Al Capp
American · 20th century
American cartoonist who created the syndicated comic strip Li'l Abner, which ran in newspapers from the 1930s through 1977.
Connection to Taylor Swift
Creator of Daisy Mae, the character Uncle Jerry identifies as the source of the 'Daisy May' allusion in You're On Your Own, Kid, representing naive innocence and exploited body image.
Notable Works
- Li'l Abner
Appears in the Archive
Context within the Archive
Li'l Abner
“I see the great escape, so long, Daisy May”
Uncle Jerry identifies 'Daisy May' as an allusion to Daisy Mae from Al Capp's Li'l Abner comic strip, which ran in syndicated newspapers from the 1930s through 1977. He brings in a 1948 comic book to show the character, describing Daisy Mae as a symbol of naive innocence: a voluptuous, half-dressed country girl. He notes the spelling discrepancy (the comic uses 'Mae' with an E, while the lyric video spells it 'May' with a Y), and suggests Taylor may be saying goodbye to that naive, exploited-body-image version of herself. Angela & Uncle Jerry connect this to the song's critique of body image standards imposed on young women.