Slovenly Peter

Struwwelpeter (“Shock-headed Peter”), by the premature surrealist Heinrich Hoffmann, aroused cries of glee in children across the continent. Wilhelm Busch created the slapstick buffoonery of Max and Moritz, the ancestors of the Katzenjammer Kids and indeed of many aspects of the comic strip.

…known for his creation of Struwwelpeter (“Slovenly Peter”), a boy whose wild appearance is matched by his naughty behaviour. Peter appeared in Lustige Geschichten und drollige Bilder mit füntzehn schön kolorten Tafeln für Kinder von 3–6 Jahren (1845; Slovenly Peter; or, Cheerful Stories and Funny Pictures for Good Little Folks).…