Dennis Statue Is A Menace

As the legendary cartoonist Hank Ketcham once said, “Mischief just seems to follow wherever Dennis appears.”

And, that seems to apply to Dennis the Menace statues, as well. At least that’s what the City of Monterey, Calif., is finding out.

The city rejoiced in early September when news came out of Orlando, Fla., that the stolen Dennis the Menace statue given to Monterey by Ketcham himself had been found. The city’s 3 ½-foot bronze was reported missing in 2006 from the aptly named Dennis the Menace Playground.

A similar statue, thought to be “the one,” was found in an Orlando scrap metal yard over the summer. That statue was returned to Monterey where officials welcomed it with open arms.

The celebrations over Dennis’ return came to screeching halt when it was determined the statue wasn’t the original. The foundry that made the original determined welds on the inside did not match those specific to Monterey’s Dennis, a City of Monterey media release stated.

See Also:

• Missing Dennis the Menace Statute Found 9 Years Later

Before his death, Ketcham commissioned Academy Award-winning animator Wah Ming Chang to make the statue for Monterey’s playground. The teddy bear-toting bronze was installed at the park’s entrance in 1988 and there it sat for years, bringing “smiles to the faces of tens of thousands of children from around the world,” the city said.

Those smiles turned upside down on Oct. 26, 2006, when it was discovered the beloved statue had been swiped from the park sometime the night before. Monterey Police and city parks crews scoured the area, but Dennis was nowhere to be found, the city said.

Hoping someone would step forward, a $5,000 reward was offered for the safe return of the statue, which is valued at $30,000.

With nary a word on the statue’s whereabouts, the city had a new Dennis cast for the playground. Using a mold created from the original loaned to a local foundry by Hank Ketchum’s family, a replacement was made.

That replacement will continue to stand in the original’s place now that it’s been learned the original remains lost.

And, while the Orlando Dennis isn’t “the Dennis,” Monterey is thrilled to “welcome this Dennis home,” Kim Bui-Burton, the city’s community services director said.

“Monterey will always be home to Dennis the Menace, no matter where he’s been, and no matter if he is the original. Dennis is part of the Monterey family, thanks to Hank Ketcham.”

The city now believes the statue found in the Orlando scrap yard came from a hospital in that community. Since Dennis is a part of Monterey history, however, city officials plans to ask the unnamed hospital if they can keep it.

As for that $5,000 reward for the original’s return, Monterey said the offer still stands. City staff members, however, do plan to recognize the efforts of Brothers Scrap Metal in Orlando for returning what was thought to be the original.

Photo courtesy of the City of Monterey