The cultural impact of comic strips such as Peanuts and Garfield may be easy to recognize, while others left marks on pop culture that are more subtle, though no less worthy of recognition. This is best illustrated by the connection between an all-but-forgotten 1930s comic strip, UFO lore, and one of the most successful rock bands in the world, the Foo Fighters.

Few modern readers might know the name Smokey Stover, but many will be familiar with its influence. First published in 1935, Smokey Stover popularized the nonsense word “foo.” A decade later, pilots during World War II appropriated the term to describe unidentified aerial phenomena they encountered over the skies of Europe, giving rise to the term “foo fighters.”

Decades later, multitalented artist Dave Grohl named his post-Nirvana rock band the Foo Fighters. This etymological lineage is a perfect example of the impact the comic book medium has had since its inception.

The Foo Fighters Took Their Name From An Obscure Comic Strip (By Way Of UFOs)

Smokey Stover: Published From 1935 Until 1972

Smokey Stover may be obscure now, but writer and artist Bill Holman’s syndicated newspaper cartoon was incredibly popular during its era; the strip ran for nearly forty years, until the early 1970s. In many ways, Holman’s work embodies why the medium is called “comic,” as Smokey Stover followed the exploits of its hapless – and often haphazard – firefighter protagonist with unrepentant silliness. This tone and tenor extended to the writer’s use of language. The strip was replete with made-up words, including what would ultimately be Holman’s longest-lasting contribution to culture: “foo.”

Far from meaningless, as it might seem at first, in Smokey Stover “foo” had whatever meaning it needed in any given panel. As with his other linguistic peculiarities, Holman’s use of “foo” was ever-protean, constantly adapting – in the process, giving it an elusive quality. In other words, the precise meaning of “foo” is impossible to identify. As a result, when World War II pilots were confronted with unexplainable phenomena, they adopted an appropriate bit of terminology from pop culture to describe the phantom fighters they kept having aerial encounters with.

“Foo fighters” subsequently went on to have a definite meaning, as much of a mystery as their true nature remains to this day. The story of the WWII “foo fighters” became one of the foundational building blocks of UFOlogy, which became a concrete field in the 1950s. In turn, over the next several decades, the idea of UFOs and alien encounters rapidly made its way from real life back into film, television, and comics, establishing it as a potent undercurrent in contemporary culture – one that Dave Grohl astutely capitalized on by naming his band Foo Fighters.

The Search For Extraterrestrial Life’s Greatest Question Was Prompted By A Comic

The Fermi Paradox: “Where Is Everybody?”

As it turns out, cartoons had another notable influence on UFOlogy, just several years after the emergence of the term “foo fighters.” Readers familiar with the search for extraterrestrial life will have heard of the Fermi Paradox: the idea that statistically, the size and density of the universe suggest that it should be full of life, and yet from the perspective of Earth’s attempts to discover life outside the solar system so far, space seems to be shockingly empty. As far back as 1950, researchers were uneasy with this apparent paradox, which was first clearly formulated by scientist Enrico Fermi.

“Where is everybody?” Fermi is said to have famously asked a group of colleagues, raising the paradox that would come to bear his name. A less well-known detail of this story is that the question was first prompted by a cartoon in The New Yorker Magazine, by artist Alan Dunn. In 1950, the idea of the “flying saucer” was in the process of being firmly established in the popular consciousness. Dunn’s cartoon depicted a saucer landing on a planet, from which exited a line of aliens carrying trash cans, presumably pilfered from Earth.

Dunn’s otherwise innocuous cartoon led to Fermi’s speculation about the absence of evident life in the universe. Once again, this is evidence of the cartoon medium’s early and regular profound effect on wider culture. Though comics – and really, all media – were considered ephemera, to be enjoyed and discarded, by people for much of the 20th century, it is only in retrospect that we can recognize the lasting contributions of artists like Bill Holman and Alan Dunn to the modern world.

Early 20th Century Comics’ Influence Permeates Contemporary Culture

Art, Science, Politics, & Beyond

From the earliest days of the publishing industry, illustration has played a crucial role. In the 20th century, the medium proved to be a pivotal driver of ideas in pop culture through two parallel tracks: syndicated newspaper cartoons, and comic books. The legacy of science fiction and fantasy comics in American culture continues to proliferate, though most often in ways that are not obvious to contemporary audiences at first glance. The connections are there, however, for those readers who seek to trace back the history of ideas that have been impactful on fiction and the real world alike.

The exchange between culture and its art can be described as a feedback loop, one that has become increasingly intense as technological developments have radically altered how human beings consume media. Many of the wildest ideas of early sci-fi and fantasy anthology comics, such as Amazing Stories, Weird Science, and many more, have permeated through a century’s worth of subsequent stories. Further, they worked their way into many people’s minds, and as a result, shaped their encounters with the supernatural and the paranormal during the high water mark for such activities in the 1970s and ’80s, and beyond.

Not just in art, but in science and politics, early-to-mid 20th-century media had an irrevocable influence on society – from Orson Welles’ iconic War of the Worlds broadcast, to Smokey Stover and “foo,” and more. As massively successful as a band like the Foo Fighters might be today, it is worth taking a more detailed look at the source their memorable name stemmed from. Further, as ubiquitous as later comics like Garfield and Peanuts are, they in turn built on a precedent set by comics like Smokey Stover, with creators Jim Davis’ and Charles Schulz’ owing something to “foo” originator Bill Holman.