With the rise of the daily newspaper came the first media pop star. That he happened to be a cartoon should come as no surprise considering there were no movies or radio yet, just the "paper stage" of the Sunday comics--in living color no less.

The Yellow Kid was the crown jewel of the Sunday papers, coveted by both Pulitzer and Hearst, and even appearing in both their papers at the same time for awhile. His likeness was used to sell everything from candy to whiskey, but less than three years after his debut, the Yellow Kid was gone.