History Main / NewspaperComics

The downside is that, since the 1990s, newspaper comics went from being an American institution read by millions to become [[SnarkBait a byword for stodgy humor]] mainly read (at least as the stereotype goes) by the old fogeys who still read newspapers these days (particularly in the Web, including ''Blog/TheComicsCurmudgeon'', ''WebVideo/ThePunchline'' and Wondermark's Comic Strip Doctor), with LongRunners being regarded as [[JumpTheShark not being funny anymore, if they ever were]], derisively described as "zombie strips". One of the chief reasons comics haven't adapted to [[ValuesDissonance the more cynical comedy tastes of the 21st century (or non-English-speaking countries)]], being seemingly stuck with the tired jokes and premises associated with 50s/60s-era sitcoms lies in the fact newspapers see features as a means of attracting readers in general (while, since the 1990s, the rule has been [[PanderingToTheBase the exact opposite]], especially as comedy goes). Thus, DarkerAndEdgier humor, political- and/or current-events-based humor must be handled carefully, lest they cost more subscriptions than they gain (this counts for both the paper ''and'' the artist), especially considering that in the English-speaking world, newspapers are forbidden by stylebook from printing anything more "offensive" than "hell" (except in special cases, but these ''never'' apply to the funnies). And, like in the case of animated shows, a newspaper strip can be written even ten ''months'' in advance of print date, which doesn't help topical humor (political strips are often done six weeks in advance, although it's still a long time). Ironically, in its early years (1890s-1910s), the medium was associated with the raucous "yellow journalism" of Hearst and Pulitzer[[note]]This was the key reason ''[[UsefulNotes/AmericanNewspapers The New York Times]]'' never ran "funny pages"--unless you count a short-lived section on their Sunday magazine called ''The Funny Pages''--ironically, all of the featured works were incredibly tragic[[/note]].

* NewspaperComicsOfThe2000s

* ComicStrip/MaxFinderMystery (published in ''Magazine/{{OWL}}'')

* ComicStrip/MaxFinderMystery (published in ''Magazine/{{OWL}}'')

* Webcomic/{{Mulberry}} (originally a webcomic, started appearing in ''BANG! Magazine'' in 2012)

* ComicStrip/SouthernFriedFugitives (actually appeared in ''Magazine/{{Nickelodeon Magazine}}'')

* ComicStrip/SpyVsSpy
* ComicStrip/StarFox (published in ''Magazine/NintendoPower'')

* ComicStrip/WhatsNewWithPhilAndDixie

As a result of their financial woes, newspapers have also been cutting down on the amount of space that comic strip artists are given in which to practice their visual, art-based medium, resulting in simpler art and abbreviated storytelling.[[note]]As Bill Watterson of ''ComicStrip/CalvinAndHobbes'' fame [[http://ignatz.brinkster.net/ccomicsjournal.html said]] of the space restrictions way back in 1989: "A beautiful strip like ''ComicStrip/{{Pogo}}'' would be impossible to read at today's sizes." Things only got worse after 1990 with the decline of the medium's popularity (in the 1970s and 80s, Sunday comic sections had at least eight pages, while by the 2010s, most Sunday funnies have only four pages, a fourth of the average 16-page comic section in 1940[[note]]Actually ''less'', as modern newspapers are quite scrawny compared to their mid-century counterparts[[/note]]), becoming one of the factors that led to Watterson's decision to stop doing the strip. Along with a lot of the other stuff mentioned here.[[/note]] Compare and contrast the InfiniteCanvas and complete lack of censorship offered by WebComics as a medium. And the newspaper itself has become a victim of the Information Age; not only can consumers get the news online, they can get ''comics'' online too.

Compared to other media, newspaper comics can have incredibly [[LongRunners long tenures]]. New ''ComicStrip/{{Peanuts}}'' strips appeared daily for over 49 years. ''ComicStrip/{{Doonesbury}}'' has been running since 1970 and ''ComicStrip/{{Garfield}}'' has been coming out since 1978. Neither show any signs of stopping. Even more impressively, ''ComicStrip/{{Blondie}}'' has run ''since 1930'', ''ComicStrip/GasolineAlley'' has run '''since 1918''', and most impressively of all ''ComicStrip/TheKatzenjammerKids'' ran for '''''109 years''''' (from 1897 to 2006)! While traditionally, a 10-year run was considered tremendous for a television show, when ''ComicStrip/CalvinAndHobbes'', ''ComicStrip/TheFarSide'', ''ComicStrip/BloomCounty'' and ''ComicStrip/TheBoondocks'' each ended production after around a decade, it seemed far too soon.

