and Harry Shorten as managing editor.
- All cover and interior art and stories by Bill Woggon, the character's creator, consistent with his sole-creator practice across the Katy Keene line.
- The issue is part of a six-installment annual series running from 1954 through 1959, one of several concurrent Katy Keene formats that also included Katy Keene Pin Up Parade, Katy Keene Fashion Book Magazine, and various one-shot specials.
- Bill Woggon included a personal message on the inside front cover thanking readers for their enthusiastic response to Annual #1 — a direct acknowledgment of the participatory fan culture that defined the series.
- Reader-submitted fashion designs are credited throughout by contributor name and home address, continuing the title's signature interactive format; contributors in this issue came from locations spanning the United States and Canada.
- GCD records note the first appearance of western film star character Curly Cassidy in one of the issue's stories, in which Katy meets him on the set of Colossal Studios.
- Gloria Grandbilt actively schemes against Katy in at least one story — having her servant sabotage Katy's dress — while K.O. Kelly and Randy Van Ronson team up in another to redirect Katy's attentions away from a rival actor, illustrating the ongoing love-triangle comedy central to the series.
- A Canadian price variant of this issue exists, with a 35-cent cover price versus the standard 25-cent US edition.
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