Aug 16th 2012 06:42 am The Gene Album IV
We’re up to Day 4 of our Gene retrospective. Today makes a total of 40 (Count ‘em! 40!) old cartoons relating to the youngest member of the A&J cast, not including Ludwig the cat. As you probably can tell, I’ve about run out of things to say about the old Gene cartoons, but hopefully they can speak for themselves. You’ve come this far. Come back tomorrow!
Posted by jimmyjohnson / Vintage A&J
104 Responses to “The Gene Album IV”
Bob on 16 Aug 2012 at 6:56 am #
So A&J’s last name is Day?
Clifq on 16 Aug 2012 at 7:32 am #
I am glad I am not the only one who did not know their last name. Never occurred to me that they had a last name. How many comic characters have them?
Robin in Fl on 16 Aug 2012 at 8:05 am #
Love the coffee breaking the fourth wall!
Clifq: Hmmm. interesting question. The Bumsteads in Blondie, and Hi and Lois but I forget–I do know Lois is Beetle Bailey’s sister!
sandcastler on 16 Aug 2012 at 8:13 am #
Love the American Worker strip, never realized A&J was a political strip. Time it was drawn must have been during the Great Outsourcing.
Debbie in Alabama on 16 Aug 2012 at 8:21 am #
Both our sons are in their 30′s now. We sometimes get comments from them about their childhood and the kind of job their Dad and I did raising them. I always tell them that “we were just flying by the seat of our pants.” I think that’s the same way Arlo and Janis used with Gene.
Dave in MA on 16 Aug 2012 at 8:22 am #
Look closer, I’m not seeing the coffee break the fourth wall. I see it dripping over the edge of the table, but not past the line for the wall of the panel.
Dave in MA on 16 Aug 2012 at 8:23 am #
Debbie in Alabama, JJ was looking in your window and getting parenting ideas for A&J.
nonegiven on 16 Aug 2012 at 8:34 am #
I remember reading number 7 in the paper.
Blinky the Wonder Wombat on 16 Aug 2012 at 8:55 am #
Re #4- Hah! I remember a later strip in which Gene rushes into A&J’s bedroom to find a broken bed and Arlo saying something like “It’s not your bed never fell apart before”. Clever reference to an old strip or just a happy coincidence. (Anyone remember the date of that strip? Since GoComics no longer has the tag feature, I can’t find it.)
Will Overby on 16 Aug 2012 at 8:58 am #
Robin in FL, I never knew Lois was Beetle’s sister. Cool! Oh, the things I learn here!
Lost in A**2 on 16 Aug 2012 at 9:16 am #
Which, of course, will remind some of here of the fantasy-sharing strip: Janis asks, and Arlo mentions Lois. “She lives just down the street!” Janis complains.
I think the first time I heard their last name was when Mary Lou talked to Janis before Meg was born.
Blinky the Wonder Wombat on 16 Aug 2012 at 9:29 am #
JJ has recounted that the strip’s name was going to by “Day by Day” but was changed to “Arlo and Janis” when he found out there was another comic strip with a similar name. I’m not sure if he actually thought of that as A&J’s last names or if he made that connection when a later strip required a name.
Tom (somewhere in Georgia) on 16 Aug 2012 at 9:43 am #
nonegiven- i don’t remember #7 but i love it!
Brent from Waterloo, ON on 16 Aug 2012 at 9:52 am #
Hi and Lois are the Flagstons. To continue with random trivia, the Flinstones were originally called the Flagstones, but it was too close to the name from Hi and Lois so they changed it.
Mindy on 16 Aug 2012 at 10:02 am #
My mother, in one of her expressionist moods, once commented that children are like men, “You can’t live with them and you can’t live without them.” As for “flying by the seat of our pants,” I used to think it almost criminal to require a test for a driver’s license but not to have & raise children. Then I realized that this has become a society where it’s considered to be “abuse” to discipline a child by spanking! I can imagine the snake pit State Licensed Parenting would create. [Someone mentioned political, did they they? He? She?] I’m off my soapbox now.
sandcastler on 16 Aug 2012 at 10:31 am #
“I can imagine the snake pit State Licensed Parenting would create.”
Mindy, that is called foster care and I think the name is a misnomer. The rest will have to be for another day. Guess that makes my response to Mindy a “pleading a Mindy.”
