“Darwin. Right Again.” : Doonesbury on MAGA’s “Willing Griftees.”

This is the second part of my look at Doonesbury’s “Trump Quintet,” Garry Trudeau’s five-volume (and counting?) collection of strips about Donald Trump. Last time out, I examined how Trudeau traced the decades-long cultural and political dynamics that set the stage for a corrupt narcissist to seize the White House. I concluded by noting that … Continue reading “Darwin. Right Again.” : Doonesbury on MAGA’s “Willing Griftees.”

“Cronies, Retreads, and Tokens”: Jimmy Carter Goes to Washington

Something I’ve returned to as I’ve examined Doonesbury during the Carter years is Jimmy Carter’s self-presentation as an “outsider,” an alternative to the lies and corruption that had soured many Americans’ faith in government after the twin crises of Vietnam and Watergate. The story of B.J. Eddy – the Head Tulip from the White House … Continue reading “Cronies, Retreads, and Tokens”: Jimmy Carter Goes to Washington

“Is This an Ethnically-Pure Neighborhood?”: Jimmy Carter on the Campaign Trail

On 13 October 1976, Lacey Davenport, a “little old lady” the “Republicans [were] running” in a California Congressional contest, gave an informal press conference over tea at her tastefully-appointed home. A reporter asked a follow-up question to an inquiry about her relationship with her husband, Dick: “Lacey, have you ever looked at other men with … Continue reading “Is This an Ethnically-Pure Neighborhood?”: Jimmy Carter on the Campaign Trail

“Well, Great. A Massive Coronary”: Death and Dying in Doonesbury

There have been, by my reckoning, five significant Doonesbury characters who have died (not counting Duke, who has “died” twice, once when he was mistakenly declared dead after being taken hostage in Iran in 1979, and once when he spent some time as a zombie in the employ of Haitian strongman Jean-Claude “Baby Doc” Duvalier). … Continue reading “Well, Great. A Massive Coronary”: Death and Dying in Doonesbury

Marijuana in Doonesbury, Part II: Medical Cannabis, AIDS and the Law

In my last post, I looked at how Garry Trudeau wrote about marijuana in the 1970s and reviewed Box Brown’s comics history of marijuana prohibition, ending with Brown’s chronicle of the gradual legalization of cannabis in some American states as activists promoting the medical benefits of cannabis used the courts to undermine the state’s attempts … Continue reading Marijuana in Doonesbury, Part II: Medical Cannabis, AIDS and the Law

This Week in Doonesbury: #MeToo Runs for Office.

On Sunday, March 4, Garry Trudeau began a storyline that brings together three themes that have been central to Doonesbury for many years: feminism and the political empowerment of women; the challenges facing American soldiers and veterans; and electoral politics. Melissa Wheeler, a former army helicopter mechanic, asks Joanie Caucus for help with her political … Continue reading This Week in Doonesbury: #MeToo Runs for Office.