14
"It's always better to leave the party early. If I had rolled along with the strip's popularity and repeated myself for another five, 10 or 20 years, the people now 'grieving' for 'Calvin and Hobbes' would be wishing me dead and cursing newspapers for running tedious, ancient strips like mine instead of acquiring fresher, livelier talent. And I'd be agreeing with them."
-Nice interview with Bill Watterson, whose "Calvin and Hobbes" was one of the sweetest, most life-affirming cartoon strips this nation has ever produced.
This is why everyone loves Bill Watterson.
What's so sweet and life affirming about a 5 year old kid pissing on a window of a 1999 Dodge Ram Pickup?
That they decide to go with that sticker instead of something Confederate-flag themed, or another "Tapout" sticker.
Its the little incremental positives like that which help me get through the day.
Once I saw him pissing on "La Migra" and thought it apt.
Oh god, there's something in my eye…
We both submitted a comment starting with "Oh god" at the same time. High five!
No joke — all I have to do is think about the last C&H strip and I burst into tears.
Oh god, someone forward the interview to Matt Groening.
Each year, brow furrowed in concentration, I debated Calvin & Hobbes book vs. Far Side Calendar for my dad for xmas.
I wouldn't have a gravatar if not for Mr. Watterson. Thank you, sir!
I read "Calvin & Hobbes" anthologies to my 11-year-old daughter before bed every night. Mostly it's an excuse for me to read "Calvin & Hobbes". But she loves them too.
The only reason my daughter knows the song "Feelings" is because the green slime food monster sang it at the dinner table in that one strip and she wanted to know how the song went. Great stuff.
I've always loved this graduation address he gave to Kenyon, his alma mater: http://web.mit.edu/jmorzins/www/C-H-speech.html
I finally received The Complete Calvin & Hobbes for my birthday last year. It weighs 26 pounds. Beautiful.