Panty shots

Panty shots were a regular feature of child-friendly comics during the so-called Golden Age. Cartoonists of the interwar period normally drew little girls according to a well-established formula, which included (amongst other things), drastically abbreviated hemlines revealing plain white briefs. Needless to say, images of this nature were meant to be cute rather than risque, although panty-spanking was often used as a form of comedy relief in many of the better known strips, including Little Iodine, Nancy, Little Lulu etc.

The convention was practiced well into the late seventies in various Harvey Comics titles (Little Audrey, Little Dot et al), but made only sporadic appearances during the eighties. Since the early nineties, traditional panty-shots have fallen out of favor with mainstream audiences, due in part to such material being deemed politically incorrect.

The rise of the WWW has prompted a minor renaissance of the panty-shot amongst online nostalgia communities, especially those dedicated to the "classic" children's comics published by Archie, Harvey, St Johns etc. In addition, panty-spanking imagery is held in high regard by many older enthusiasts for their unique and often nostalgic 'flavor.'