Norm in Utah on 16 Aug 2012 at 10:45 am #
Henry, Alice and Dennis Mitchell; Charlie Brown, Lucy & Linus Van Pelt; Dick Tracy; Rex Morgan; Mary Worth; The Yokums and the Scraggs; Fritzi Ritz; Moon Mullins; Major Hoople; Mallard Fillmore; Mike Doonesbury; many characters in Beetle Bailey besides Beetle; Jon Arbuckle; Edda Burber.
And that’s just sitting here. Imagine if we took a minute and looked at all the comics available on line. And I know there MUST be a Mindy somewhere, but that’s a story for another day.
sandcastler on 16 Aug 2012 at 10:55 am #
Norm in Utah,
Kick-ass comics has a character named Mindy McCready aka Hit-Girl. She has never gone up against Bamboo Guy but, what a storyline one could create. John, care to respond?
Boise Ed on 16 Aug 2012 at 10:55 am #
Clifq and Norm, don’t forget the the Dagwood Bumstead family. And Norm, I think Mindy retired to Ork.
phil in Missoula, MT on 16 Aug 2012 at 11:02 am #
Well, Mindy, licensing parenting would be licensing gravity…you could do it, but gravity will ignore it.
Mindy from Indy on 16 Aug 2012 at 11:11 am #
@Blinky the Wonder Wombat – I remember that newer strip as well (I thought he said something like “Not one word”, but yeah.)
Green (or orange) Jell-o with “stuff” in it – did ANYBODY ever eat that? Blech!
Bryan on 16 Aug 2012 at 11:41 am #
What a pleasant way to break up a monotonous morning at work!
And yes, MindyFI, I was foolish enough to eat the green jello with stuff in it – but I was always hungry and would eat almost anything that moved slow enough. According to my wife I’m still that way.
TruckerRon on 16 Aug 2012 at 11:45 am #
Mindy from Indy, Jell-o with “stuff” in it was often served in our home. My brother and I willingly ate it to get the taste of liver and onions out of our mouths. Luckily for us it always had fruit in it, and maybe some marshmallows. At church picnics we’ve found it ruined with shredded carrots, coconuts, etc.
Beth in MA on 16 Aug 2012 at 11:50 am #
re #3: Gene sneaks a taste of Arlo’s coffee. I lived that scenario as a child. In those days (early 60′s)in my home, coffee was a forbidden drink for children. My father left the room and I took a taste of his black coffee. It was the most horrible thing I had ever tasted. To this day, I do not drink coffee from that experience.
Canuckguy on 16 Aug 2012 at 11:53 am #
@sandcastler
The Labour Day strip, after 20 some years, is even more poignant now.
Mindy on 16 Aug 2012 at 12:02 pm #
Norm in Utah, are you serious?[I'm too lazy to Google it right now!] Mindy McCready v. Bamboo Guy? My kind of lady! Mindy did NOT retire to Orc. THEY live in Virginia and Indy!
sandcastler, I shant impose nor shall I force my attentions upon you [no smart comments, please], and, yes, feel free to “plead a Mindy” on occasion, just remember that I have copright and patent claims pending.
I remenber those weapons of mass destruction, Mindy. I never could figure out some of that vile stuff they put in the green and orage JELL-O except for what I thought was coconut [hate pina coladas as a result of that] and some kind of berries like the ones you can’t identify in fruit cocktail. Odd thing is I still love JELL-O if it’s strawberry, raspberry or any of the cherries, and still can’t hack lime, lemon or orange. Stand me in the corner and spank my butt but I ain’t gonna eat that stuff!
Mark in TTown on 16 Aug 2012 at 12:02 pm #
Cosmo Fishhawk in Shoe. The Wallets in Gasoline Alley. Milo Bloom of Bloom County. Olive Oyl and her family.
Jerry in Fl on 16 Aug 2012 at 12:03 pm #
Major Hoople, Joe Palooka, Steve Canyon, Marjorie Morningstar. And don’t forget JJ established in a strip that the Bumsteads live next door and I’m waiting for Arlo and Dagwood to carpool together to work one morning. Either that or, since they obviously have the same mailman, their mail gets mixed up. The strip that I’m refering to-Arlo is in the tub and a stanger is looking through the door. Arlo says “The Bumsteads? No, they live next door.” Can we assume that Denice the menace lives on the other side and Mr. Wilson on the other side of Denice. JJ, don’t forget that we need a new family member in the strip so Mindy can tell all her stories to another Day. I gues that would be Gene’s girl friend (fiance?). Oh yeah-Alley Oop.
