Desperate Dan

Dundee is a remarkable place popularly remembered for jute, jam and journalism. Jute and jam have gone, as have the docks, shipbuilding, the Timex, NCR and Veeder Roote, but journalism and its sub set comics are still very much there. This brilliant statue of Desperate Dan sits on 'Samuel's Corner - for a long time a popular meeting place. I know Dan liked cow pie, and did not like shaving, but what exactly was he desperate for?