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 have something to say about pollution."
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 one is obviously heartfelt but also downright sad. It originally appeared in Archie #144, March 1964:
Dear Archie:
My father, brother and myself go places all the time. (My mother is deceased.) Last summer we went to the Seattle World's Fair ... A couple of years ago we visited our grandmother in Boston ... Every few years we visit her ...
... As you've probably guessed, I love horses and horseback riding. That as you can see is my hobby. You'll probably laugh at what I'm going to say next as everybody else does. I'm trying to save money for a horse. It will take me some time at the rate I'm going. But my father doesn't think it's as stupid as everybody else does. He even agreed to pay half. I'm only going to save about $150. I'm only 10 years old, but I believe strongly in God. I know that He will help me.
I only have one pet, a kitten. I won't have him for long either. My father does not like pets. Everyone we have ever had has died. I guess that's why he doesn't like pets.
First that I can remember, we had a dog. He was black & white, so we named him Frosty Midnight. He was playing and he swallowed a rubber ball and died.
Sarah Batchelder
242 E. Home Street
Long Beach, Calif.
Sarah's letter won first prize of five dollars for this issue.
jeezus what a downer!
kid reminds me of me, except for the strong belief in God.
Posted by: zom | May 25, 2008 at 10:00 AM
I started laughing after reading this... Not because of the kids situation, just something about the context makes it funny...
At least.. I hope that's what I was laughing about...
Posted by: Alex | May 25, 2008 at 06:38 PM