Mark in TTown on 16 Aug 2012 at 12:04 pm #
Offisa Pup, Ignatz Mouse, Krazy Kat.
Shelly on 16 Aug 2012 at 12:07 pm #
Mindy, “stand you in the corner and whip your butt” you say? What does John have to say about that arrangement? No, on second thought, I don’t want to know! (But there might be a degree of fun factor there, somewhere…)
Jerry in Fl on 16 Aug 2012 at 12:10 pm #
And Fearless Fosdick. The list goes on and on. Mindy, you have our imginations fired up.
Nodak Wayne on 16 Aug 2012 at 12:11 pm #
For those of you still seaching. Here is one
http://www.gocomics.com/arloandjanis/1998/05/22
John in Virginia on 16 Aug 2012 at 12:11 pm #
I’ll take it from here, Shelly.
“Stand in the corner and whip your butt,” you say, Mindy? Hmmm. I won’t tell, but “there might be a degree of fun factor there, somewhere,” to quote a lady who visits here which makes her okay and a sort of scholar. {I’m pulling your leg, Mindy! Only trying to protect you from Ghost, sandcastler, TruckerRon and the others! Right, Guys? That’s all I’m sayin’, right?}
Jerry in Fl on 16 Aug 2012 at 12:13 pm #
Now John is pulling your leg. Mindy, you have an interesting life.
Bob, near Mark on 16 Aug 2012 at 12:15 pm #
“Jell-O with stuff in it” is a “congealed salad,” which sounds even less appetizing! F.W. Woolworth lunch counters used to serve a “Seafoam Salad” of green gelatin, fruit, cream cheese, and whipped cream. And then there’s gelatin parfait.
Back in the early ’70s when I was production supervisor at the A&P Supermarket’s delicatessen manufacturing plant in Florence, New Jersey, we made gelatin salads and desserts by the ton. The first ingredient in the recipe for one batch of gelatin was 500 pounds of water. It was easier to measure by the pound than by the gallon.
Jerry in Fl on 16 Aug 2012 at 12:16 pm #
Or is it Dennis? My internal spellcheck is fubar I’m afraid.
Bob, near Mark on 16 Aug 2012 at 12:17 pm #
In the Robin Williams movie version of “Popeye,” Olive’s mother called him “Mister Eye.”
DiverRick on 16 Aug 2012 at 12:21 pm #
Don’t forget the Otterloops, from Cul de Sac!
Jerry in Fl on 16 Aug 2012 at 12:27 pm #
Snuffy Smith, Sally Forth. I’ll shut up now.
Lost in A**2 on 16 Aug 2012 at 12:42 pm #
Must mention Miss Blaise, whose first name seems to me so appropriate to some here with the same first initial.
Burns on 16 Aug 2012 at 12:42 pm #
Wow! I actually remember the one about the TV people coming into Gene’s class with a blank globe. This is just after a big news story about how geographically ignorant America’s youth are. I just about died laughing. Probably cut it out and put it up on my cube wall till it turned yellow.
John in Virginia on 16 Aug 2012 at 12:43 pm #
Jerry in Fl, Mindy saw a Monty Python movie with me, I think it was Eric Idle who said, “Pull the other one,” and I did and she shrieked. But, I’ll plead a Mindy on details.
John in Virginia on 16 Aug 2012 at 12:44 pm #
And did anyone mention the Oop family?
sandcastler on 16 Aug 2012 at 12:54 pm #
Whenever would one pay the usage fee on “Plead a Mindy?” Seems it implies a future event, can one recovery fees for an event that may or may not occur?
As to Jello with stuff in it, goes way back to the olden days when Jello issued a cookbook in order to get housewives to purchase a product they had no idea how to serve. During the fifties and sixties I believe to be considered a home cook the wife was expected to produce these for holidays and church socials. I had many of these Jello treats during my years of religious schooling. Other recurring food nightmares from that era : goulash, tuna casserole, and hot dogs with beans.
Russell Way Out There on 16 Aug 2012 at 1:11 pm #
Sandcastler, those Jello dishes were so bad the catfish and crabs wouldn’t touch them! Mom fixed the green stuff once, tasted it, spit it out and never in her life bought green Jello again!
Blinky the Wonder Wombat on 16 Aug 2012 at 1:14 pm #
Nodak-
That’s another good one, but not one one I was thinking of.
Just how rough are the Days on their beds?
Bob, near Mark on 16 Aug 2012 at 1:16 pm #
sandcastler,
When I was growing up (I later grew out), Saturday night traditionally meant supper was hamburgers, hot dogs, and baked beans.
