Sonny the Child Movie Star

Sonny the Child Movie Star
Start date:	April 4th, 1938
End date:	May 14th, 1938
# of strips:	36 (6 weeks)
Writer:	Lee Falk
Artist:	Phil Davis
Preceded by:	"Mandrake in Hollywood"
Followed by:	"Mandrake and the Haunted House"

"Sonny the Child Movie Star" is the 12th Mandrake daily story. The story was written by Lee Falk and drawn by Phil Davis. This story exists in two variants, one made to span six newspaper columns, the other to span five.

Plot Summary

Sonny, the ten years old movie idol and most spoiled child on Earth has been kidnapped.

Appearances

Recurring characters

• Mandrake

One-time characters

• Mr. Fleming, owner of Granite Studios.
• Marilyn Dawn, the biggest star of Granite Studios.
• Sonny Starr, a child star.
• Mrs. Starr, Sonny's mother.
• Mr. Starr, Sonny's father.
• Mr. Potts, a director.
• George, Sonny's valet.
• Pete, a kidnapper.
• Bud, a kidnapper.
• Whitey, a friend of Sonny.

Locations

• U.S.A.
  • Hollywood
    • Granite Studios
    • Granite Studio Cafe

Behind the scenes

Title

• The title for the story is taken from the plot.

Signifiant covers

• 
  Brazil
• 
  France
• 
  Italy
• 
  Italy
• 
  Italy
• 
  Italy
• 
  Portugal
• 
  New Zealand
• 
  Spain
• 
  Spain

Reprints

This story has been published in the following publications:

Brazil

• "Sonny, O Menino Mimado", Mandrake #52 (1960)
• "Aventura em Hollywood", Mandrake, o Mágico #3 (1970)
• "O Rapto do Menino Dourado", Mandrake Coleção #7 (1990)

France

• "Mandrake et l'enfant prodige", Collection à 8 Francs Mandrake et l'enfant prodige (1946)
• "Mandrake à Hollywood", Spécial Mandrake #14 (1964)

Italy

• "L’uomo magico", Pisellino #10 to #22 (1940)
• "L’uomo magico", Collana Albi grandi avventure - Mandrake #11 (1941)
• "Il piccolo divo rapito", Mandrake #26 (1948)
• "L’uomo magico", Super Albo #102 (1964)
• "no title", L'olimpo dei fumetti #14 (1973)
• "Mandrake a Hollywood", Mandrake #7 (Comics Stars in the World 1976)
• "Mandrake a Hollywood", Mandrake - New Comics Now #118 (1984)
• "Mandrake a Hollywood", Mandrake 11 (Comic Art) (1992)
• "Mandrake a Hollywood", Mandrake il mago Volume 2 (2015)

French Polynesia

• "Mandrake a Hollywood", Mandrake #7 (Comics Stars in the World 1976) note: Italian text.

Portugal

• "O Rapto Misterioso", Condor Popular #6 volum 40 (1962)

Mexico

• "??", Paquito #11031 and Paquito #11032 (195?)

New Zealand

• "Sonny the Child Movie Star", Mandrake the Magician #63 (1954)

Spain

• "El niño prodigio", Merlin el Mago Moderno #39 (1947)
• "no title" ("Mandrake en Hollywood" on back cover), Mandrake el mago (1981)
• "no title", Grandes Clásicos de los Comics del Pasado #33 - Mandrake #9 (1986)

USA

• "no title", Feature Book #19 (1946)
• "Sonny the Child Movie Star", The Golden Age of the Comics #7 (1970)
• "Mandrake in Hollywood", The Official Mandrake the Magician #1 – #2 (1988)
• "no title", Feature Book #19 (1993, reprint)
• "Sonny the Child Movie Star", Comics Revue #395-396 (2019)
• "Sonny the Child Movie Star", Volume Three: the complete newspaper dailies 1938-1939 (2025)

Yugoslavia

• "Mandrake u Hollywoodu", Jutarnji list August 7, 1938 – August 30, 1938
• "Звезда у кратким панталонама" (romanized as "Zvezda u kratkim pantalonama"), Politikin Zabavnik #1974 – #1975 (1989)