Calvin and Hobbes: Classic Cartoons
85When it comes to classic cartoons, who doesn't love Calvin and Hobbes?
For just over ten years (1985-1995), cartoonist Bill Watterson delighted audiences with the syndicated cartoon strip, Calvin and Hobbes, printed in newspapers worldwide. The popular cartoon strip stars a spiky-haired, six-year old boy, Calvin (based on the French theologian of the same name), and his toy tiger, Hobbes (named after the English 17th century philosopher). Calvin is wise beyond his years, and is also somewhat of a smart-aleck. Hobbes is akin to an imaginary friend to Calvin. He walks, talks and advises Calvin with respect to all of his mischief. However, to all other observers (Calvin's parents, friends, babysitters, etc.), Hobbes is but a mere stuffed animal, half the size he appears to Calvin.
Together, Calvin and Hobbes do all the things little boys dream of.... they build forts, exclude girls from clubs, go sledding, build time capsules, play superheros, and generally form the most unique bond ever seen between a child and his playmate. One speculates that Calvin's extreme imagination might stem from boredom. He has no brothers or sisters in the cartoon strip. To others, he is probably mere genuis.
In a classic tale of success, Watterson broke out with Calvin and Hobbes while working at an advertising job that he hated! Within two years of its initial publication in November 1985, the strip was featured in an article in the Los Angeles Times, and was in wide circulation outside the United States. Over the life of the comic strip, Watterson won several awards, including the Humor Comic Strip Award in 1988, and the Reuben Award (Outstanding Cartoonist of the Year) in 1986 and 1988. Watterson took a couple of brief breaks during the 10-year run of his comic strip. Primarily, he was working to try to expand the constraints of the small panels for comics in newspapers. After frustrating efforts failed to result in advances, Watterson hung up his hat on December 31, 1995. We watched as Calvin and Hobbes sledded off into the unknown future.
As with the cartoonist Gary Larson (The Far Side), Bill Watterson left audiences wanting more. Both cartoons remain very popular, despite being out of regular circulation for more than a decade. Calvin and Hobbes are truly missed!
Calvin's Struggles with Math are Infamous
Who Can Forget Calvin's Snowmen?
Anyone familiar with Calvin and Hobbes will know that the comic strip is really all about the two of them. Sure, there are some other characters, like Calvin's mom and dad, his babysitter, a friend from school, and his teacher, but primarily the strip is about the life perspective of a 6-year old boy, and his stuffed tiger (real or not). What differentiates Calvin from.... say, Dennis the Menace or Charlie Brown, is his high intelligence and ironic sarcasm. Its scary. Whereas Snoopy may have been more intelligent and funny than his master, Calvin and Hobbes are double-trouble. And, more often than not, Calvin will try to lead Hobbes astray! Hobbes has a kind of "shrug, why not" attitude about many of the escapades into which they foray. Other times, he appears to be a voice of reason, calming down a manic Calvin.
The running commentary between Calvin and Hobbes is, of course, the foundational basis for the humor. More than just a smart-aleck, Calvin is tuned into issues related to the environment, religion, philosophy and politics. But he's certainly not in your face about hot topics. He'll make you chuckle and laugh, as you should when reading the comics. And you'll wonder how a 1st grader and his stuffed animal can have so much fun (and be so worldly at the same time)!
Math Atheism - Why Didn't I Think of This?
Commentators and enthusiasts of the Calvin and Hobbes comic strip have debated whether Hobbes is "real" or not, since its inception. Is he a figment of Calvin's imagination? If so, how does the boy end up with scrapes and scratches after Hobbes pounces on him? More interestingly, he cannot tie himself up.... Bill Watterson has explained that it is not so much a question of whether or not the tiger is real, but the juxtaposition of Calvin's view of reality with others' views. Obviously, Calvin has a very unique perspective on the world!
Some of the scenes in which Hobbes is "transformed" from toy to friend, or back again, are priceless. One classic is when Calvin is instructed to put Hobbes into his locker at school. "Locker?! He'll suffocate!" Calvin protests. His teacher relents and allows Hobbes to be placed under the desk. In the next frame, Calvin is taking a math test and whispers to the much larger tiger under the table... "what is 3 + 7?" Hobbes replies, "37."