I like tuna casserole, but haven’t had it in years. Now that you’ve reminded me, I’ll have to make one.
As for goulash, how about a nice Szekely Gulyás (a Transylvanian sour cabbage goulash)? To paraphrase Rocky and Bullwinkle, “Wossamotta U?” You don’t like stew?
By the way, the cartoon characters Rocky and Bullwinkle had last names – Squirrel and Moose.
Blinky the Wonder Wombat on 16 Aug 2012 at 1:16 pm #
Sure anyone can name the Bumsteads, and the Mitchells, and the Pattersons, but does anyone know Ziggy’s last name?
Blinky the Wonder Wombat on 16 Aug 2012 at 1:18 pm #
Bob, near Mark-
But do you know Rocky & Bullwinkle’s full names and the significance of their middle initials?
David in Austin on 16 Aug 2012 at 1:24 pm #
Sandcastler, The devil you say! I loved every one of the items you list. I still like any sort of Jello salad. One favorite is “Mango Tango” with peach jello, canned mangoes, cream cheese, and Cool Whip. There’s nothing like a tuna or chicken casserole to go along with the Jello. From the school cafeteria, we often had Beanie Weeinies, but I really liked the Friday “shepherd’s pie”. I also enjoyed a good frozen chicken, beef, or turkey pot pie. That was back in the day that the pies actually had some vegetables and meat, not just a bit of sauce–and they had full top and bottom crusts.
If we really want to talk about less than delectable food, we should discuss some of the main dishes in the military “Meals-Ready-to-Eat” or MREs. There’s nothing like a pouch of cold spaghetti or chicken ala-king to brighten one’s day. From the old C-Ration days, my least favorite of all was scrambled eggs and ham. I believe they are the basis for Dr. Seuss’ “Green Eggs and Ham.” I do not like them, here or there, I do not like them anywhere!
Bob, near Mark on 16 Aug 2012 at 1:46 pm #
Blinky,
“J” for Jay Ward.
Bob, near Mark on 16 Aug 2012 at 1:49 pm #
Dave in Austin,
With all of the great restaurants around Austin, you shouldn’t have to worry about MREs!
John in Virginia on 16 Aug 2012 at 2:08 pm #
Dave in Austin, MREs are all that bad…if you remember the Tabasco sauce or Louisiana Hot Sauce. Was it C-Rations or K-Rations during Nam? Jeez, can’t remember, just recall the stuff in the cans. Hot sauce often made them semi-palatable, the greatest cooking magic ever made! It figures, Mindy actuall LIKED ham and beans! She added pepper, admitted would be better with Tabasco. She didn’t believe me when I told her the grunts’ name for that particular menu item. We keep a week’s supply of MREs on hand for winter storm power outages. Have to rotate stock, though, since we fortunately haven’t had to reach into that larder. Bob near Mark, I’m the goulash and casserole chef in the family, not that Mindy can’t fix them as well as or better, but just because I enjoy fixing the stuff. I fix a three-cheese noodle casserole with hamburger, ham and bacon that sounds like instant heart attack but is great, especially since I use mushrooms and a mushroom sauce. Mindy allows me to have it twice a year if my cholesterol readings are close to acceptable.
Dave in MA on 16 Aug 2012 at 2:08 pm #
Ziggy? Stardust comes to mind, as does Marley, but the comic strip character, no, sorry, don’t know…..
Dave in MA on 16 Aug 2012 at 2:10 pm #
John, you get to “have it” only “twice a year” ? Hmmmm……..
I can see it now. How’d you get the black eye? Mindy let me have it!
Mindy on 16 Aug 2012 at 2:12 pm #
That was a bust, Dave in MA.
Dave in MA on 16 Aug 2012 at 2:16 pm #
What? Did you think I was going to say something rude?
Bob, near Mark on 16 Aug 2012 at 2:19 pm #
John in Virginia,
I don’t have to worry about my cholesterol levels. They’re always fine. It’s the blood glucose levels that I have to keep an eye on.
But I do cheat.
My favorite food groups are casseroles, or any Asian recipe where everything is mixed together.
Charlotte in NH on 16 Aug 2012 at 2:20 pm #
Trying to think ….. Miss Mamzelle Hepzibah — Churchy LaFemme — Pogo Possum — Albert Alligator — I guess most of these don’t really count as “family names”. Harold Teen. Brenda Starr!
