by Neena Strichart
I have always loved cartoons and comic strips. Watching Deputy Dawg, Daffy Duck, Popeye or Bugs Bunny with young eyes were amazing experiences. I still enjoy those old television re-runs (or those I now have on DVD) and, as a grown-up, I especially get a kick out of the now obvious political satire not-so-buried in cartoon episodes starring Bullwinkle The Moose (“The” is his middle name) and Rocket (Rocky) J. Squirrel. Foreign-accented Boris and Natasha were the fabulous “bad guys” we loved to hate.
At around age 11, I decided watching cartoons was for “little kids” but still needed comic relief. I was grateful that my parents gave me the freedom as a pre-teen to walk down to the corner store, where I would often spend 12 cents of my allowance on an Archie comic book. The story lines were always funny and silly, but I think I preferred the Archie series to Little Lulu or other juvenile comics because of the romantic escapades of high schoolers Archie, Veronica, Betty, Jughead and the gang. I was so anxious to be a teenager that I could hardly stand myself. I’m sure my parents felt the same way about me!not that I improved much before my 18th birthday.
In my 40s, I collected the first Barbie comic books. I think I stopped buying them when I hit issue 100. They are packed in a box somewhere at home. Steve too collected comics. I believe his favorite was Superman. He’s still got a few of them tucked away somewhere.
Sunday mornings we fight over the daily newspaper comics at our house. I pretend to be more interested in the front-page news, but those colorful clever little nuggets of humor practically call out to me, begging to be read and enjoyed. “Read me first,” says Drabble. “No, me,” declares Rose is Rose. Steve has no trouble admitting his youthful side as he grabs for the section and devours the funny pages, chuckling all the while.
Knowing how much I enjoy the comic relief of the funny pages, I have been sure that many of our readers feel the same way. So when John Barnhouse recently contacted me about running the comic strip called “Small Town Tom” in our paper, I quickly agreed. Now, I’ve been approached by other artists about running their comics, but none tugged at my funny bone as much as these do. I guess being raised in a small town, Signal Hill, I relate to the sweetness and irony of these strips. We are starting this week with the first strip below. Do let us know what you think. In the months ahead we plan to run them every week. We are honored to be the first paper in California to publish “Small Town Tom.” Here’s a bit about those who create the strips:
Mike Barnhouse is the creator of the comic strip which is now self-syndicated in nearly 40 newspapers across the country. His wife Debbie assists with the marketing efforts, and his son John reaches out to newspapers encouraging publishers and editors to add “Small Town Tom” to their weekly pages. They live in a small town in Texas, which gives Mike all the fodder he needs to create his comics from personal experience.
We hope you enjoy our first installation of “Small Town Tom.”
P.S. For those who are Internet-inclined, take a look at the comics produced by my friend and colleague Bill Zeilinger at his website thosedesigners.com, then click on his button marked “doodles and cartooning” on the right-hand side of the page !so cute and clever, too!
