Editing Dennis the Menace (U.S. comics) (section)

===Dennis' friends===
* '''Tommy Anderson''' is Dennis' best friend (after Mr. Wilson). This character eventually disappeared from the strip, although he does make appearances in the ''Dennis the Menace Pocket Full of Fun'' books.
* '''Joey McDonald''' is loyal, timid, and not too bright. He is a year younger than Dennis. He usually plays the [[sidekick]] to Dennis's schemes and sees him as a big brother figure. Dennis often gives him naïve advice and gives him little "nuggets" of wisdom and insight.<ref>[https://archive.org/details/fawcett_Dennis_the_Menace_086_Fawcett_-_1966/page/n33 Dennis the Menace 86]</ref>
* '''Margaret Wade''' is a freckled, [[Red hair|red-haired]], [[Glasses|bespectacled]] know-it-all whose cloying and self-important demeanor is always getting on Dennis's nerves. She is attracted to Dennis and is stubbornly confident in the belief that she will [[Marriage|marry]] him in adulthood,<ref>Dennis the Menace June 2, 1958 comic</ref> but he has no interest in her. She always tries to improve Dennis and his manners but succeeds only in annoying him. She has a certain amount of dislike for Gina, whom she sees as her competition. Gina gains Dennis' respect and admiration by just being herself, and Margaret's pretensions fail to impress him. Margaret, who is two years older than Dennis,<ref name="dennis.kingfeatures.org"/> is very ambitious: when she was five, she decided to join the [[Camp Fire (organization)|Camp Fire]] Girls when she reaches the age of seven,<ref name="ReferenceA"/> and in one cartoon, she sells [[Girl Scout Cookies|Girl Scout cookies]] to the Mitchells.<ref>Dennis the Menace february-22-2014</ref> She likes taking [[gymnastics]] and [[ballet]],<ref name="Dennis the Menace 143">[https://archive.org/details/fawcett_Dennis_the_Menace_143_Hallden-Fawcett_1976 Dennis the Menace 143]</ref> and singing Christmas carols.<ref>[https://archive.org/details/fawcett_Dennis_the_Menace_Giant_074_Hallden-Fawcett_1969/page/n15 Dennis the Menace 74]</ref>  She is a devout religious believer, and has had pets<ref name="ReferenceA"/> of her own—four white [[Persian cat]]s: one named Charlie,<ref>Dennis The Menace Giant 004 Pines Hallden 1957</ref> one named Prudence,<ref>[https://archive.org/details/fawcett_Dennis_The_Menace_095_1968/page/n25 Dennis The Menace 095 1968]</ref> one named Snowflake,<ref>Dennis the Menace comic April 7, 2013</ref> and another named Mr. Coddles (whom she wheels around in a [[baby carriage]]).<ref name="Dennis the Menace #39">[https://archive.org/details/fawcett_Dennis_the_Menace_039_Hallden-Fawcett_1959/page/n31 Dennis the Menace #39]</ref> Whenever Margaret seeks to show him kindness, such as inviting him over to her house to help decorate a [[Christmas tree]],<ref name="ReferenceB">''Dennis the Menace Pocket Full of Fun'' #2 "How not to Decorate a Tree"</ref> be a guest at her birthday party,<ref name="ReferenceA"/> or when Dennis tries to have Margaret give him too much candy,<ref name="ReferenceA"/> Dennis' "helpfulness" results in his expulsion. Regardless of his ill-will toward Margaret, Dennis cannot resist eating at the Wades'.<ref name="ReferenceB"/> Margaret and Dennis are not always adversaries. Dennis once used a water pistol to spray both Margaret and Gina with his mother's [[perfume]], prompting both to play with him and angering his mother.<ref name="ReferenceA"/>  Margaret is a frequent victim of Dennis's [[practical joke]]s, such as being sprayed by a [[garden hose]].<ref>[https://archive.org/details/fawcett_Dennis_the_Menace_086_Fawcett_-_1966/page/n31 Dennis the Menace  86]</ref> On one Valentine's Day, Dennis gave "trick" Valentine's messages to Margaret, Gina, and Sally that had messages read "I DON'T Like", which earned him punishment.<ref>[https://archive.org/details/fawcett_Dennis_the_Menace_050_Hallden-Fawcett/page/n3  Dennis the Menace 050 Hallden-Fawcett]</ref> In one April Fool's Day comic, Dennis decided to trick Margaret with compliments instead of pranks; to his horror, she accepted the joke as real and dragged Dennis to hear her piano playing.<ref>Dennis the Menace comic April 1, 2012</ref> Although she is fond of Dennis, she can lose her temper and "bop" him.<ref name="Dennis the Menace #39"/><ref>[https://archive.org/details/fawcett_Dennis_The_Menace_094_1968/page/n27 Dennis The Menace 094 ]</ref><ref>[https://archive.org/details/fawcett_Dennis_The_Menace_154_1977_/page/n17 Dennis the Menace 154]</ref>
* '''Gina Gillotti''' is a fiercely independent young [[Italian Americans|Italian-American]] girl, on whom Dennis is mostly unaware that he has a crush. Gina is [[tomboy]]ish yet still feminine in appearance. She also likes Dennis in a future-sweethearts manner, but in contrast to his dislike of Margaret, Dennis enjoys Gina's company because of her independent mind and their common interests. Gina is aware of her femininity, and woe betide anyone who thinks otherwise. Just as Margaret had "flipped" Dennis in [[karate]], Gina once "flipped" Dennis in [[judo]].<ref name="Dennis the Menace 143"/> and in at least one story, her mother is depicted as being an excellent cook.