Neal in Bahstawn on 16 Aug 2012 at 2:22 pm #
Natasha Fatale and Boris Badenov! (Bad-enuff?)
Blinky the Wonder Wombat on 16 Aug 2012 at 2:31 pm #
Bob, near Mark-
Correct on both counts, although Rocky’s full name is Rocket J. Squirrel.
BTW, Homer Simpson middle name is in honor of Jay Ward, also.
Lost in A**2 on 16 Aug 2012 at 2:35 pm #
In the Viet Nam era, we had C-rations. We’d buy them at the commissary for Boy Scout camping trips. I preferred the ham-and-egg meals to the beans-and-franks or spaghetti meals. MREs were okay; I never bothered to add water to the main courses, though.
Powdered eggs have a greenish tinge. They were part of the A-rations, prepared by the cooks in the camp galleys. I’ve always heard that they were the inspiration for Dr Seuss’s story.
Saturday supper was hot dogs, baked beans and brown bread, using Memere’s recipes for the beans and bread. (For those in the know, yes, my father grew up on the Row Dilin line; my mother grew up near ‘Lanta.)
Blinky the Wonder Wombat on 16 Aug 2012 at 2:35 pm #
And speaking of Ziggy Marley (talk about topic drift) our Department’s Head Clerk is a next-door neighbor of Ziggy’s aunt and uncle. He drops by in a humongous RV for a visit when he is in the area. She had never realized how big of a star he until I mentioned it to her.
sandcastler on 16 Aug 2012 at 3:02 pm #
John, twas C-rats in Vietnam. Guessing you were referring to the ham & MF,s. One place I was stationed in Europe had a surplus of inflight meals, these became the Wednesday staple. Every Wednesday the poor KP’s had to sort out the meal of the week, open all the can, and put the contents in the proper serving tray. Nam vets usually avoided the mess hall on Wednesday. As a sidebar, inflight rations were the basic C-rat minus the cigarettes and TP.
Nice to see some of you defending the Lord’s food but, living on those dishes for eight years while getting an education with a strong dose of good ole religion has left me not loving certain dishes.
Mark in TTown on 16 Aug 2012 at 3:04 pm #
Charlotte in NH, Howland Owl,
Bob, near Mark on 16 Aug 2012 at 3:32 pm #
Charlotte in NH,
Here’s a link to Walt Kelly singing “Go-Go Pogo” from his album “Songs of the Pogo”.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=civxnI7nujA
Songs on the album are:
01 – Go-Go Pogo – Walt Kelly
02 – Whence That Wince? – Mike Stewart
03 – Northern Lights
04 – Slopposition
05 – A Song Not For Now
06 – Twirl, Twirl
07 – Parsnoops
08 – The Keen & The Quing
09 – Man’s Best Friend – Walt Kelly
10 – Don’t Sugar Me – Fia Karin
11 – Whither The Starling – Mike Stewart
12 – Willow The Wasp
13 – Truly True
14 – Many Harry Returns
15 – Potlucky
16 – The Hazy Yon
17 – Evidence – Mike Stewart
18 – Lines Upon A Tranquil Brow – Walt Kelly
Mark in TTown on 16 Aug 2012 at 3:43 pm #
Sandcastler and John, this site should bring not so fond memories:http://www.mreinfo.com/
After looking at some of the stuff the USSR gave its troops, I wonder they could march at all!
sandcastler on 16 Aug 2012 at 3:58 pm #
Mark in TTown,
Thanks for the link. At least Mother Russia gives her guys a tiny folding stove. We had to improvise. One popular was using a church key to place vents in the top of an empty c-rat can. Then placing a small bit of C4 (yes the explosive, it burns hot when light; only explodes with a detonator) then placing can to be heated over this; being sure can is opened.
John in Virginia on 16 Aug 2012 at 3:59 pm #
Oh, yeah, C-rations. I chould have remembered, C for…oh, never mind that. I have to admit, the Navy did feed well…most of the time, but with two hardship tours I had more than my share of the canned gunk. Thanks for the MRE site, Mark. Looks like some new recipes, maybe even better? I once found a gullible Coast Guard E-3 who thought he was getting a deal for “trophys” when I traded him 300 Ham and the other thing for a fifth of Southern Comfort. His Chief tracked me down and asked if I felt guilty about taking advantage of the young man. I said no and offered him a drink of the Comfort which he took gladly. Never did get into a discussion of what Southern Comfort was doing on a U. S. man of war. {They are that, aren’t they?}
Dave in MA? Mindy says to tell you that, no, she didn’t think you’d get rude. She knows this crowd better than that. {Or so she thinks.}
sandcastler on 16 Aug 2012 at 4:04 pm #
Oh yes,the Soviet used lots of high grade alcohol in place of hydraulic fluid. In cold climates it does not solidify like hydraulic fluid. Downsides are: the stuff is highly flammable (imagine a tank getting hit) and it is drinkable. Many Soviet armored units were unfit for combat due to the lack of alcohol and drunken troopers; wonder why?
