FOREWARD

by John Lund, creator of "Harry Lemoy"

The "Dick and Jane" comic strip debuted in newspapers on March 4, 1984. But it wasn't until March 19, 1984 that I first saw the strip. I walked into the library in my area that day, deciding to have a curious glance into The Boston Herald comic pages. In it, there was this new one appearing called "Dick and Jane". I decided to sample the strip just for the sake of it. I expected to react the usual way I would towards a new comic, in which I would think that this is another stupid and boring comic strip. But I had an unusual and different reaction. I found that I really liked this comic strip! It was like love at first sight! Finally, I had found a funny comic strip! In only a mere five days later, I started reading this strip regularly. Just one week later after first seeing "Dick and Jane", I started considering this as my number one favorite comic. I thought that this strip would be really successful. It wasn't. The strip only ran for only a year, ending in March 1985. This is one comic strip that should have run longer. One year is too short. It should have been given much more of a chance.

There were several things that I liked about "Dick and Jane". First of all, I liked how much the strip was staightforward. When I first read the strip, I couldn't believe how much I could understand the gag material. It was a pleasant break from the usual line of new sophisticated comics. I liked the simplicity, and it is one of the reasons why I really liked the strip. It sometimes hit the mark directly on coming up with the perfect gag. I liked how cartoonist Chuck Roth kept brevity in the writing, and put lots of action into his drawings, especially in the last panel, giving them lots of pep and energy. It was also one of the more visually pleasing new comics, in that the childlike drawings made me smile. It was also unique in that it was one of the very few comic strips that did not have dialogue, nor was it pantomime. It had just narration and only narration. And Chuck Roth also had his own style. This was a breath of fresh air, a new brand of humor and drawings that I have never seen before in the comic pages.

The strip may be dead, but as far as I'm concerned, "Dick and Jane" LIVES! It continues to live in my heart.