The downside is that, since the 1990s, newspaper comics went from being an American institution to become [[SnarkBait a byword for stodgy humor]] (particularly in the Web, including ''Blog/TheComicsCurmudgeon'', ''WebVideo/ThePunchline'' and Wondermark's Comic Strip Doctor), with LongRunners being regarded as [[JumpTheShark not being funny anymore, if they ever were]], derisively described as "zombie strips". One of the chief reasons comics haven't adapted to [[ValuesDissonance the more cynical comedy tastes of the 21st century (or non-English-speaking countries)]], being seemingly stuck with the tired jokes and premises associated with 50s/60s-era sitcoms lies in the fact newspapers see features as a means of attracting readers in general (while, since the 1990s, the rule has been [[PanderingToTheBase the exact opposite]], especially as comedy goes). Thus, DarkerAndEdgier humor, political- and/or current-events-based humor must be handled carefully, lest they cost more subscriptions than they gain (this counts for both the paper ''and'' the artist), especially considering that in the English-speaking world, newspapers are forbidden by stylebook from printing anything more "offensive" than "hell" (except in special cases, but these ''never'' apply to the funnies). And, like in the case of animated shows, a newspaper strip can be written even ten ''months'' in advance of print date, which doesn't help topical humor (political strips are often done six weeks in advance, although it's still a long time). Ironically, in its early years (1890s-1910s), the medium was associated with "yellow journalism"[[note]]This was the key reason ''[[UsefulNotes/AmericanNewspapers The New York Times]]'' never ran "funny pages"--unless you count a short-lived section on their Sunday magazine called ''The Funny Pages''--ironically, all of the featured works were incredibly tragic[[/note]].

As a result of their financial woes, newspapers have also been cutting down on the amount of space that comic strip artists are given in which to practice their visual, art-based medium, resulting in simpler art and abbreviated storytelling.[[note]]As Bill Watterson of ''ComicStrip/CalvinAndHobbes'' fame [[http://ignatz.brinkster.net/ccomicsjournal.html said]] of the space restrictions way back in 1989: "A beautiful strip like ''ComicStrip/{{Pogo}}'' would be impossible to read at today's sizes." Things only got worse after 1990 with the decline of the medium's popularity (in the 1970s and 80s, Sunday comic sections had at least eight pages, while by the 2010s, most Sunday funnies have only four pages), becoming one of the factors that led to Watterson's decision to stop doing the strip. Along with a lot of the other stuff mentioned here.[[/note]] Compare and contrast the InfiniteCanvas and complete lack of censorship offered by WebComics as a medium. And the newspaper itself has become a victim of the Information Age; not only can consumers get the news online, they can get ''comics'' online too..

Actually, one of the reasons why {{Webcomics}} have gotten a lead over Web-based indie music distribution (let alone non-corporate Web movies) is that "making it big" in sequential art has been traditionally defined as "being able to support a middle-class lifestyle without a day job". Actually, many top cartoonists got stinking rich (for instance, ''Bringing Up Father'''s George [=MacManus=] was able to make a fortune, lose it after the 1929 crash, and become even richer) and even reached ''stardom'' in some cases, at the same time keeping a sense of anonymity most celebs wouldn't dream of.

The downside is that, since the 1990s, newspaper comics went from being an American institution to become [[SnarkBait a byword for stodgy humor]] (particularly in the Web, including ''Blog/TheComicsCurmudgeon'' and ''WebVideo/ThePunchline.''), with LongRunners being regarded as [[JumpTheShark not being funny anymore, if they ever were]], derisively described as "zombie strips". One of the chief reasons comics haven't adapted to more cynical comedy tastes, being seemingly stuck with the tired jokes and premises that 50s/60s-era sitcoms were fond of lies in the fact newspapers see features as a means of attracting readers. Thus, DarkerAndEdgier humor, political- and/or current-events-based humor must be handled carefully, lest they cost more subscriptions than they gain (this counts for both the paper ''and'' the artist), especially considering that in the English-speaking world, newspapers are forbidden by stylebook from printing anything more "offensive" than "hell" (except in special cases, but these ''never'' apply to the funnies). And, like in the case of animated shows, a newspaper strip can be written even ten ''months'' in advance of print date, which doesn't help topical humor (political strips are often done six weeks in advance, although it's still a long time). Ironically, in its early years (1890s-1910s), the medium was associated with "yellow journalism"[[note]]This was the key reason ''[[UsefulNotes/AmericanNewspapers The New York Times]]'' never ran "funny pages"--unless you count a short-lived section on their Sunday magazine called ''The Funny Pages''--ironically, all of the featured works were incredibly tragic[[/note]].

