Peck’s bad boy, n. — Green’s Dictionary of Slang

Peck’s bad boy n.

[the name of a fictional character created by George Wilbur Peck (1840–1916) in Peck’s Bad Boy and his Pa (1883)]

(US) a mischievous child; also attrib.

[1883		Chicago Dly Trib. 4 Mar. 1/3: [advert] peck’s bad boy The Terror of the Age! Everybody wants a copy [...] Only 18 cents].
1904		Seattle Repub. (WA) 15 July 4/2: [headline] A Peck’s Bad Boy Did It.
1916		Day Book (Chicago) 19 Dec. 15/2: [headline] Starts a $70,000 Fire. Called Peck’s Bad Boy.
1921		N.Y. Tribune 15 May 51/2: A St Paul lad with Peck’s-Bad-Boy proclivities built [...] this nifty retreat in the treetop.
1967		Atlantic Monthly Feb. 4: His motives—ego, a Peck’s-bad-boy desire to make trouble, a yen to see just what would happen.
1970		Time 22 June 78: [It] is an earnest attempt by Della Femina to buttress his reputation as the Peck’s Bad Boy of Advertising.