Fat was usually the butt of his friend's jokes, with those early strips exhibiting much of the cruelty practised by children and reflecting a school system which believed in corporal punishment.

[2] Over the next few years, Fatty gradually lost weight, gained a Boy Scout style uniform, a dog ('Pal'), a goat ('Hector') and permanent supporting characters including Headlights Hogan, Lollylegs, Bruiser and Mr. Claffey the policeman.

[4] In the opinion of Paul Byrnes, the curator of the National Film and Sound Archive, "Fatty Finn is highly influenced by C. J. Dennis’ classic story of a sentimental tough guy from a poor inner-city neighbourhood.

[6] Nicholls however became frustrated with the limitations of the strip and on 10 June 1928 he introduced an adventure theme by involving Fatty in fanciful tales of pirates, cannibals and highwaymen.

[4] Fatty Finn made an appearance and Nicholls' also contributed a center spread continuity strip called "Forest of Fear".

[4] The ninth issue is a series of coupons - three of which made the sender a member of "Fatty Finn's Club" (complete with membership certificate and a badge).

[3] In 1927 a silent black and white film, The Kid Stakes, written and directed by Tal Ordell,[8] was released featuring Fatty Finn and his goat, Hector.

In 1980 the strip was adapted into a feature film, Fatty Finn, directed by Maurice Murphy and starring Ben Oxenbould with Rebecca Rigg.

[11] In the same year Sydney journalist and screenwriter Bob Ellis produced a book of the movie, The Adventures of Fatty Finn with illustrations taken from Nicholls' original drawings.