WFMU's Beware of the Blog

I Believe That (Stoned) Children Are Our Future

While Dr. Seuss may have quietly but most assuredly extolled the virtues of LSD, some kids' authors are being a little less subtle when it comes to the Sweet Leaf. Follow the pictoral excerpts from the new publication It's Just A Plant and get involved in your kids' choices. Bryce thinks maybe this kid has already made her choice. However, I think what really should be outlawed is taking your kid bike riding wearing Sgt. Pepper garb, but who am I to judge. (Thanks for link, Tom Lax.)

Fumetti Terror Blu on Groovy Age of Horror

(NSFW) The Groovy Age of Horror is a blog devoted to bizarre horror paperbacks, comics and movies. For the past year the curators have been posting scans of Italian Fumetti (comics), starting with the wild and weird series Terror Blu. The stories are a sick and hilarious mix of gynecological and genital terror told within ludicrous sci-fi storylines The stuff is not for the faint of heart but I'm sure your ghoulish curiosity will get the better of you as you scratch your head wondering how anyone concocted such a carnival of carnage.

Joe Belock Graffiti Extends to Comic World

Garfield As a Real Cat / Garfield Removed

As if the daily Marmaduke Explained wasn't enough postmodernism for your morning coffee, now another cartoon animal icon seems to be getting tamper treatment with unusual frequency these days. First I saw this take on Garfield which actually casts him as a real cat (top, via Cynical C Blog). Then, Magpie offered Exhibit B (bottom) in which he is wiped from the strip completely. In full disclosure though, this is just another excuse to post a link to Meatus Murder's  "El Garfield" (MP3), possibly the only time you'll ever hear Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds song altered to cast a spotlight on an overweight lasagna-eating feline. Though with Blixa Bargeld's culinary talents, there may indeed be many more of those kinds of songs in their catalogue.

My Favorite Mandrake the Magician Strip

Mandrake the Magician not only gestured hypnotically, he also dreamt hypnotically.

Mandrake creator Lee Falk spent his early World War Two years dispensing disinformation as Propaganda Director for radio station KMOX in Illinois. Aside from creating The Phantom and Mandrake, he was apparently nuts about theatre--he owned five of them. Falk wrote a couple of plays, produced more than three hundred and even filled the directing chair when he felt like it. His dedicated ensemble included Basil Rathbone, Shelly Winters, Victor Jory, Marlon Brando, Ethel Waters, Chico Marx, James Mason, Paul Robeson, Paul Newman, and Eva Gabor.

Falk wrote the script for Mandrake from 1934 until his last days hospital-bound in New York City in the spring of 1999. Tearing off his oxygen mask, Lee would dictate Mandrake's latest adventures to an attentive assistant.

One time Falk remarked:

"Each artist, out of his own interests and imagination, creates his own world in his strip - this is true of Peanuts, Beetle Bailey, Popeye, all good strips. And you accomplish this not by imitating others - you come up with your own idea. To me, The Phantom and Mandrake are very real - much more than the people walking around whom I don't see very much. You have to believe in your own characters."

This is my favorite Mandrake strip. It was one of the last strips that Falk wrote. I remember the rest of the week as being pretty stellar as well.

Here I Come To Save The Dazed

Bruce Wayne...owner of a private technology firm, philanthropist, Episcopalian, halfwit millionaire, uppity faux playboy, Caped Crusader, Dark Kni...

Episcopalian?

Hey, fictional average Joes with secret alter-egos--or, in Batman's case, fictional secret alter-egos with secret average Joes--have the right to worthily magnify, too.  Superheroes can make negligibly impetuous decisions from time to time ("Bruce Wayne, Dick...pleased to make your acquaintance") or might need a little hand to revive a dead guy (The Thing evoking the Godhead in Yiddish to attempt saving the life of Yancy Street's resident pawnbroker, Mr. Sheckenberg).  Nothing's ever dictated they can't summon the lean, mean Lamb and the Heavenly Host Posse when confronted with an ethical or spiritual quandary they can't seem to lick on their own. 