Mary in Ohio on 16 Aug 2012 at 4:16 pm #
Hmmmm – comic strip last names (excluding the ones like Morgan, Tracy, Worth,Parker, Trail,etc.)
Charlie and Sally Brown, Lucy and Linus and Rerun Van Pelt, Violet Gray, Peppermint Patty Reichardt
Lulu Moppett, Tubby Thompkins, Iggy and Annie McGee
The Lone Ranger is really Dan Reid – the great uncle of Green Lantern Brit Reid
Dennis Mitchell, the son of Henry and Alice
In Zits, Jeremy is the son of Walt and Connie Duncan.
Rose is married to Jimbo Gumbo and they have a son Pasquale
The family in For Better for Worse are the Pattersons. The families in Stone Soup and Soup to Nutz have last names too but darned if I can remember them.
Mindy on 16 Aug 2012 at 4:19 pm #
We’re a gaggle of comic gurus! [I can't spell Afficianados.] Does ANYONE remember Steve Canyon?
sandcastler on 16 Aug 2012 at 4:31 pm #
Mindy, I sure do remember Col. Canyon. Have a 1991 poster commentating the stand down of the Aggressor Squadrons at Nellis AFB. It shows the three aircraft models the Aggressor flew. The first was a two seat T38, in the artists rendering Col. Steve Canyon is the name stenciled on the front seat. This poster hangs proudly in my office, it also contains unit patches in both English and Russian for the 64th and 65th Squadrons.
phil in Missoula, MT on 16 Aug 2012 at 4:32 pm #
Mindy, the comic strip or the TV program?
I’ve seen both
Mary in Ohio on 16 Aug 2012 at 4:34 pm #
Sure – AND Terry and the Pirates! If I could’ve been able to draw that realisticly I would bever have taken up photographry.
phil in Missoula, MT on 16 Aug 2012 at 4:34 pm #
I remember my brother, a cynical soul even then, remarking that the Air Force would never get off the ground without those little ladders next to the planes.
Mary in Ohio on 16 Aug 2012 at 4:39 pm #
Or photography. Obviously I never could have been a professional typist.
Mindy on 16 Aug 2012 at 4:47 pm #
Okay, let’s see you top this one! What was the name of the technicolor television show late 50s early 50s in which a Civil War veteran with one arm [the other, his left, I think, was artificial and made of metal which also make a heck of a weapon!] and was either a sheriff or a law and order drifter? John says to give you a hint, he used the Colt Army .44, 1858 model.
sandcastler on 16 Aug 2012 at 5:17 pm #
Mindy, Tate.
However, Colt produced an Army 1861 in caliber .44. The New Army Model 1858 was Remington. The Remington has a top strap while the Colt does not. This feature made for a stronger frame. Have fired both; the Colt is lighter hence quicker to draw, IMHO the Remington is more accurate. Both are “muzzle leaders.” During the War Between the States, Calvary men carried these in pairs on saddle holsters, as well as a side arm. Many carried extra loaded cylinders to speed up reload time.
sandcastler on 16 Aug 2012 at 5:29 pm #
Dang spell church, s/b muzzle loaders.
sideburns on 16 Aug 2012 at 6:02 pm #
John, I know a former Staff Sergeant (Air Force) who refers to MREs as Meals Rejected by Ethiopians.
And, let us not forget about Brutus Thornapple, The Born Loser.
Blinky the Wonder Wombat on 16 Aug 2012 at 6:38 pm #
Mary in Ohio- the family in Stone soup is… The Stones. (At least Val, Holly,and Allix are surnamed Stone).
Ghost Rider 6 on 16 Aug 2012 at 6:47 pm #
Hey, I liked the ham and lima beans, too. Finally, something Dear Mindy and I have in common.
Lady Mindy and I already discovered something in common…no tattoos.
Anyone just joining us here…it’s a long story.
