Bloom County, a 1980s cartoon-comic strip that dealt with socio-political issues as seen through the eyes of highly exaggerated characters (e.g. Bill the Cat and Opus the Penguin) and humorous analogies.
Creator Berkeley Breathed's first regularly published strip, Academia Waltz, appeared in the Daily Texan in 1978. The strip attracted notice from the editors of the Washington Post who recruited him to do a nationally syndicated strip. On December 8, 1980, Bloom County made its debut and featured some of the characters from Academia Waltz, including former frat-boy Steve Dallas and the paraplegic Vietnam War veteran Cutter John.
Bloom County earned Berkeley the Pulitzer Prize for editorial cartooning in 1987. The strip eventually appeared in over 1,200 newspapers around the world until he retired the daily strip in 1989, stating, "A good comic strip is no more eternal than a ripe melon. The ugly truth is that in most cases, comics age less gracefully than their creators". The comic continues in recirculation on GoComics!
© Berkeley Breathed - All Rights Reserved.
Bliss by Harry Bliss
Bo Nanas by John Kovaleski
Comments (18) (Please sign in to comment)
Brian K
said, 4 months ago
I like Opus’ words better, even though its not part of the subject.
Paula R. Stiles
said, 4 months ago
Hee! Talk about lost in translation!
Sisyphos said, 4 months ago
(Some slight editorial revisions, for your approval/signature.)
K.C. Fahel said, 4 months ago
I do kind of the opposite for my boss: he says exactly what he wants and I type in a sort of “shorthand” using phrases, words & initials that I flesh out later. Sometimes my original notes end up being hilarious (but the end result always matches his).
Clotty Peristalt said, 4 months ago
Nice one! I liked the part about giving the wife a big hug particularly.
Vonne Anton said, 4 months ago
Opus is an AMAZING secretary!
BluePumpkin said, 4 months ago
I love how his diploma is hung right next to a pin up girl . . .
SwimsWithSharks
said, 4 months ago
I think Opus still conveys the menace Steve intended. It’s subtle, but noticeable.
Omnius said, 4 months ago
Opus does such a great job of “translating” Steve’s mean diatribe into something more politically correct. Probably saved Steve’s life in the process.
sandflea said, 4 months ago
Steve, you don’t want to PO the CS lest he strangle you too.
piksea
said, 4 months ago
I have the color version of this from the calendar hanging in my office.
Vic said, 4 months ago
That how most law offices really work.
bloomfan said, 4 months ago
Opus saves Steve Dallas’s fanny again. What a thankless job!
Night-Gaunt49 said, 4 months ago
Now you understand what reading “between the lines” means here.
robert tinsley said, 4 months ago
@kuren444
Breathed lived in Iowa City during much of the time he was drawing Bloom County AKA Johnson County, Iowa. The houses are based on houses in Iowa City, The primary house you seen in the strip is a rooming house that was built from an Sears Robuick catalog house (they sent you most of the peices and assembeled it on site)