On this day in 1949, we had the premiere of Fast and Furry-ous, which brought us the first appearances of Wile E. (Ethelbert) Coyote and the Road Runner. And yes, Mark Evanier is responsible for the name Ethelbert. So come with us now and take a look while we try to figure out one question — why does Mel Blanc get a voice credit for this cartoon?
Let’s see… we need a couple of sure-fire topics of humor. How about… child labor exploitation and the deadly thievery of Big Pharmaceutical makers? I’ll bet you’re giggling just thinking about that stuff.
Well, in the hands of Sergio Aragonés and Mark Evanier, or, more appropriately, in the hands of Groo, the laughs work out just fine.
These are two of the topics covered in the [[[Groo 25th Anniversary Special]]] released by Dark Horse last week, and as one of America’s pre-eminent creator-owned series it deserves serious recognition for its success. But when it comes to Groo, it’s so damned hard to be serious.
So, suffice it for us to shout a big Happy Anniversary to the intrepid bumbler, his dog Rufferto, and his chroniclers Sergio and Mark. It’s quite an achievement.
If you haven’t checked out the Groo 25th Anniversary Special, just go out and read a newspaper. Then you’ll really need Groo.
Twenty-five years, twenty number one issues, and five jokes. Yep, it can only be Groo The Wanderer. The one, the only, the only, the one — back in a silver anniversary special from Dark Horse, who clearly have too much money coming in from Star Wars and Buffy if they feel they can spend money on Aragonés and Evanier.
There’s a four-page preview up — if you’ve never seen it before, take a look and enjoy. See if you can spot the hidden message.
Artwork copyright Sergio Aragonés and possibly Mark Evanier, too. All Rights Reserved.
How did we get to this before Mark Evanier did? 29 years ago today, the above strip brought Garfield to the world at large. Since then, he has consumed more lasagna than the entire cast of The Sopranos and has shed enough hair to clog Hoover Dam. Oh, and a whole lot of books, TV shows, and even a few movies.
Happy birthday, big guy– but now that you’re getting on in years, might you consider watching your weight?
It was fifteen years ago tonight that Johnny Carson took his final bow as the host of the Tonight Show. We mention this so that Mark Evanier doesn’t have to.
Okay, so the clip’s from the day before. Sue us. Here’s something from the final show, Johnny’s final words to us all:
"And so it has come to this: I, uh… am one of the lucky people in the world; I found something I always wanted to do, and I have enjoyed every single minute of it. I want to thank the gentlemen who’ve shared this stage with me for thirty years, Mr. Ed McMahon… Mr. Doc Severinsen… and… you people watching, I can only tell you that it has been an honor and a privilege to come into your homes all these years and entertain you—and I hope when I find something that I want to do, and I think you would like, and come back, that you’ll be as gracious in inviting me into your home as you have been. I bid you a very heartfelt good night."
Ready that cheese dip, your favorite mendicant is about to return! Groo writer Mark Evanier has just announced that on August 1st Dark Horse will release The Groo 25th Anniversary Special, to be followed in September by debut of the four-issue miniseries Groo: Hell on Earth.
Groo — it’s one of those books where, if you have to ask, don’t.
Only really, do. According to the solicitation, the anniversary issue will feature our hero battling the menace of "The Plague," as well as presenting The Groo Alphabet, a primer of friends and foes (mostly foes), followed by a special illustrated text story on how this comic came to be and why it just won’t go away. Plus other silly features.
As if the features already listed weren’t silly enough.
(Artwork copyright Mark Evanier and Sergio Aragones. All Rights Reserved.)
Someone gave the Garfield statue near downtown Marion, IN’s Riverwalk a little too much love.
Seems 23-year-old Joseph P. Savarino didn’t know his own strength. Savarino said he panicked when the cartoon character’s head came off when he hugged it, so he made off with it and left it alongside a road where it later was found. Perfectly understandable, we all do silly things when we panic upon squeezing off a comic strip character’s statuesque head.
The cops noticed the head was missing last December 15. On the 18th an employee with the Army Corps of Engineers found the fiberglass head and retrieved it from the side of a road near the Mississinewa Reservoir. The statue’s base has since been moved to the Grant County Parks and Recreation maintenance building to protect it from further overly-enthusiastic fans who just can’t get enough of Mark Evanier ‘s television cartoons. No word on whether base and head have since been reunited, but we like to think they joined again sometime around Valentine’s Day and went out for a nice lasagna dinner.
Columns / Glenn Hauman / News
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