Rupert The Bear

Less well-known on American shores than he is at home in England, this hairy denizen of Nutwood Forest has been delighting children since 1920, when he debuted in the Daily Express newspaper. The first annual appeared the following year; a second appeared under the title of The Monster Rupert Annual in 1931. This series ran every year until 1950, competing for much of that time with The Daily Express Rupert Annual, which debuted in 1936.

Beautifully drawn and gently narrated, these latter editions are the most fervently collected annuals today.