Actually, one of the reasons why {{Webcomics}} have gotten a lead over Web-based indie music distribution (let alone non-corporate Web movies) is that "making it big" in sequential art has been traditionally defined as "being able to support a middle-class lifestyle without a day job". Actually, many top cartoonists got stinking rich (for instance, ''Bringing Up Father'''s George [=MacManus=] was able to make a fortune, lose it after the 1929 crash, and become even richer) and even reached ''stardom'' in some cases (with Charles Schulz, Jim Davis and Al Capp being the most obvious examples).

The downside is that, since the 1990s, newspaper comics went from being an American institution to become [[SnarkBait a byword for stodgy humor]] (particularly in the Web, including ''Blog/TheComicsCurmudgeon'' and ''WebVideo/ThePunchline.''), with LongRunners being regarded as [[JumpTheShark not being funny anymore, if they ever were]], derisively described as "zombie strips". One of the chief reasons comics haven't adapted to more cynical comedy tastes, being seemingly stuck with the tired jokes and premises that 50s/60s-era sitcoms were fond of lies in the fact newspapers see features as a means of attracting readers. Thus, DarkerAndEdgier humor, political- and/or current-events-based humor must be handled carefully, lest they cost more subscriptions than they gain (this counts for both the paper ''and'' the artist), especially considering that in the English-speaking world, newspapers are forbidden by stylebook from printing anything more "offensive" than "hell" (except in special cases, but these ''never'' apply to the funnies). And, like in the case of animated shows, a newspaper strip can be written even ten ''months'' in advance of print date, which doesn't help topical humor (political strips are often done six weeks in advance, although it's still a long time).

** TopperStrip: A now-disappeared variation, consisting of a smaller feature accompanying the main comic, often by the same artist.

Compared to other media, newspaper comics can have incredibly [[LongRunners long tenures]]. New ''ComicStrip/{{Peanuts}}'' strips appeared daily for over 49 years. ''ComicStrip/{{Doonesbury}}'' has been running since 1970 and ''ComicStrip/{{Garfield}}'' has been coming out since 1978. Neither show any signs of stopping. Even more impressively, ''ComicStrip/{{Blondie}}'' has run ''since 1930'', ''ComicStrip/GasolineAlley'' has run '''since 1918''', and most impressively of all ''ComicStrip/TheKatzenjammerKids'' ran for '''''109 years''''' (from 1897 to 2006)! While traditionally, a 10-year run was considered tremendous for a television show, when ''ComicStrip/CalvinAndHobbes'', ''ComicStrip/TheFarSide'' and ''ComicStrip/BloomCounty'' each ended production after around a decade, it seemed far too soon.

Compared to other media, newspaper comics can have incredibly [[LongRunners long tenures]]. New ''ComicStrip/{{Peanuts}}'' strips appeared daily for over 49 years. ''ComicStrip/{{Doonesbury}}'' has been running for over 45 years and ''ComicStrip/{{Garfield}}'' has been coming out for almost 40 years. Neither show any signs of stopping. Even more impressively, ''ComicStrip/{{Blondie}}'' has run for well over 80 years, ''ComicStrip/GasolineAlley'' has run almost 100 years, and most impressively of all ''ComicStrip/TheKatzenjammerKids'' ran for 109 years (from 1897 to 2006)! While traditionally, a 10-year run was considered tremendous for a television show, when ''ComicStrip/CalvinAndHobbes'', ''ComicStrip/TheFarSide'' and ''ComicStrip/BloomCounty'' each ended production after around a decade, it seemed far too soon.

Compared to other media, newspaper comics can have incredibly [[LongRunners long tenures]]. New ''ComicStrip/{{Peanuts}}'' strips appeared daily for over 49 years. ''ComicStrip/{{Doonesbury}}'' has been running for over 45 years and ''ComicStrip/{{Garfield}}'' has been coming out for almost 40 years. Neither show any signs of stopping. Even more impressively, ''ComicStrip/{{Blondie}}'' has run for well over 80 years, ''ComicStrip/GasolineAlley'' has run almost 100 years, and most impressively of all ''ComicStrip/TheKatzenjammerKids'' ran for 109 years (from 1897 to 2006)! A 10-year run is considered tremendous for a television show, but when ''ComicStrip/CalvinAndHobbes'', ''ComicStrip/TheFarSide'' and ''ComicStrip/BloomCounty'' each ended production after a decade, it seemed far too soon.

