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Opus the Penguin Back In the Funny Business (Breathed to do new strip)
Washington Post ^
| 9.9.03
| Reilly Capps
Posted on 09/09/2003 9:22:33 AM PDT by mhking
After eight years away from newspapers, Pulitzer Prize-winning cartoonist Berkeley Breathed is creating a new comic strip called "Opus," starring his beloved penguin of the same name.
The Washington Post Writers Group, which will syndicate the strip, is expected to officially announce Breathed's return this Sunday. The reclusive Breathed, who rarely gives interviews, could not be reached yesterday for comment.
The new strip will appear on Sundays in The Washington Post starting Nov. 23.
Breathed drew the wildly popular "Bloom County" and "Outland" comic strips, which introduced the world to the naive Opus and his hairball-spitting sidekick, Bill the Cat. "Opus" will run on Sundays only and will fill half a page in the comics section.
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...
TOPICS: Culture/Society; Extended News; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: billthecat; bloomcounty; opus
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Comment #41 Removed by Moderator
To: Elliott Gigantalope
several years ago there was a one time "benefit" event of some sort where lots of artists traded their daily strips. The one I really remembered was where Wiley (non-Sequitur) drew Hagar the Horrible. It had a little mideavil accountant type trying to collect taxes from Hagar, while Hagar "persuaded" him with a big war hammer. I loved it.
OK, I just did a Google and found it. It was the "great April Fools Switcheroonie" on 4/1/98. It was a systems analyst and "sneak attack with a big honkin mallet" was the comback... well, see for yourself.
I'm going to try to link the picture, but if that fails it's at:
http://www.reuben.org/rosenthal/april%20fools/hagar.html
42
posted on
09/09/2003 10:00:52 AM PDT
by
Phsstpok
To: mhking
Yes! Yes! YES! I knew it was only a matter of time...
ACK Phffht!
43
posted on
09/09/2003 10:01:12 AM PDT
by
Timesink
To: mhking
YAY!!
You can only re-read the books every so often. I miss my fix!!!
To: mhking
YAY!!
You can only re-read the books every so often. I miss my fix!!!
To: dfwgator
My favorite Far Side cartoon.....
A jar with wild animals in it.
Titled "Wildlife preserves".
46
posted on
09/09/2003 10:02:02 AM PDT
by
Grammy
(Stressed is just "desserts" backwards.)
To: Politicalmom
Oops. Sorry. That comment wasn't profound enough for a repeat..... : )
To: Frank_Discussion; dfwgator
From the article:
I can't say it wouldn't be appealing to bring back Opus to the Sunday pages," Breathed told those gathered, according to Editor & Publisher. "It was painful to sit through the war without a public voice."
I wonder what his voice would have said.
48
posted on
09/09/2003 10:03:38 AM PDT
by
new cruelty
(Just kidding)
To: mhking
To: Frank_Discussion
I have had a small Opus stuffed figure since high school (circa 1987) and it's sat on my desk at every job I've ever had. (Personally, I think either Opus or Bill are the only masculinely-acceptable stuffys available...) Me too!
50
posted on
09/09/2003 10:04:12 AM PDT
by
Timesink
To: opus86
It probably doesn't translate well without the picture, but my all-time favorite Bloom County strip had Opus sitting in the middle of two gopher-like creatures. One of them lights up a cigarette and says "Mind if I smoke?" The other, eating a sandwich, says "No, mind if I belch pastrami in your face?"
Then all you can see is poor Opus' eyes and the top of his head protruding from a cloud of smoke and patrami odor. :-)
51
posted on
09/09/2003 10:04:52 AM PDT
by
Coop
(God bless our troops!)
To: opus86
I think I still have my Boingers 45 album, which came as part of the book. If I recall correctly, it contained the classic single, "I Love You (But You Stink)".I think it was called "You Stink (But I You)".
52
posted on
09/09/2003 10:06:24 AM PDT
by
Timesink
To: far sider
Thppft! Truly one of the funniest applications of ink to paper in the history of civilization...
53
posted on
09/09/2003 10:10:10 AM PDT
by
LTCJ
(or electron to phospher for that matter...)
To: Elliott Gigantalope
If he wants to do a comic strip in the newspapers again, then let him draw a daily strip. Is it THAT hard to come up with 3 or 4 new panels of illustrated humor a day? I agree with you. I happen to think Breathed's best work was in the Bloom County daily strips. He occasionally had a good Sunday one (his Pulitzer came from one of those, perhaps that's where the trouble began), but overall his comedy worked best in those little 3-4 panel black and white strips.
However, back when he switched from "Bloom County" to "Outland," I read a lengthy interview with him in some comic industry trade rag (the name escapes me). He rambled on and on about comics as high art, and how the daily strips continually shrinking size was killing the art form. Then he unleashed that incoherent acid-trip known as "Outland" (which got better as it progressed only because it became more and more like the old Bloom County) as Sundays only. This one goes a step further - Sundays only AND he gets a full half page.
I have a feeling this effort may get even further away from what Berke does best.
To: opus86
Let me try that again: "You Stink (But I <heart> U)".
55
posted on
09/09/2003 10:13:39 AM PDT
by
Timesink
To: opus86
My favorite strip is the one where the guy goes "huntin' for liberals." He has a special whistle that plays the liberals' "mating call" -- "No Nukes! No Nukes!" Then when he bags his leftist, the critter yells "Ow! Socialized medicine! Socialized medicine!"
56
posted on
09/09/2003 10:15:45 AM PDT
by
Alouette
(The bombing begins in five minutes.)
To: mhking
"A wish for wings that work!" bump.
57
posted on
09/09/2003 10:26:41 AM PDT
by
talleyman
(Now if they could just bring back Pogo...)
To: Grampa Dave
My youngest son, age 35, and my trophy wife will be overjoyed with the return of Opus. Is that her, on that plaque in the den?
<];^)
58
posted on
09/09/2003 10:35:46 AM PDT
by
Erasmus
To: Spruce
59
posted on
09/09/2003 10:39:05 AM PDT
by
joesnuffy
(Moderate Islam Is For Dilettantes)
To: Iowa Granny
Aaaack!
60
posted on
09/09/2003 10:53:32 AM PDT
by
ffusco
(Maecilius Fuscus,Governor of Longovicium , Manchester, England. 238-244 AD)
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