* '''Jackson''' is an [[African Americans|African American]] character whom Ketcham decided to add to the cast in the late 1960s. A panel from May 13, 1970, depicted Jackson and Dennis playing in the backyard, with Dennis saying to his father, "I'm having some race trouble with Jackson. He runs FASTER than I do!"<ref>[http://i46.tinypic.com/2nhhunr.jpg May 13, 1970 Cartoon]  {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120225064628/http://i46.tinypic.com/2nhhunr.jpg|date=February 25, 2012}}</ref> Because Jackson was illustrated as a [[Controversial newspaper caricatures|racial caricature]], the character was not received well. Protests erupted in [[Detroit]], [[Little Rock, Arkansas|Little Rock]], [[Miami]], and [[St. Louis]], and debris was thrown at the offices of the ''[[St. Louis Post-Dispatch|Post Dispatch]]''. Taken aback, Ketcham issued a statement explaining that his intentions were innocent. Jackson appeared in another comic with a less exaggerated design, in which Dennis says "Me 'n Jackson are exactly the same age. Only he's different. He's ''left-handed''."<ref>{{cite web |last1=Foster |first1=William |title=Dennis the Menace's Friend, Jackson |url=https://scoop.previewsworld.com/Home/4/1/73/1016?articleID=98408 |website=Scoop}}</ref> However, readers found the redesigned character "scarcely less offensive".<ref>{{cite web |last1=Mikkelson |first1=David |title=When 'Dennis the Menace' Created a Racial Controversy |url=https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/dennis-the-menace/ |website=Snopes|date=March 31, 2015 }}</ref> He makes no further prominent appearances in the comics.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.fantagraphics.com/index2.php?option=com_content&do_pdf=1&id=977 |title=Dennis the Menace – Introduction |author=Brian Walker |publisher=Fantagraphics Books |access-date=February 9, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110613150309/http://www.fantagraphics.com/index2.php?option=com_content&do_pdf=1&id=977 |archive-date=June 13, 2011 |df=mdy-all }}</ref> 
** On January 22, 2024, Dennis is illustrated speaking to a black child of indeterminate identity. This child does not resemble either of Jackson's earlier designs, but like Jackson, he has no spoken dialogue.<ref>{{cite web |title=Mon, January 22, 2024 |url=https://comicskingdom.com/dennis-the-menace/2024-01-22 |website=Comics Kingdom}}</ref>
* '''Jay Weldon''' is another African American friend of Dennis. He appeared in the 1986 animated series and was characterized as being fond of [[basketball]]. Jay was much more well-received than the character of Jackson because he was not designed as a caricature.
* '''Ben''' is a [[Jewish]] friend of Dennis. Although they celebrate different religious holidays, Ben and Dennis bond over a love of Halloween.<ref>{{cite web |title=Sun, October 26, 2014 |url=https://comicskingdom.com/dennis-the-menace/2014-10-26 |website=Comics Kingdom}}</ref>
* '''Cowboy Bob''' is a film cowboy whom Dennis idolizes. He appears in a series of Westerns known as Cowboy Bob films. What the boy fails to realize is that Westerns are rarely made in his time and that the films he watches so enthusiastically are old repeats. In one story arc, Dennis' parents invite the retired actor to a party, and Dennis meets him and remarks that he must be Cowboy Bob's grandfather.