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> I suspect that newspaper cartoonists who knew that 1/3 of their strip might get lopped off, or the panels reshuffled, from paper to paper may have a more inhe
by xenadu02 6y ago
> I suspect that newspaper cartoonists who knew that 1/3 of their strip might get lopped off, or the panels reshuffled, from paper to paper may have a more inherent understanding of the work itself as being modular.
This was something Bill Watterson hated and eventually Calvin & Hobbes got popular enough he dictated that newspapers had to print the whole thing or nothing. That's why some papers printed it squished down to a smaller size.
It sure seems like he should have taken his work online. No format restrictions, publish on your own schedule. He was popular enough to blaze a trail for the new generation but he threw it away instead. That's his choice but seems like a missed opportunity.
FWIW if they printed comics as half page color prints weekly (and not just gag strips) I'd subscribe to that. As newspapers were dying they seemed to cut back on that sort of thing though.
- freeone3000 6y agoTaking a comic strip online in 1988 would have not been a smart move -- nobody would have been able to read it.
- jefftk 6y agoWaterson ended Calvin and Hobbes at the end of 1995; slightly early for moving online but not by much.
- joshmaker 6y ago> In 1995, the Pew Research Center did just that, finding 14% of U.S. adults with internet access.4 Most were using slow, dial-up modem connections—just 2% of internet users were comparatively screaming along with an expensive 28.8 modem. https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2014/02/27/part-1-how-the-internet-has-woven-itself-into-american-life/ https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2014/02/27/part-1-how-t...
- jefftk 6y agoI can't tell where you think we disagree?
- freeone3000 6y agoif 86% of households don't have internet, it's much too early for launching a comic strip, not merely slightly. This sets aside the fact that revenue streams were not present for comics on the internet, as monetized webpages did not exist yet. He was paid by newspapers directly. It's an absurdity to give up 70% distribution and a guaranteed paycheck for 14% maximum distribution and no income stream at all.
- jefftk 6y ago> monetized webpages did not exist yet The first banner ad was 1994; By the end of 1995, when he would have been deciding to go online, internet advertising was definitely a thing people were aware of. On the other hand, Waterson hated advertising. > 70% distribution ... 14% maximum distribution These numbers are not comparable: 70% is the fraction of newspapers he was in, but not everyone got a newspaper. > It's an absurdity to give up 70% distribution and a guaranteed paycheck for 14% maximum distribution and no income stream at all. He was done with newspapers, so he was giving up that guaranteed paycheck regardless. His alternative, which he took, was retiring.
- webmaven 6y ago> Waterson ended Calvin and Hobbes at the end of 1995; slightly early for moving online but not by much. Dilbert was the first syndicated comic online that same year. As for whether Waterson could/would/should have done the same, why would he if he was ending the strip anyway?
- jefftk 6y agoWaterson talked about how he was unhappy with the constraints of the newspapers; it's possible that he would have found webcomics, with essentially no restrictions, interesting enough to keep going?
- spc476 6y agoHe also said he had said what he wanted with Calvin and Hobbes, and all that was left was variations on a theme, over and over again. Might as well end on a high note and be remembered, rather than just fade into the background, like Peanuts.
- sodapopcan 6y agoI never realized that he did this! I always noticed how the longer colour strips started with a two panel throw-away for papers that wouldn't print it. Was that still a thing after he demanded the whole thing be printed? If so it's interesting that he kept up the two-panel thing after that!
- agency 6y agoHe got pretty experimental with the format once he had the freedom to do so: https://i.imgur.com/ddU50.jpg https://i.imgur.com/ddU50.jpg https://www.gocomics.com/calvinandhobbes/1995/02/26 https://www.gocomics.com/calvinandhobbes/1995/02/26 https://www.gocomics.com/calvinandhobbes/1993/12/19 https://www.gocomics.com/calvinandhobbes/1993/12/19
- sodapopcan 6y agoOhhhhhh ya. I totally forgot about those! I still have my books (as well as the collection) but it's been a while since I read the later ones.
- teraflop 6y agoNot really -- the format of the Sunday strips became a lot looser and more varied after the throwaway panels stopped being a thing. Compare, for example, these two Calvin-as-a-dinosaur strips, from 1988 and 1994: https://www.gocomics.com/calvinandhobbes/1988/08/14 https://www.gocomics.com/calvinandhobbes/1988/08/14 https://www.gocomics.com/calvinandhobbes/1994/01/30 https://www.gocomics.com/calvinandhobbes/1994/01/30
- qndreoi 6y agoJust two days ago, BC noted that two panels could be thrown away on Sunday. https://www.gocomics.com/bc/2020/11/22 https://www.gocomics.com/bc/2020/11/22
- gxqoz 6y agoHuh, I see that all the time in Wizard of Id and never realized the somewhat incongruous first panels were due to this.
- interfixus 6y agoYou have to love this HN crowd. Here's Bill Watterson being lectured on what he - cartoonwise - threw away and which opportunities he missed. More is better. He just never got the memo.
- munificent 6y agoThink of all of the brand value he could have created and the engagement maximimized! Foolish Bill Watterson being a retired watercolor painter when he could have cornered the market on Calvincoin by now if he'd understood the market opportunity.
- subsubzero 6y agohe did corner the market on those stickers where Calvin was peeing on either a ford or chevy logo..
- howlgarnish 6y agoAFAIK he never authorized any merchandise, so he likely never got a single cent for those.
- cleansingfire 6y agoHe authorized one calendar, one year. I've always loved and respected that he was able to stop & let the strip be the amazing thing it was. He declined astonishing money, for enough.
- munificent 6y agoI assume subsubzero knows that and is being sarcastic.
- webmaven 6y ago> FWIW if they printed comics as half page color prints weekly (and not just gag strips) I'd subscribe to that. As newspapers were dying they seemed to cut back on that sort of thing though. You might be interested in subscribing to the dead trees version of the Funny Times: https://funnytimes.com/subscribe/ https://funnytimes.com/subscribe/