Squander Bug

Creation

During World War II, Britain’s National Savings Committee worried that people were paying too much for hard-to-find goods, when that cash could instead fund war bonds. They wanted a way to mock reckless spending that wasn’t dull or bossy.

An artist named Boydell drew six cartoons of a small, demonic figure called the “Money Grub,” described as able to “push, pull, scratch, bite and steal.” The idea was approved almost exactly as submitted, except for the name change. The creature was meant as a cheerful alternative to constant official warnings like “Don’t waste fuel.” Instead, the Squander Bug’s word balloons told shoppers to blow their money on pointless items, while captions told people to fight or starve it. Later, the character was given swastika tattoos and even appeared in Madame Tussauds wax museum alongside wartime enemies such as Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini.

Usage

Boydell focused on creating the Squander Bug for newspaper ads, but the character later appeared in posters with the same anti-waste message. British cartoonists like David Low and Carl Giles used it, sometimes with irony. Victor Weisz, for instance, gave Hitler his own pair of squander bugs to mock the dictator's manpower shortages.

The bug gained fame overseas. In Australia, an adapted version took on a Japanese appearance. Dr. Seuss also designed a Squander Bug for the U.S., urging people to buy war bonds, though his version looked very different from Boydell's original.

Did You Know?

• The Squander Bug is referenced in the sitcom Dad's Army, in the episode 'Knights of Madness' (Series 9: Episode 3), with Private Pike dressing up as the bug.
• A reference to the Squander Bug is also made by Phoebe Bamford in the sitcom Goodnight Sweetheart Series 3 Episode 2, 'It Ain't Necessarily So'.