Mark in Boston on 16 Aug 2012 at 7:37 pm #
Comic characters WITHOUT last names are the rare ones, and they are usually unnamed for a reason such as to make them more of an “everyman”. Calvin and Hobbes have no last names, and Calvin’s parents have no names at all.
I don’t think Little Nemo in Slumberland ever had a last name (it wasn’t “Slumberland”). Nemo never did much of anything but watch the action happening around him.
Does Charles Rodrigues’ “Charlie” have a last name? (Probably Rodrigues.)
How about Carl Anderson’s “Henry”?
Mindy on 16 Aug 2012 at 7:53 pm #
sandcastler, you never cease to awe and amaze me! I admit writing the wrong year, stand corrected. A common mistake people make re the 1861 is the Army and Navy part. Most thing the Dragoon, a completely different model, is the Army .44 while the 1861 is the Colt Navy in .36. Irony is that they’re the same except that the .44 is the Army version while the .36 is the Navy line. I can make John so mad just by saying that Colt proves the Army outguns the Navy by using the .44 while the Squids use the peashooter. Don’t ever get him started on the relative merits of .38, .357 Magnum and .40 S&W, .45acp and .44 Magnum. I showed him a news story that said the Marines are going back to the 1911A1 which pleased him, but he pointed out that the Corps has been putting the Beretta aside now for several years. The 9mm gained popularity when the FBI had their immutable law that a .38 is all that is ever needed after two or three agents were gunned down and outgunned in Florida. The 9mm, I think, wasn’t much better but at least it offered more than 6 rounds. Then there was the rush for the 10mm which was put into production and use far too soon. I still favor the .40 and .45acp over anything. Am I preaching again? I’m just sayin’…
Ghost, I think I could burn out on the Limas and [...] rather quickly and I have to admit that what did save them for me was [a] scraping off a ton and a half of grease/fat, and, [b] General McInhenney’s fabulous Tabasco sauce. I toured Avery Island once, where the Tabasco peppers are grown and turned into God’s answer to anything tasteless, and that was interesting. Was challenged to bite into one of those little red devils, the guy thinking I’d pass out or something. I asked for another one. John won $10 on me, bless hit little heart.
Mark in Boston, Calvin’s parents’ names are Mom and Dad.
sandcastler on 16 Aug 2012 at 7:53 pm #
Edward Roger Dale (Ed) Crankshaft St.
TruckerRon on 16 Aug 2012 at 7:56 pm #
Mary in Ohio, “Green Lantern Brit Reid” should be “Green Hornet Brit Reid.”
Mindy, was that “Tate”? We only had B&W until 1965, so I remember it without the Technicolor. And wasn’t Robert Redford, who once almost ran me over, in it? Years ago I made a right onto US-189 near the mouth of Provo Canyon — the fool came flying out of the canyon going well over the 55 mph limit, passed me like I wasn’t moving and vanished around the next curve. Whatever he was driving then (early 1980s) was purple. I asked my neighbor, a Provo cop, who it might have been and he claimed it was Redford.
Mark in TTown on 16 Aug 2012 at 8:11 pm #
Mindy, when your ship is armed with 32lb smoothbores or even larger rifled guns, mounted in multiple gun broadsides, .38 vs .44 is a small difference. Remember, the Navy carries small arms to use in boarding actions where you will be rather close to your opponents. I am sorry to see the big guns disappearing from the Navy’s ships because you can’t jam a shell in flight. And you can use them without radar guidance.
Mindy on 16 Aug 2012 at 8:17 pm #
You awe and amaze me also, TurckerRon! Yep. Robert Redford was in it, 1960 series. I’d love to find it on DVD but can’t. Even the Pirates can’t locate it and they can usually dig out anything. Not that I know any Pirates, of course. I’m speaking hypothetically. Purple sounds like something Redford would drive. He once told Paul Newman he, Redford, was the better driver. As I recall, they settled the issue at either Riverside or Lagona Seca [sp?] in Porsches and Newman waxed him. There was a time when McQueen and Newman were supposed to compete against each other. Apparently they were lifelong rivals and even the marquee billing for “The Towering Inferno” showed that. Newman was billed first, but McQueen’s name was HIGHER on the marquee and promotional posters. Anyway, that race never happened because the studios didn’t want to see either one killed trying to best the other. John has an autographed “LeMans” poster, the Gulf oil promotional offering, that he treasures almost as much as he treasures me. Right, John? John? Right?