Hobbes - the Perfect Foil for Calvin
You may be surprised to learn that Watterson never desired to merchandise Calvin and Hobbes in any way (other than to sell books), and has not wanted to animate the cartoon characters, either. With respect to the latter, one drawback has been considerations of voice (can you imagine what Calvin would sound like?!) Of course, many of us have seen the unauthorized window decals of Calvin urinating on various brands. Despite threats of lawsuits for copyright infringement, obviously some sticker makers have not responded by stopping their distribution of illegal merchandise.
There are a number of great Calvin and Hobbes books and collections for enthusiasts! Perhaps one day, Mr. Watterson will be convinced to create more Calvin and Hobbes strips, or license some merchandise. Until then, we'll just have to enjoy the 10 years of comics already produced, and the epic collections of the classic friendship of the boy and his tiger.
From the Playground to the Boardroom!
I'm a Lawyer: How Could I Resist?
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Love it! The math atheist is my favorite :)
Thanks you guys! I really love C&H! I could have included sooo many more comics, but had to stop myself. LOL :-)
Steph, Thanks for bringing back a flood of wonderful memories. I really loved Calvin and Hobbes. My favorite one was Calvin Ball. I will probably try to do a HUB around that one. It had such a wonderful lesson in life.
I think the cartoon was so successful because on one level it was extremely funny. On a deeper level it looked at everyday life and some of the problems and strange behavior we engage in. Any time I encounter something funny, I am reminded of George Bernard Shaw's quote, "When a thing is funny, search it for a hidden truth." I think there were a treasure of hidden truths in Calvin and Hobbes.
Hey John, I love that Shaw quote! I really enjoyed puttiing together this Hub, not only because I'm a huge fan of the cartoon and the humor within, but also because I found many gems in those cartoon strips! Looking forward to a Calvin Ball hub by you! :)
Steph! My whole gang and I are big Calvin and Hobbes fans.
fun hub regards Zsuzsy
Glad you enjoyed it Zsuszy! My 10-year old has many of the books. He was literally standing over my shoulder telling me what to include, etc. while I was writing this Hub. Too funny (and just a tad annoying!) LOL
OMG, thank you so much!!! C&H is my favorite comic of all time, I have all of their books! We used to clip the best ones from the paper and put them on the fridge growing up!
LOL Kat - I had them all over my bulletin board. And I used to draw Hobbes, too. Glad you enjoyed this. Steph
Thanks for another great hub Steph.....this was a real eye opener for me. My boys (9 and 12) love C&H and I never really took much of an interest in their reading it since I've never really been big on comics. I felt glad they took an interest in reading something other than what's required for school of course but assumed it probably didn't have enough substance. Guess I have a new appreciation thanks to you and with your composition here, I now can totally see why my 9 year old is so crazy about it - he's really, really smart and can be a bit of a smart alek at times too, and when he is, most of the time he cracks me up cuz he can just be hilarous (and not even know it!).
I have always loved Calvin and Hobbs and this hub brought back the memories. I submitted it to mixx for you because I was looking for something someone had not already submitted. Yo are a popular lady :).
SweetiePie, thank you! Calvin and Hobbes were my absolute favorite in high school and college. My kids enjoy them now through the collection books. I appreciate the submission to Mixx! :-)
I have a correction. Calvin asks Hobbes "What's 7+3?" Hobbes replies "73."
thanks - apparently, I am as math-challenged as Calvin. :)
Looks like we have another connection!
Cheers, Maria
What a blast from the past. I loved Calvin and Hobbes, and I owned all of their books (which I no longer can find). I was heart broken when Bill W. stopped the strip. Great hub, and nicely done with with all the past strips! Mike
Another great hub. Calvin is one of my favorites.
I liked your hub. I am a big fan of Calvin and Hobbes, but I'm ashamed to say that I don't have all of their books. I do have many, and all of them crack me up!! What would be good to add is the way Calvin's Dad wants Calvin to "build character"!! And we all know how Calvin HATES hearing about "building character"!!!!=D
this is gay
I love calvin 7 hobbes and miss them terribly.
Thanks for the wonderful memories.
need more math comics
i love calvin and hobbes and thank you for those comics
calvin and hobbes rock and i think they should get more comics
awesome!!! dude
I love Calvin and Hobbes and have been reading the comics since I was young. Great Hub. I loved reading about where it all began.
Calvin and Hobbes are so funny. They bring back those memories of childhood dreams... :)
i just love Calvin and Hobbes...including the strips!
i just love Calvin and Hobbes...including the strips!