Let's face it; batarangs, lassoes or forms of a methyl trichloride-soaked towel or 5th Avenue bar laced with a gentle laxative don't lend much credence if, in some of the more heavily devout cases, they're not backed up by the messianic seal of approval courtesy of--dare I say--The Backhand.  The Big Black Bat, Zatanna (eclectic Pentecostal Dianic Wiccan--hoooo), The Man of Steel (Kryptonian religion AND Methodist) and many more are humbly belting out rousing flourishes of "Kumbaya" around the ecumenical campfire in this canonical compendium of superpower sectarianism.  Don't ask me how these creeps found their way into the circle.  Yeah...not warmly invited.

Anyway, praise the Lord--and pass the Holy Bat-Drinking Water Dispenser!!

Any Book Depicting Don Henley Being Savaged By Crazed Birds = Perfect Post-Xmas Gift

Thanks to the artist just known as "Mark" (perhaps wisely forgetting to put his last name to avoid having Glenn Danzig and Jerry Only show up at his front door) for sending his Slade Vs the Monkeys comic book, as well as allowing us to put some of his artistic executions up on the blog. The Goner store should have 'em ready for your shopping cart. In the meantime, enjoy such scenes captured as:

 

If a fish needs a bike ...

... does a duck need a car?

(And was it Spitzer's idea to give this volatile malcontent a license in the first place?)

Sad Archie Club News #1

President and co-publisher of Archie Comics, Richard Goldwater, passed away last week at the age of old. He was the son of John Goldwater, one of the heads of MLJ, the comic book company that created Archie. MLJ gave birth to Archie in a 1941 issue of Pep Comics. If you're like me, you remember thinking the day that issue came out, "He's no Cubby Bear." It was the elder John who arranged the deal with Spire Christian Comics to allow Al Hartley use of the Riverdale characters for a line of "Christian Archies." Anyway, his son Richard started working for the company in the fifties and remained there until his death. Archie Comics made the official announcement concerning Goldwater's passing over the weekend and you can read it here. Funny enough, most of the obits I've read so far did the same thing I just did and spoke primarily of his father's achievements. Sorry about that Rich. (In the photo L-R: managing editor Victor Gorelick, co-owner and publishers Michael Silberkleit and Richard Goldwater. Click to enlarge.)

Archie Club News #15

Throughout the nineteen sixties, seventies and eighties, most issues of Archie Comics featured a two-page spread titled Archie Club News. The banner at the top of the page announced, "ARCHIE CLUB MEMBERS send in your reports and be eligible to win cash prizes in the Archie Series Magazines." The results of this venture were generally irrelevant notes sent in like, "Dear Archie, I want to tell you about Citizen Band Radios..." Often what was sent in appeared to be part of a class project. Elementary school children were in the process of learning how to write letters and encouraged by a teacher to send something Riverdale way. Sometimes the letters were weird or even profound and other times prophetic or just silly. The following letter originally appeared in Laugh #236, November 1970:

Dear Archie,

How would you like to start out on a peaceful trip to Europe, and end up in a Russian invasion?

Holy Batman, Batman!

The internet, as we all know, is good for nerds of all types. Whether you're obsessed with Doo Wop from 1954 only, the life and times of Conrad Janis, the adventures of Dick Tracy in outer space, or simply a greasy twerp who has never seen a naked woman - the internet is for you.

Personally, I'm a Batman nerd. Specifically a devotee of the Batman television show starring Adam West and Burt Ward. The internet has been very good to us.

Robin and a Hooker in Kansas - I don't even know what to make of this footage. Here we have an interviewer determined to get the dirt on Batman and Robin's homosexuality and Robin producing a floozy to thwart off all suspicion. It's just too much -  Burt Ward was obviously trying desperately to retain his fame and popularity as we find him in the early seventies appearing at the Joyland Amusement Park in Wichita, Kansas. It also starts off with the song Boy Wonder, I Love You.

The Burt Ward Sessions -  When I heard about this project - I couldn't believe I had not heard of this project. In 1968, Burt Ward as Robin collaborated with Frank Zappa - creating one of the great novelty songs of all time Boy Wonder, I Love You. It was based on actual fan mail addressed to the young Dick Grayson. Listen to that track and its equally perverse flipside, Orange Colored Sky, composed by the eccentric Milton DeLugg (the subject of a soon to be released article in this very spot) over here. You can also hear the alternate tracks, the instrumentals, the un-used tracks and everything else from this incredible session on the same page. Read what Burt Ward had to say about his Frank Zappa record making experience in his autobiography My Life in Tights at the bottom of this page.

More fun after Les Jumps...

Archie Club News #14

Throughout the nineteen sixties, seventies and eighties, most issues of Archie Comics featured a two-page spread titled Archie Club News. The banner at the top of the page announced, "ARCHIE CLUB MEMBERS send in your reports and be eligible to win cash prizes in the Archie Series Magazines." The results of this venture were generally irrelevant notes sent in like, "Dear Archie, I want to tell you about my infection..." Often what was sent in appeared to be part of a class project. Elementary school children were in the process of learning how to write letters and encouraged by a teacher to send something Riverdale way. Sometimes the letters were weird or even profound and other times prophetic or just silly.

The following letter originally appeared in Reggie & Me #42, July 1970:

Dear Archie,

I would like to tell you about my project for the year 1970. The project is raising money for my mother's and father's anniversary gift. My goal is $8.00. I am going to raise this money by doing odd jobs around the house and not spending any money on candy. These are some tips if someone else is trying to raise money.

Deborah Lofthouse
5905 Electric Avenue
Berkely, Calif. 60163

Deborah was two dollars closer to her goal when she won the third prize for her letter this issue. Any punctuation or spelling errors are recreated here just as they appear in the actual comic book.

Archie Club News #11, #12 and #13

Throughout the nineteen sixties, seventies and eighties, most issues of Archie Comics featured a two-page spread titled Archie Club News. The banner at the top of the page announced, "ARCHIE CLUB MEMBERS send in your reports and be eligible to win cash prizes in the Archie Series Magazines." The results of this venture were generally irrelevant notes sent in like, "Dear Archie, the lion is known as King of the Jungle..." Often what was sent in appeared to be part of a class project. Elementary school children were in the process of learning how to write letters and encouraged by a teacher to send something Riverdale way. Sometimes the letters were weird or even profound and other times prophetic or just silly.

The following letter originally appeared in Life with Archie #105, January 1971:

Dear Archie,

These days more and more people seem to be finding themselves. They seem to have found their "bags" as a hip person might put it. But I suppose that I have known what my bag has been for the longest time. My bag is reading. It might sound weird and dull to you, but that is what it is. And although it may be weird it is far from dull ... Young persons today tend to experiment with drugs and other things, so why don't they try reading? You can certainly become addicted to it, but it's not a harmful addiction. You have nothing to lose and as a matter of fact you actually gain a lot ...

Archie Club News #9 and #10

Throughout the nineteen sixties, seventies and eighties, most issues of Archie Comics featured a two-page spread titled Archie Club News. The banner at the top of the page announced, "ARCHIE CLUB MEMBERS send in your news reports and be eligible to win cash prizes in the Archie Series Magazines." The results of this venture were generally irrelevant notes sent in like "Dear Archie, Let me tell you about composting." Often what was sent in appeared to be part of a class project. Elementary school children were in the process of learning how to write letters and encouraged by a teacher to send something Riverdale way. Sometimes the letters were weird or even profound and other times prophetic or just silly.

The following letter originally appeared in Life with Archie #224, July 1981:

Dear Archie,

First of all, I don't think we should be assigned homework, because this is what our everyday schedule turns out to be: go to school for six and a half hours, get home and have about two hours to play, eat and do homework, then have about an hour to watch television or read, then go to bed!!!

Also, if the town decides to put a new road in, what have kids got to say about it? Nothing! We just watch all the nature and animals get torn away! Then everyone says we can do our part to help, but our part is a tiny speck ...

Also, I do think there should be some more DECENT movies. It's been at least four months since I've gone to the show.

Janise Orton
167 East Main Street
Springville, N.Y. 14141

The furious Janise Orton won the first prize of six dollars for this issue. Another child with strong opinions after the jump...

Archie Club News #8

Throughout the nineteen sixties, seventies and eighties, most issues of Archie Comics featured a two-page spread titled Archie Club News. The banner at the top of the page announced, "ARCHIE CLUB MEMBERS send in your news reports and be eligible to win cash prizes in the Archie Series Magazines." The results of this venture were generally irrelevant notes sent in like "Dear Archie, Have you ever seen a giraffe?" Often what was sent in appeared to be part of a class project. Elementary school children were in the process of learning how to write letters and encouraged by a teacher to send something Riverdale way. Sometimes the letters were weird or even profound and other times prophetic or just silly.

The following letter originally appeared in Jughead #190, April 1971:

Dear Archie,

I love listening to synthetic music with my stereo. That is, music from a moog computer. Sometimes I can get the sound completely balanced, and it is hard to tell where the sound is coming from. It sounds real neat! It's easy to read while I listen, because certain, well-synthesized tempered music isn't very distracting, and it is easy to understand what you are reading. However, I wouldn't recommend doing homework and listening to it at the same time.

Keith MacNevins
528 S. Edgewood Avenue
Lombard, Ill. 60148

Kevin's letter won the fourth prize of one dollar for this issue.

EXTRA ADDED SUPER SECRET SPECIAL BONUS: I'm sure Kevin would have loved this. It's Claude Denjean and his moog synthesizer performing The Archies' number one hit Sugar, Sugar.

Archie Club News #7

Throughout the nineteen sixties, seventies and eighties, most issues of Archie Comics featured a two-page spread titled Archie Club News. The banner at the top of the page announced, "ARCHIE CLUB MEMBERS send in your news reports and be eligible to win cash prizes in the Archie Series Magazines." The results of this venture were generally irrelevant notes sent in like "Dear Archie, I love your records and cartoon show - they are the most!" Often what was sent in appeared to be part of a class project. Elementary school children were in the process of learning how to write letters and encouraged by a teacher to send something Riverdale way. Sometimes the letters were weird or even profound and other times prophetic or just silly.

This letter originally appeared in Laugh #186, September 1966:

Dear Archie,

I took a trip to Disneyland last summer. I had the most fun ... in the motel. At night when we were looking out of the motel there were beautiful sights. Everything was so colorful and bright. The scenery is very nice at night. In the motel we had two bedrooms and a kitchen. I was very sorry when we came back home. But I still love the place. I hope that everybody gets to go to Disneyland.

Nanette Szabo
1601 Spring Road
Cleveland, Ohio

This letter won the fifth prize of one dollar. Sort of reminds you of that old cliché about the kid who receives an expensive toy as a gift but ends up being more interested in the empty box. A google search informs us that Ms. Szabo is now a customer service rep for a chemical company in Avon, Ohio. The small town of Avon is home to the annual Avon Heritage Duct Tape Festival!

Archie Club News #6

Previously I have stated that "most issues of Archie Comics featured a two-page spread titled Archie Club News." Most, but not all. In titles like That Wilkin' Boy or Betty and Me, the spot usually reserved for Archie Club News featured readers sending their letters and questions to advice columns manned by their favorite comic book characters. The following is from the feature "Dear Betty and Veronica."

This letter originally appeared in Archie Giant Series Magazine: Betty and Veronica Spectacular  #210, July 1973.

I'm kind of fat, but all in the middle -- sort of what you'd call a "spare tire" ! The boy I like keeps complimenting me! He says I have a cute face and nice legs and if I lost weight I'd be beautiful! Should I take this as a joke or that maybe he really likes me?

J.C., B'KLYN, N.Y.

The reply came from either Betty or Veronica - it is not specified which. I'm going to guess it was Veronica who devised this answer:

A "spare tire" is never a joke! I think he really likes you and I wouldn't "spare" anytime getting rid of the "spare tire"!

Archie Club News #5

Throughout the nineteen sixties, seventies and eighties, most issues of Archie Comics featured a two-page spread titled Archie Club News. The banner at the top of the page announced, "ARCHIE CLUB MEMBERS send in your news reports and be eligible to win cash prizes in the Archie Series Magazines." The results of this venture were generally irrelevant notes sent in like "Dear Archie, Let me tell you the day I got a tape worm..." Often what was sent in appeared to be part of a class project. Elementary school children were in the process of learning how to write letters and encouraged by a teacher to send something Riverdale way. Sometimes the letters were weird or even profound and other times prophetic or just silly.

This letter originally appeared in The New Archies #14 May 1989:

Dear Archie:

My report is on computers ... In the future, computers will become an even more important part of our lives than they are today. Computers will also be different and more powerful. While some people say that computers will never replace humans because computers can't think, that's not necessarily true. Scientists are already experimenting with computers that can actually think for themselves! Who knows, maybe when you grow up, computers will have the right to vote!

Stephen Perkins
Cordele, GA

I think Stephen accurately predicts the problems we'd experience eleven years later with computerized voting machines. Although computers do not legally possess the right to vote, they are more than willing to change a vote for a democrat to that of a republican. Good call Stephen. By the way, I'm fairly certain that this Stephen Perkins is not the drummer from Jane's Addiction.

If you've read the other letters in our Archie Club News series you may also notice a difference here. Archie Comics decided by the late eighties to no longer print the child's full street address. Previously the full name, city, street address and zip code were provided for all to read. Initially, the concept behind giving out a letter writer's address was to encourage the worldwide Archie Comics pen pal program. By signing up to be a card carrying member of the exclusive Archie Club you also allowed yourself to be put on the roster of lonely children desperate to find somebody else who read Archie comics. Did it instead encourage molesters to lure kids with promises of free Archie Comics instead of candy? Probably not, but one imagines that was the reasoning behind the change.

For Those Missing the Dysfunctional Family Circus

Looks like Wayne Butane has taken to scrambling the visual medium with the same vigor as his famed audio cut-ups (and he's offering a lot of that too, not to mention some of his collected MP3s in case you really feel the need to hear a Mick Jagger/Sam Kinison duet on "Under My Thumb").

Wayne Butane on WFMU
A Very Special Wayne Butane Xmas (Excerpt) (MP3)

You Are Going to Relax. Begin By Making Yourself Perfectly Comfortable. Sit Down in Your Favorite Chair. As You Find Your Mind Relaxing ... Deeper ... And Deeper.

That title is the opening schpiel from hypnotist, illusionist and self-described impossiblist Reveen's aptly titled LP Relax with Reveen. Reveen was an Australian performer who toured Canada extensively for many decades and played Vegas constantly. He also released several LPs of helpful hypnotism to curb your smoking, over-eating and nervous tension. If you're a record collector, chances are you have some of his stuff in your home. Recently, the fine website Stupid Comics unearthed a rare one-off oddity - a Reveen comic book that showcases Reveen, his four bearded children, his bearded house and his bearded car. If that doesn't make immediate sense, follow the link and it will. Well, maybe not. Regardless, if you follow the link you will see a lot of bearded objects. The comic was a promotional give-away published in Montreal in 1965. Here it is!

Archie Club News #3 and #4

Throughout the nineteen sixties, seventies and eighties, most issues of Archie Comics featured a two-page spread titled Archie Club News. The banner at the top of the page announced, "ARCHIE CLUB MEMBERS send in your news reports and be eligible to win cash prizes in the Archie Series Magazines." The results of this venture were generally irrelevant notes sent in like "Dear Archie, Let me tell you about the time I got food poisoning..." Often what was sent in appeared to be part of a class project. Elementary school children were in the process of learning how to write letters and encouraged by a teacher to send something Riverdale way. Sometimes the letters were weird or even profound as we saw in posts one and two of this series. I've been sorting through my musty collection of Archie Comics trying to find the next gem but, believe me, Starchild is a very tough act to follow. That is why today I am posting two letters, to sorta soften the blow of having to follow a kid from space.

This letter originally appeared in Jughead #164, January 1969:

Dear Archie,

Archie Club News #2

Throughout the nineteen sixties, seventies and eighties, most issues of Archie Comics featured a two-page spread titled Archie Club News. The banner at the top of the page announced, "ARCHIE CLUB MEMBERS send in your news reports and be eligible to win cash prizes in the Archie Series Magazines." The results of this venture were generally irrelevant notes sent in like "Dear Archie, Let me tell you about my step-father's rash..." Often what was sent in appeared to be part of a class project in which elementary school children were learning how to write a letter and encouraged to send something Riverdale way. Other times the letters were profound, bizarre or insane. That's the type of letter I wish to showcase in this series. So here then, is the second installment of Beware of the Blog's Archie Club News.

This letter originally appeared in Everything's Archie #77, August 1979:

Dear Archie,

I'm Starchild and the school I attend is called the Space Dome. The school floats on a cloud and is in the shape of an egg. The school starts at the fibus (5th) grade and goes to colony (college). Here at the Space dome, fibus and colony are only 4 grades apart. The reason for that is the highly programmed computers we have teaching us are most effective. We have recess every cardi (3 hours) and of course, lunch time is great. Just push a button and it's anything your heart desires! Subjects consist of Mathdust, Language and Job Careers, Historic Events, and Science 5. We write with small machines similar to calculators. We don't have any books because we use mini-recorders. Imagine what would happen to all of our learning if accidentally we stepped on our mini-recorders & squashed them!