Mark in TTown on 16 Aug 2012 at 8:39 pm #
Mindy, good news! Tate is available on DVD at Amazon. Entire series on 3 DVD. Here is the link ; http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000WM8IJG/?tag=googhydr-20&hvadid=13657559625&hvpos=1t1&hvexid=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=2359066551651354469&hvpone=21.99&hvptwo=37&hvqmt=b&ref=pd_sl_5f8x7ajp2n_b
If that doesn’t work, just go to Amazon and search it.
Mindy on 16 Aug 2012 at 8:50 pm #
Thank you, Mark! I’ll dance at your wedding, as my Daddy would say to show his gratitude!
Shelly on 16 Aug 2012 at 8:51 pm #
Ninety-one posts on a Thursday? Isn’t this a record? Jimmy, there’s no way anyone can say your work hasn’t attracted a loyal fan base!
Charlotte in NH on 16 Aug 2012 at 9:01 pm #
Sandcastler, I’m ashamed of not remembering Ed Crankshaft; one of my favorite strips. Blinky the W W, of course, the Stones! Mary in Ohio, your list of characters is awesome. What a memory you have. Now I do recall Funky Winkerbean, easy with Crankshaft. How about Curtis, his family must have a last name?
Charlotte in NH on 16 Aug 2012 at 9:11 pm #
Mark in TTown, Howland Owl, how could I forget? (I’ve been really curious to know what TTown is; could you enlighten me?) Bob, near Mark, thank you for the YouTube link. The photos and drawings are great. The song is pretty good too.
Mark in TTown on 16 Aug 2012 at 9:18 pm #
Mindy, you are very welcome. You know everybody has some oddball talent. Mine is finding things. I even spent a couple of years in the skip trace department of an auto repossession service.
Charlotte in NH, TTown is the local nickname for Tuscaloosa, AL. Another is the Druid City, because of the large oak trees everywhere around town.
Here is a link for a comic reference site which y’all might find useful.
http://www.toonopedia.com/
Judy on 16 Aug 2012 at 10:46 pm #
I enjoy your cartoon everyday in the Florence Morning News here in SC. I really enjoy reading about Gene’s experiences. I love Janis’s reactions to some of his antics. She reacts much the way that I do to my child who is also an adult now. Thanks for sharing this with me. Keep up the great work.
Big E on 16 Aug 2012 at 10:49 pm #
On the TV show Malcolm in the Middle, the last name was Wilkerson.
Lost in A**2 on 16 Aug 2012 at 11:37 pm #
The last time I did the arithmetic, 9pm came out 0.357 and 10mm to 0.40. The real difference is revolver vs. self-loader. Ya pays yer money and ya takes yer chance.
Mindy on 17 Aug 2012 at 1:07 am #
Lost in A**2, the difference between 10mm and .40 is the length of the casing, primarily. The 10mm is little more than a .357 Magnum.
Blinky the Wonder Wombat on 17 Aug 2012 at 5:55 am #
Curtis Wilkins.
emeritus Minnesota biologist on 17 Aug 2012 at 7:12 am #
Churchy La Femme, Abijah[sp?] Gooch[sp?].
Steve from Royal Oak, MI on 17 Aug 2012 at 7:44 am #
With reruns and DVD collections, it is fun to see how names change and people disappear. The oldest son in My Three Sons, Tim Considine ran off and got married, never to be seen again. Or Richie Cunningham’s older brother Chuck who left the series after 2 seasons.
MASH had Henry’s wife as Mildred, eventually evolving to (Sweet) Lorraine. Col Potter’s wife was Mildred, but Harry Morgan, who played Potter had appeared in an earlier episode as a looney General. Sady he passed away at age 96 earlier this year as did Don Grady (much younger though) who played one of the “Three Sons”
Both of these shows lasted a long time and ran into the same problems comic strips run into. MASH lasted 8 years longer than the war and eventually the Three Sons grew up….but very slowly.
Dan in SWMo on 17 Aug 2012 at 5:28 pm #
Concerning gelatin salads (note that I am not using the brand name generically), I had shredded carrots in gelatin many times growing up; also fruit cocktail in gelatin. The inclusion I don’t much care for is miniature marshmallows.
Norm in Utah on 20 Aug 2012 at 3:31 pm #
Mary in Ohio
The Lone Ranger was John Reid. Dan was HIS nephew, the son of his murdered brother (in the ambush by the Butch Cavendish gang. And Glenn Strange, who played Butch Cavendish, later tended bar at the Long Branch for many years (as well as taking a turn at Frankenstein’s monster in Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein).