![](http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_Vrd1Lzj5kyw/S5pSI6vnR-I/AAAAAAAAA1A/EKPghfRGsUc/s320/dennis-menace-228x300.jpg)
Unable to find a suitable name for his comic strip depicting the antics of his four year old son, it was "one" day that Dennis at four years old, refused to take a nap and went about messing up his room.
It was on this day that Dennis' mother (Alice) exclaimed to his father, "Your son is a menace!"
On March 12, 1951, the precocious yet lovable, freckle-face boy in comic strip form made its debut in sixteen syndicated newspapers.
![](http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_Vrd1Lzj5kyw/S5pRWihQxcI/AAAAAAAAA04/KTfks1TthgI/s400/hank-ketcham-dennis-the-menace.jpg)