Brenda Dobson
13541 Kaslo Drive
Woodbridge, Va. 22193

Brenda(Starchild)'s letter was the winner of the five dollar grand prize this issue.

Archie Club News #1

Throughout the nineteen sixties, seventies and eighties, most issues of Archie Comics featured a two-page spread titled Archie Club News. The banner at the top of the page announced, "ARCHIE CLUB MEMBERS send in your news reports and be eligible to win cash prizes in the Archie Series Magazines." The results of this venture were generally irrelevant notes sent in like "Dear Archie, Let me tell you about my recent trip to the zoo..." Often what was sent in appeared to be part of a class project in which elementary school children were learning how to write a letter and encouraged to send something Riverdale way. However, other times the letters were profound, bizarre or insane. That's the type of letter I wish to showcase in this series. So here then, is the first installment of Beware of the Blog's Archie Club News.

This letter originally appeared in Archie's T.V. Laugh-Out #10, November 1971:

Dear Archie,

I am writing this letter to tell you my ideas on the world today. First, let's start with the schools. Everyone knows there are riots going on in the schools. I am lucky to go to one where there are no riots but I don't know why there are none. For example our school is in very bad shape. In the senior high, when it rains, the roof leaks in many different places. All they do is throw buckets under the leaks. In the junior high the dressing rooms for gym are run down, with the ceilings caving in. In a couple different places the stairs are falling in. Do they do anything? No. One of these days, someone is going to get hurt or worse. Another thing is the teachers. Without mentioning names I'll give you an example. I have a teacher that told me I was a liar, I was irresponsible and she even told me that there was something wrong with my brain. That is almost like telling me that I am retarted.

Another thing is this war. I read somewhere that we spend over 3 times more on the war than on education. If people would quit worrying about the overseas affairs and look at our country, they would see what a mess we are in. I, myself, am strictly against the war and I believe something should be done about the mess we are in. Another question: Why are we giving so much money and food to foreign countries ... there are millions here in the U.S. dying of starvation. Why not feed them ... We are in fact creating a monster.

Steve Thunberg
332 Wayne Street
Beaver, PA. 15009

Steve's letter was the winner of the five dollar grand prize this issue.

In Celebration of Crud: The Charlton Comics Story

My first introduction to Charlton Comics came as a Hanna-Barbera obsessed child. Nothing excited me more as a five year old than the prospect of watching some Pixie and Dixie, Top Cat, Dynomutt, or any piece of animation with a monotonous reoccurring background during a chase sequence. Charlton Comics eventually found itself with the contract to pump out comic books based on The Flintstones, The Jetsons, and Scooby-Doo to name a few, which had previously been the domain of Western Publishing (a group that put out comics under the Dell, Gold-Key and Whitman monikers) and I was of course instantly drawn to drawings of my cartoon heroes in print form.

You could be sure it was Charlton if Mr. Slate was only recognizable because someone referred to him as Mr. Slate. If Fred's coat was blue, if Wilma's hair was suddenly yellow, this must have been a Charlton comic. Accuracy and faithfulness to the original cartoon was definitely not high on Charlton's priority list, and this was enough to drive a young child (like me) plain mad. "WHY IS FRED FLINTSTONE'S JACKET BLUE!? IT'S NOT BLUE - IT'S RED! MOM! WHY IS FRED FLINTSTONE'S JACKET BLUE?!?" The artists and writers often took liberties with their interpretations of the licensed characters, sometimes going beyond just randomly changing the well-known color models that had been used for years. The Jetsons' robot maid, Rosie, was given white eyes and pupils instead of her standard robotic red buttons. In Charlton's version of Scooby-Doo the dog was constantly using thought bubbles to emulate his observations that his human counterparts could never decipher. It made little sense since in the Saturday morning cartoon he could speak.

Although there were plenty of comic book labels churning out poorly rendered crap while labels like Dell, EC, and National Periodical/DC received all the attention, no other peripheral comic group lasted as long as Charlton. The company was a cringe inducing comic book presence on newsstands for an incredible forty years, from nineteen forty-six to eighty-six. An impressive run for a company who's output was often unreadable.

Li'l Jinx ... Li'l Dead.

What with all the talk of Anna Nicole Smith, somebody seems to have forgotten to let you know that the creator of Li'l Jinx passed away just about twelve hours later. Remember Li'l Jinx? Yeah ... you do.