by: Dave Gieber

Comic strips are almost as popular as comic books in some

circles. So I would be remiss if I didn't compile an

article about them. Strips have ended up in a multitude of

newspapers and other media all over the world. Most people

who read the Sunday paper can't pass up the comic section.

I know I sure can't.

Comic strips are short strips or pieces of sequential art,

telling a story. They are drawn by cartoonists and are

published on a recurring basis in newspapers, magazines or

on the Internet.

Strips can be humorous like Beetle Bailey, Hi & Lois, or

Hagar the Horrible, with no continuous story but ends with

a typical punch line. Or they can have a soap opera like

continuity (like Judge Parker or Little Orphan Annie) with

serious story lines in serial form. They are, however,

nonetheless known as "comics" - though the term "sequential

art", coined by cartoonist Will Eisner, is becoming

increasingly popular.

In America, the great newspaper icons of the time, Joseph

Pulitzer and William Randolph Hearst were continuously

warring with each other during the late 1800's and early

1900's. This created a great popularity in comic strips and

"The Little Bears" was the first American comic with

recurring characters. Then the now famous, "Yellow Kids"

became the first color comic and was part of the first

Sunday comic section in 1897. This is where the term

"yellow journalism" supposedly formed its origin. Mutt and

Jeff was the first daily comic strip appearing in 1907.

Comic strips not only provide us with the laugh each day or

week that we must have to start the day. They also give a

political platform to some of the strip creators in which

they can pass on their social and political opinions.

Comic strips have long held a distorted mirror to

contemporary society. They have long been used for

political and social commentary, ranging from the staunch

conservative values of Little Orphan Annie to the unabashed

liberalism of Doonesbury.

Pogo used animals to particularly devastating effect,

caricaturing many prominent politicians of the day as

animal denizens of Pogo's Okeefenokee Swamp. Creator Walt

Kelly, in a gutsy move, took on Joseph McCarthy in the

1950s, caricaturing him as a bobcat named Simple J.

Malarkey, a megalomaniac bent on taking over the

characters' bird watching club and rooting out all

undesirables.

Kelly also defended the medium against possible government

regulation in the McCarthy era. At a time when comic books

were coming under fire for supposed sexual, violent, and

subversive content, Kelly feared the same would happen to

comic strips. Going before the congressional subcommittee,

he proceeded to charm the members with his drawings and the

force of his personality. Due to his actions, the comic

strip remained safe for creative satire.

Comic strips have also made quite a splash on the Net since

the World Wide Web came into play in the 1990s. This led to

an explosion of amateur webcomics, comic strips created

solely for Web sites. Webcomics differ from published

comic strips, in that anyone can start his own strip and

publish it on the Web. No longer is there any need for a

creator to meet the approval of a publisher or syndicate.

Currently there are hundreds of webcomics. Many of which

are low quality and sporadically updated. However, a number

have endured, and the best ones rival their newspaper and

magazine counterparts in terms of quality and quantity.

Megatokyo, Penny Arcade, PvP, Sluggy Freelance, and User

Friendly are considered to be among the best of the

webcomics.

The majority of traditional newspaper comic strips now have

some Internet presence. Syndicates often provide archives

of recent strips on their websites.

So the next time you sit down to the Sunday paper, take

particular note of the funnies section. Keep your favorite

comic strips near and dear to your heart. And remember the

trials and tribulations these strips have gone through to

continue to provide you with everlasting entertainment.