40 years ago, Calvin and Hobbes' raucous adventures burst onto the comics page
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40 years ago — on November 18, 1985 — a new comic strip appeared in the newspaper: Calvin and Hobbes.
Hobbes was a stuffed tiger, but in the mind of 6-year-old Calvin he was a wryly observant companion for his day-to-day challenges and wildly imaginative adventures.
Adventures of the beloved duo lasted just a decade. Their creator — cartoonist Bill Watterson — walked away from Calvin and Hobbes at the height of its popularity.
Watterson — who has given few interviews — seamlessly combined the silly, the fantastic and the profound in his strip. That slightly demented quality captured editor Lee Salem, who spoke with NPR's Renee Montagne in 2005.
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The following exchange has been edited for length and clarity.
Interview highlights
Lee Salem: I remember it when I first read it, and it all... it literally took my breath away. And I circulated it in the office, and the response was immediate. It was fresh, it was funny, the art was strong, and here's this archetypal little boy living a life that some of us lived or wanted to live or remembered living. ...
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