History Trivia / ChickTracts

* CreatorsFavoriteEpisode: Judging from the number of times that characters in [[{{Metafiction}} other Chick tracts]] read and are moved by it, Chick seems to view "Somebody Loves Me" as his MagnumOpus.

* CreatorBreakdown: Chick suffered a stroke after finishing "[[http://www.chick.com/reading/tracts/0014/0014_01.asp Where's Rabbi Waxman?]]" in 1996. He also had a heart attack circa 2004. In his later years his artwork seems less polished and his writing tended to be slightly LighterAndSofter.

* CreatorBreakdown: Chick suffered a stroke after finishing "[[http://www.chick.com/reading/tracts/0014/0014_01.asp Where's Rabbi Waxman?]]"

* CreatorsFavoriteEpisode: Judging from the number of times that characters in [[{{Metafiction}} other Chick tracts]] read and are moved by it, Chick seems to view "Somebody Loves You" as his MagnumOpus.

* ReclusiveArtist: Chick courted some publicity early in his career (including appearances on Evangelical TV shows), but after 1975 stayed out of the spotlight, allegedly because of his shyness (though not having to answer for the many flaws in his work was a nice side-benefit).

* ReclusiveArtist: Chick himself only ever gave one interview in his lifetime, citing death lists as the reason. The top of the page picture is [[http://jimmyakin.typepad.com/defensor_fidei/2007/02/the_face_of_chi.html the only photograph]] that seems to exist.

* BeamMeUpScotty: Karl Marx said "Religion is the ''opiate'' of the masses", not "opium".

* SimilarlyNamedWorks: Chick's ''Dark Dungeons'' (about how D&D is '''''[[EmphasizeEverything EEEVIL]]''') has nothing to do with Red Hook's ''VideoGame/DarkestDungeon'' (a Lovecraftian horror Rougelike RPG).

* BannedInChina: The tracts are, in fact, banned in China.[[note]]There still exist both Traditional and Simplified Chinese translations of a few of the tracts, however. Either this was from before the tracts were banned in China, or the tracts were made for Hong Kong and Taiwan, but not mainland China.[[/note]] Also, a couple was found guilty of deliberately mailing certain anti-Islamic tracts to Muslims in Singapore, and convicted of sedition; the bookstore which had imported the Chick tracts for distribution was also dealt with. Some of his tracts have also been banned in Canada as hate literature.

* BannedInChina: The tracts are, in fact, banned in China.[[note]]And yet there still exist Chinese and Simplified Chinese translations of the "This Was Your Life" tract, so the tracts ''were'' translated into Chinese anyway. This was probably from before the tracts were banned in China, though.[[/note]] Also, a couple was found guilty of deliberately mailing certain anti-Islamic tracts to Muslims in Singapore, and convicted of sedition; the bookstore which had imported the Chick tracts for distribution was also dealt with. Some of his tracts have also been banned in Canada as hate literature.

* BannedInChina: The tracts are, in fact, banned in China. Also, a couple was found guilty of deliberately mailing certain anti-Islamic tracts to Muslims in Singapore, and convicted of sedition; the bookstore which had imported the Chick tracts for distribution was also dealt with. Some of his tracts have also been banned in Canada as hate literature.

* MexicansLoveSpeedyGonzalez: A lot of religious skeptics (y'know, some of Chick's favorite targets of criticism) enjoy these tracts just for the sheer hilarious {{Narm}}. "Dark Dungeons" is also popular among tabletop gamers for the same reason.

* PeripheryDemographic: A lot of religious skeptics (y'know, some of Chick's favorite targets of criticism) enjoy these tracts just for the sheer hilarious {{Narm}}. "Dark Dungeons" is also popular among tabletop gamers for the same reason.

* MexicansLoveSpeedyGonzales: A lot of religious skeptics (y'know, some of Chick's favorite targets of criticism) enjoy these tracts just for the sheer hilarious {{Narm}}. "Dark Dungeons" is also popular among tabletop gamers for the same reason.

* SimilarlyNamedWorks: Chick's ''Dark Dungeons'' (about how D&D is eeeevil) has nothing to do with Red Hook's ''VideoGame/DarkestDungeon'' (a Lovecraftian horror Rougelike RPG).

* ReclusiveArtist: Chick himself has only ever given one interview in his lifetime, citing death lists as the reason. The top of the page picture is [[http://jimmyakin.typepad.com/defensor_fidei/2007/02/the_face_of_chi.html the only photograph]] that seems to exist.

* ImageSource: For DeusAngstMachina, GravityIsOnlyATheory, and TheNewRockAndRoll.

* ImageSource: For DeusAngstMachina and GravityIsOnlyATheory.

* NamesTheSame: Chick's ''Dark Dungeons'' (about how D&D is eeeevil) has nothing to do with Red Hook's ''VideoGame/DarkestDungeon'' (a Lovecraftian horror Rougelike RPG).

* ReclusiveArtist: Chick himself has only ever given one interview in his lifetime, citing death lists as the reason. The top of the page picture is [[http://jimmyakin.typepad.com/defensor_fidei/2007/02/the_face_of_chi.html the only photograph]] that seems to exist.

* OldShame: Chick does have his limits. Many, many titles, including those written during a time when Chick was convinced [[TheGreatPoliticsMessUp Soviet Russia would start World War III]] by invading Israel under orders of UsefulNotes/{{the pope}}: "[[http://www.angelfire.com/on/3angels/ivan.html Ivan The Terrible]]" and "[[http://www.angelfire.com/on/3angels/macho.html Macho]]". Others include the infamous incestuous-pedophile-forgiven-by-Jesus strip "[[http://www.angelfire.com/on/3angels/lisa.html Lisa]]", and the anti-homosexuality "[[http://www.enterthejabberwock.com/?p=465 Wounded Children]]", starring TheTwink.

* OldShame: Chick does have his limits. Many, many titles, including those written during a time when Chick was convinced [[TheGreatPoliticsMessUp Soviet Russia would start World War III]] by invading Israel under orders of {{the pope}}: "[[http://www.angelfire.com/on/3angels/ivan.html Ivan The Terrible]]" and "[[http://www.angelfire.com/on/3angels/macho.html Macho]]". Others include the infamous incestuous-pedophile-forgiven-by-Jesus strip "[[http://www.angelfire.com/on/3angels/lisa.html Lisa]]", and the anti-homosexuality "[[http://www.enterthejabberwock.com/?p=465 Wounded Children]]", starring TheTwink.

* OldShame: Chick does have his limits. Many, many titles, including those written during a time when Chick was convinced [[TheGreatPoliticsMessUp Soviet Russia would start World War III]] by invading Israel under orders of {{the pope}}: "[[http://www.angelfire.com/on/3angels/ivan.html Ivan The Terrible]]" and "[[http://www.angelfire.com/on/3angels/macho.html Macho]]". Others include the infamous incestuous-pedophile-forgiven-by-Jesus strip "[[http://www.angelfire.com/on/3angels/lisa.html Lisa]]", and the anti-homosexuality "[[http://www.enterthejabberwock.com/?p=465 Wounded Children]]", starring TheTwink.

** Specifically, he wasn't directly railing against religion as the quote may suggest. At the time, opiates were legitimate painkillers and not illegal narcotics. He saw religion as false, but necessary and useful for the time being. He argued not that a lack of religion would make the world perfect, but that a perfect world, once achieved, would no longer need religion. For obvious reasons, many dispute both his idea of a perfect world and whether any such utopia could ever be achieved. To a modern reader, it seems as though the quote is accusing the ruling classes of deliberately engineering religion as an "addiction" to control the working class. That was not Marx's intent.