I new to the world of Hub creation, but not cartoons. I loved Calvin and Hobbes and have all their books. I dream of creating a cartoon strip that is simply a fraction as entertaining. From one Oregonian to another, consider checking out my Hub, "Paper, Pencil and Josh" to see what you think.
i am a certified c&h fan. in fact i wanted one more baby to be called calvin hobbes. that would be nice isnt it.?
Reading C&H books where instrumental in my son's mastery of the English language (his third language...). Watterson doesn't write for children and his texts are intelligent, intellectual and inspiring. The humor is masterful. and this is what holds the attention for a young child wanting to understand what he's reading. I personally thing C&H should be standard literature in schools. As an interesting side-point: the Belgian translation is far better than the Dutch translation, even though they both use the same language (Flemish). The German translation is also good.
Thanks for a good article :) I love Calvin and Hobbes. when I was in junior high school I was president (and creator) of The Calvin & Hobbes Memorial Society ("memorial" because the strip had ended.) I love the characters soooo much.. and have read each book, I am not lying, at least 11 times if not more. Glad to see I'm not the only one who still looks back fondly on this great comic.
Loved this article. Extremely well written.
i love calvin and hobbes they crack me up so much i almost have all the books:) :( :):):):):):):)
Great article! I didn't know the details of Calvin and Hobbes's beginnings and ending.
Watterson is a talented artist, somewhere I saw drawing / painting he made of a dinosaur. It was detailed and looked very real and was quite a departure from the style in his strip. I thought he wanted to venture into other aspects of his art form when he quit the strip, did he?
Thanks for the hub, I'm going to do some research of my own now, you've made me hungry for more.
Love reading Calvin and Hobbes in the papers. Both are as witty as they are sarcastic. Great hub!
I just became a fan of Calvin and Hobbes. My people never leave the Sunday paper laying around so I am cartoon deprived. Great Hub.............
i like calvin and hobbes.............its my favourite cartoon story.......... """"""""calvin and hobbes""""" movie will be created .............
i love calvin and hobbes great hub
I love calvin and hobbes! That was awesome
great post love that cartoon
I have some hubs on family/parenting if you would like to
give me your opinion thanks
Nichol
Ahh, such wonderful memories. I love Calvin & Hobbes.
Love C&H it is such a great comic.
Calvin's Struggles with Math are Infamous is my favorite fake numbers LOL. :)
No cartoon I'm fine with, but the merchandising would have been nice. I know I'm not the only one who would have wanted official versions of Hobbes in both forms (the basic stuffed toy everyone else sees, and the highly detailed version Calvin perceives).
My dad actually introduced me to Calvin and Hobbes. He regretted it several times since: "How many other kids took Calvin and Hobbes as a How to Guide?"
Nice hub. I love Calvin & Hobbes. I knew about them in the newspaper La Nacion of Argentina. After that, I bought several books in trips to USA.
I discovered C&H at the tender age of 20 (my youth was permanently warped!) I have always loved the strip. You forgot my favorite, though (Hobbes: "I see your oevre is monochromatic." Calvin: "What do you want? It's only snow.")
Watterson has written extensively about the resistance and resentment from editors when he managed to get the sunday sheets a certain way. And he's commented about how Calvin is not supposed to be a real six-year-old (although I've known six-year-olds like him, it's scary.)
Thanks for the hub!
calvin and hobbes is so funny do you know if a new book is coming out soon
Hi thats a great hub!! cavin and hobbes are my favourite characters!! loved it and voted up
carrie
I have always liked Calvin and Hobbs and this hub cut again the reminiscences. I offered it to mixx for you because I was looking for something someone had not already offered. Yo are a well-known lady
for more details: http://newamericanidol.blogspot.com/
I love Calvin and Hobbes! This was a wonderful article! I like your comic strip choices.
Thanks Burning Stars!
Aww this was a great read! I grew up reading Calvin and Hobbes and trading the paperback collections with my friends. They always made me laugh, thanks so much for sharing this hub!
HOW CAN I GET A COPY OF THE STRIP WHERE CALVIN SAYS, "WE HAVE MET THE ENEMY, AND IT IS US!"?
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Uninvited Writer Level 4 Commenter 4 years ago
Great hub. I love Calvin and Hobbes, I read it every day :)