History ComicStrip / GasolineAlley

''Gasoline Alley'' is a comic strip created by Frank King and currently distributed by Creator/TribuneMediaServices. First published on November 24, 1918 as a Sunday-only panel before becoming a full strip in 1919, it is the second-longest-running comic strip in the U.S. and has received critical accolades for its influential innovations. In addition to inventive color and page design concepts, King introduced real-time continuity to comic strips by showing his characters as they grew to maturity and aged over generations.

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''Gasoline Alley'' is a comic strip created by Frank King and currently distributed by Creator/TribuneMediaServices. First published on November 24, 1918 as a weekly panel before becoming a full strip in 1919, it is the second-longest-running comic strip in the U.S. and has received critical accolades for its influential innovations. In addition to inventive color and page design concepts, King introduced real-time continuity to comic strips by showing his characters as they grew to maturity and aged over generations.

* {{Malaproper}}: Joel, who overall seems to be the smarter of the two trash collectors, nonetheless has at least one malaprop in nearly every sentence he speaks.

* MassiveMultiplayerCrossover: An October-November 2015 storyline had Walt visiting an "old comics' home" to attend [[ComicStrip/MuttAndJeff Jeff's funeral]], only to find out that Jeff was actually alive and well (much to the surprise of everyone else). Apart from Mutt and Jeff themselves, many other comics characters appeared in this arc, including "Smokey Stover" and even the "Yellow Kid".

* OlderThanTheyLook: Many long-time characters, such as Clovia, Slim and Chipper, are supposed to be in their 60s-70s but are still drawn to look much younger.

* MethuselahSyndrome: [[PlotArmor By virtue of being the main character]], Walt at 120 would be the oldest living person in the world if he were actually alive[[note]]The actual oldest living person is more than two years younger than Walt; moreover, no male has ''ever'' been verified as living past 116.[[/note]], and he's likely not going away anytime soon. The current writer of the strip has stated that he does have plans for this issue; ''what'' plans, however, he isn't saying.
* NotAllowedToGrowUp: Averted. Walt is 120 years old (Phyllis was 105 when she passed away in 2004) and Skeezix is now 99. While some characters have, the most popular and important characters will probably never get around to actually dying, but characters who were young in the RoaringTwenties are ancient now and characters who were introduced as children have families of their own.

The strip originally was a panel featuring young garage owner Walt Wallet and some friends in automobile-related situations (hence the title), but it began to chronicle Walt's life after he found a baby in the doorstep, whom he named "Skeezix" (common slang at the time for a motherless calf). Walt later married Phyllis Blossom in 1926, with whom he had a son named Corky. The family was completed in 1935 when a baby called Judy was left in Walt's car. All three grew up, got married and had children of their own. In later years, the strip has mostly centered on Skeezix and his wife Nina Clock, as well on their daughter Clovia and her husband Slim Skinner, who now manages the garage. Garbage collectors Joel and Rufus stand out between non-Wallet characters.

''Gasoline Alley'' is a comic strip created by Frank King and currently distributed by Creator/TribuneMediaServices. First published on November 24, 1918 as a weekly panel before becoming a full strip in 1919, it is the second-longest-running comic strip in the US and has received critical accolades for its influential innovations. In addition to inventive color and page design concepts, King introduced real-time continuity to comic strips by showing his characters as they grew to maturity and aged over generations.

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Not to be confused with the Music/RodStewart album/song of the same name. NeedsWikiMagicLove.

* MethuselahSyndrome: [[PlotArmor By virtue of being the main character]], Walt at 120 would be the oldest living person in the world if he were actually alive[[note]]The actual oldest living person is almost a year younger than Walt; moreover, no male has ''ever'' been verified as living past 116.[[/note]], and he's likely not going away anytime soon. The current writer of the strip has stated that he does have plans for this issue; ''what'' plans, however, he isn't saying.

* MethuselahSyndrome: [[PlotArmor By virtue of being the main character]], Walt at 119 would be the oldest living person in the world if he were actually alive[[note]]The actual oldest living person is almost a year younger than Walt; moreover, no male has ''ever'' been verified as living past 116.[[/note]], and he's likely not going away anytime soon. The current writer of the strip has stated that he does have plans for this issue; ''what'' plans, however, he isn't saying.
* NotAllowedToGrowUp: Averted. Walt is 119 years old (Phyllis was 105 when she passed away in 2004) and Skeezix is now 95. While some characters have, the most popular and important characters will probably never get around to actually dying, but characters who were young in the RoaringTwenties are ancient now and characters who were introduced as children have families of their own.

* MethuselahSyndrome: [[PlotArmor By virtue of being the main character]], Walt at 118 would be the oldest living person in the world if he were actually alive[[note]]The actual oldest living person is almost a year younger than Walt; moreover, no male has ''ever'' been verified as living past 116.[[/note]], and he's likely not going away anytime soon. The current writer of the strip has stated that he does have plans for this issue; ''what'' plans, however, he isn't saying.
* NotAllowedToGrowUp: Averted. Walt is 118 years old (Phyllis was 105 when she passed away in 2004) and Skeezix is now 95. While some characters have, the most popular and important characters will probably never get around to actually dying, but characters who were young in the RoaringTwenties are ancient now and characters who were introduced as children have families of their own.