On the flip side, one of the reasons why {{Webcomics}} are 5-10 years ahead of Web-based indie music distribution (and 15-20 years ahead of non-corporate Web movies) is that "making it big" in sequential art has been traditionally defined as "being able to support a middle-class lifestyle without a day job". Only about 10 people in the whole 20th century got seriously stinking rich drawing NewspaperComics, and of those only two or three achieved actual ''stardom'' (with Charles Schulz, Jim Davis and Al Capp being the most obvious examples).

The downside is that many newspaper comics have a reputation for [[JumpTheShark not being funny anymore]] and the LongRunners often derisively described as "zombie strips." This is because, as far as a newspaper is concerned, comic strips are just advertising: they're there to lure in readers and make them more willing to fork over some subscription money. They're {{Fanservice}}, basically. And the last thing you want to do with fanservice is serve up something that doesn't actually please the fans. As such, DarkerAndEdgier humor, political- and/or current-events-based humor must be handled carefully, lest they cost the newspaper (or the ''artist!)'' more subscriptions than they gain, especially considering then in the English-speaking world newspapers are forbidden by stylebook from printing anything more "offensive" than "hell" (displaying it as "son of a (expletive)"). Even worse, newspaper strips are written anywhere from six weeks to ten ''months'' in advance of print date, which doesn't help topical humor. As a result of smaller paper sizes, newspapers have also been cutting down on the amount of space that comic strip artists are given in which to practice their visual, art-based medium, resulting in {{Bowdlerized}} art and abbreviated storytelling.[[note]]As Bill Watterson of ''ComicStrip/CalvinAndHobbes'' fame [[http://ignatz.brinkster.net/ccomicsjournal.html said]] of the space restrictions way back in 1989: "A beautiful strip like ComicStrip/{{Pogo}} would be impossible to read at today's sizes." Of course it only got worse, and ultimately this was one of the factors that led to Watterson's decision to stop doing the strip. Along with a lot of the other stuff mentioned here.[[/note]] Compare and contrast the InfiniteCanvas and complete lack of censorship offered by WebComics as a medium. And the newspaper itself has become a victim of the Information Age; not only can consumers get the news online, they can get ''comics'' online too. So newspapers have to play it safe, and they do so by angling for broad, non-offensive humor with a wide appeal, often by recycling tired jokes and premises that sitcoms put to pasture years ago.

The medium has also inspired many works that criticize it, including ''Blog/TheComicsCurmudgeon'' and ''WebVideo/ThePunchline.''

** TopperStrip: A now disappeared variation, consisting of a smaller feature accompanying the main comic, often by the same artist.

The downside is that many newspaper comics have a reputation for [[JumpTheShark not being funny anymore]] and the LongRunners often derisively described as "zombie strips." This is because, as far as a newspaper is concerned, comic strips are just advertising: they're there to lure in readers and make them more willing to fork over some subscription money. They're {{Fanservice}}, basically. And the last thing you want to do with fanservice is serve up something that doesn't actually please the fans. As such, DarkerAndEdgier humor, political- and/or current-events-based humor must be handled carefully, lest they cost the newspaper (or the ''artist!)'' more subscriptions than they gain, especially considering then in the English-speaking world newspapers are forbidden by stylebook from printing anything more "offensive" than "hell" (displaying it as "son of a (expletive)"). Even worse, newspaper strips are written anywhere from six weeks to ten ''months'' in advance of print date, which doesn't help topical humor. As a result of smaller paper sizes, newspapers have also been cutting down on the amount of space that comic strip artists are given in which to practice their visual, art-based medium, resulting in {{Bowdlerized}} art and abbreviated storytelling.[[note]]As Bill Watterson of ''ComicStrip/CalvinAndHobbes'' fame [[http://ignatz.brinkster.net/ccomicsjournal.html said]] of the space restrictions way back in 1989: "A beautiful strip like ComicStrip/{{Pogo}} would be impossible to read at today's sizes." Of course it only got worse, and ultimately this was one of the factors that led to Watterson's decision to stop doing the strip. Along with a lot of the other stuff mentioned here.[[/note]]. Compare and contrast the InfiniteCanvas and complete lack of censorship offered by WebComics as a medium. And the newspaper itself has become a victim of the Information Age; not only can consumers get the news online, they can get ''comics'' online too. So newspapers have to play it safe, and they do so by angling for broad, non-offensive humor with a wide appeal, often by recycling tired jokes and premises that sitcoms put to pasture years ago.