The Far Side, Calvin and Hobbes and other comic strips

[ShawnFuzz]

In my youth, I would open a newspaper every morning and go straight to the comics section while eating my bowl of cereal. There I would find my favorites listed above.

Does anyone else remember these daily cartoons?

There were many, aside from my favorites, The Far Side and Calvin and Hobbes, but there were so many others, like Garfield and Peanuts. Towards the end of the newspaper days, Sherman's Lagoon, Zits and Red Meat were among my favorites.

Do any of you remember these days of comics?

I will share a Far Side panel for reference...

 

[QueenCobra]

I have a few books of Calvin and Hobbes strips. One of my teachers even let me borrow his book of them lol.

I also have ones of Garfield, probably my favorite lol. My grandma also gave us hers of Mr. Magoo and Family Circus (which I didn’t always get) but they’re fun, quick reads.

My mom told me Mr. Magoo was also a show and he was voiced by Jim Backus, aka Mr. Howell in Gilligan’s Island. Idk why but I found that a funny choice for his voice.

In the papers, I also enjoyed Lola, Beetle Bailey, Baby Blues, Pearls Before Swine, Hagar the Horrible, and Mother Goose and Grimm.

 

[Mairmalade]

We broke the paper up in the morning (my brother took the sports section, my dad took the daily news, and I took the comics/puzzle & home/garden sections) while eating cereal before getting ready for school.

Archie, Calvin and Hobbes, Garfield...there were a lot. I don't remember all of the names.

 

[VernalLapin]

Oh I used to love the newspaper comics as a kid. There was one called the Argyle Sweater which was kinda like the Far Side, I seemed to remember it always being pretty funny. I made my own comic strip called Fang about an anthropomorphic wolf (not related to the villager) and dreamt of having them published someday.

 

[Firesquids]

I remember reading the newspaper comics at my grandparents house when I was a kid! Calvin and Hobbes was definitely my favorite, now I have a few of the books and the complete Calvin and Hobbes. I love how chaotic and yet introspective Calvin can be, it always felt like he was a whole person compared to the very simple comedic characters of other comic strips. My second favorite is probably FoxTrot. I also liked Farside, Hägar the Horrible, & Zits. I also had a time in my teens where I read a lot of Heathcliff.

 

[Nunnafinga]

The characters of Bloom County

Back in the day I remember the comic strip panels in the morning newspaper being really big then gradually shrinking over time.My favorite strip was Bloom County but I also liked Peanuts,Drabble,The Wizard of Id and The Far Side.

 

[ShawnFuzz]

I made my own comic strip called Fang about an anthropomorphic wolf (not related to the villager) and dreamt of having them published someday.

Do you have any of these comics that you made? If so, would you be willing to share?

I can draw, but I can't draw cartoons. If I could I would have enjoyed having my own comic strip.

 

[xSuperMario64x]

when my brother and I were kids we had these little books with collections of Gary Larson's Far Side comics. I still remember then fondly!

 

[VernalLapin]

Do you have any of these comics that you made? If so, would you be willing to share?

I can draw, but I can't draw cartoons. If I could I would have enjoyed having my own comic strip.

Somewhere, haha. If I can find some I’ll share!

 

[skarmoury]

I LOVE THE FAR SIDE!!!

I first discovered TFS while browsing through a seasonal store selling second hand books. I forgot which book compilation it was, but it’s what got me to collecting whatever other TFS compilations I could find. I mostly found them secondhand from random stalls, and I’m glad these books are going to new homes instead of forever collecting dust. ^^

I remember once my co-workers were answering trivia questions online, I kinda joined them when the next question was, “Which comic strip artist coined the term ‘Thagomizer’, the spikes on a tail of a Stegosaurus?” I blurted out Gary Larson randomly and when the answer was revealed they were so impressed with me lmao.

(for anyone who doesn’t know, Larson made a random word ‘Thagomizer’ in one comic strip, which was then adopted by scientists lol.)

My favorite comic will always be his infamous Cow Tools! I remember reading his thoughts on the comic (I think I read it from The Prehistory of The Far Side), saying he kinda regrets certain details on the comics because it’s led people to overthink it too much that he’s gotten so many questions on what it meant. He didn’t mean for it to mean anything deep, but the people were restless and demanded answers, like what each tool would do for the cow.

 

[ShawnFuzz]

I LOVE THE FAR SIDE!!!

I first discovered TFS while browsing through a seasonal store selling second hand books. I forgot which book compilation it was, but it’s what got me to collecting whatever other TFS compilations I could find. I mostly found them secondhand from random stalls, and I’m glad these books are going to new homes instead of forever collecting dust. ^^

I remember once my co-workers were answering trivia questions online, I kinda joined them when the next question was, “Which comic strip artist coined the term ‘Thagomizer’, the spikes on a tail of a Stegosaurus?” I blurted out Gary Larson randomly and when the answer was revealed they were so impressed with me lmao.

(for anyone who doesn’t know, Larson made a random word ‘Thagomizer’ in one comic strip, which was then adopted by scientists lol.)

My favorite comic will always be his infamous Cow Tools! I remember reading his thoughts on the comic (I think I read it from The Prehistory of The Far Side), saying he kinda regrets certain details on the comics because it’s led people to overthink it too much that he’s gotten so many questions on what it meant. He didn’t mean for it to mean anything deep, but the people were restless and demanded answers, like what each tool would do for the cow.

View attachment 616347

Yes! The Cow tools comic is considered by far the most questioned and confusing one he ever did!

As you mentioned, Gary Larson gave the Stegosaurus' tail the name Thagomizer (I will attach the comic below), but he also invented the name for a phobia that I am pretty sure nobody has, but is now unofficially listed in lists of fears on the internet. "Anatidaephobia: the fear that somewhere, somehow, a duck is watching you". (Comic also attached)