The strip originally was a panel featuring young garage owner Walt Wallet and some friends in automobile-related situations (hence the title), but it began to chronicle Walt's life after he found a baby in the doorstep, whom he named "Skeezix" (common slang at the time for a motherless calf). Walt later married Phyllis Blossom in 1926, with whom he had a son named Corky. The family was completed in 1935 when a baby called Judy was left in Walt's car. All three grew up, got married and had children of their own. The strip now centers mostly on Skeezix and his wife Nina Clock, as well on their daughter Clovia and her husband Slim Skinner, who now manages the garage.

* ArtifactTitle: The strip began as a part of "The Rectangle", where each of the ''Chicago Tribune'''s four staff artists drew a panel. In Frank King's panel, four characters named Walt, Doc, Avery and Bill (the last three being long dead by now) talked about cars, hence the name. It became popular enough to be spun off as a strip in 1918, with more characters who talk about a lot of other things besides cars. Even by the 1950s, ''Magazine/{{MAD}}'' was doing parodies noting that the strip seemed to have nothing to do with gasoline.

* ShoutOut: Skeezix's interim physician is [[Radio/TheJackBennyProgram Dr. Nelson]]. Bonus points for he actually portrayed a doctor once.

* TheMalaproper: Joel, who overall seems to be the smarter of the two trash collectors, nonetheless has at least one malaprop in nearly every sentence he speaks.

* TheBusCameBack: Rover's birth mother in 1995. Hoogy in 1997. Lil Skinner in 1999. Eve in 2004. Gretchen in 2013. Chipper in 2016.
* TheGamblingAddict: Lil Skinner.
* TheQuietOne: As a small child, Gretchen refused to speak. When Hoogy was first introduced, she only spoke one word at a time.
* TheScrooge: Mr. Pert.

* MethuselahSyndrome: [[PlotArmor By virtue of being the main character]], Walt at 118 would be the oldest living person in the world if he were actually alive (the actual oldest living person is almost a year younger than Walt), and he's likely not going away anytime soon. The current writer of the strip has stated that he does have plans for this issue; ''what'' plans, however, he isn't saying.

* MethuselahSyndrome: [[PlotArmor By virtue of being the main character]], Walt at 117 would be the second-oldest living person (and the oldest living man) in the world if he were actually alive, and he's likely not going away anytime soon. The current writer of the strip has stated that he does have plans for this issue; ''what'' plans, however, he isn't saying.
* NotAllowedToGrowUp: Averted. Walt is 117 years old (Phyllis was 105 when she passed away in 2004) and Skeezix is now 95. While some characters have, the most popular and important characters will probably never get around to actually dying, but characters who were young in the RoaringTwenties are ancient now and characters who were introduced as children have families of their own.

* DiscoDan: Avery, Walt's original neighbor, was this half a century before disco even took off; his defining trait was that he still used a crank car after everyone else had moved on to cars with starters.

NeedsWikiMagicLove.

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* MethuselahSyndrome: [[PlotArmor By virtue of being the main character]], Walt at 117 would be the third-oldest living person (and the oldest living man) in the world if he were actually alive, and he's likely not going away anytime soon. The current writer of the strip has stated that he does have plans for this issue; ''what'' plans, however, he isn't saying.

* OnceASeason: Skeezix' birthday was noted every year, complete with a reference to his age. This tradition was eventually discontinued, likely because Skeezix' current age makes no sense within the context of the current stories.

'''''Gasoline Alley''''' is a comic strip created by Frank King and currently distributed by Creator/TribuneMediaServices. First published on November 24, 1918 as a weekly panel before becoming a full strip in 1919, it is the second-longest-running comic strip in the US and has received critical accolades for its influential innovations. In addition to inventive color and page design concepts, King introduced real-time continuity to comic strips by showing his characters as they grew to maturity and aged over generations.

* SameCharacterButDifferent: Corky's daughter Eve reappeared in the mid 2000's for the first time since the 1970's. Despite her supposed age being near 40, she was presented as a reckless teenager type who couldn't care less about her aging grandfather. There were absolutely no consequences for her behavior (that we saw, anyway), and she hasn't been back since.
** Can also apply to Slim's mom, Lil Skinner. Throughout the 1980's, she was a slightly overbearing grandmother who lived across the hall and helped take care of the kids. After a decade-long absence, she returned in 1999 as a shrewish old lady who hated Clovia (the feeling was mutual) and seemed not to care for anyone but herself.

* WorldWarII: Skeezix was in the army in the 1940's.

** Boog's parents were Slim and Clovia's foster children.

* CanonDiscontinuity: This strip is usually very good about keeping maintaining continuity. However, one story in 1995 features Rover's birth mother telling him the back story about his father, which is completely different from the story that was told when these characters were introduced in 1981.