Johnny Hart (1931–2007)

In 2018, I am making a dedicated effort to enjoy reading backlist books from my own shelves and to re-visit some favorite nostalgia reads. The B.C. cartoon books by Johnny Hart always made me laugh as a teenager back in the 80s. I decided it would be fun to revisit Hart's hilarious Caveman (and Cavewoman) antics to see what the adult me thinks of the humor. I'm so glad I did.....I had such a good time re-reading this book after so many years! :) Put a big smile on my face.

Johnny Hart's B.C. cartoons feature several cavemen and cavewomen. The two cavewomen are feminists...or at least try to be. One is rather plump and the other is blonde and gorgeous. The six assorted cavemen range from inept idiots to greedy businessmen. There are also snarky ants and a few snakes that get mercilessly bashed by the overweight older cavewoman who is afraid of them. The topics are still very relevant today -- feminism, environmental concerns, insecurity, therapy, and basic human emotions/actions....love, anger, greed, jealousy. I guess the point is that human nature and life has been pretty much the same since the start....so why not poke fun at it? :)

In this particular book, the cartoons range in topic from feminism and relationships to the awkwardness of therapy sessions and strange advice from a greedy palm reader with some snake bashing and sarcastic ants sprinkled in for good measure.

A fun read! I look forward to enjoying more of Hart's artwork and social commentary this year as I re-visit some old favorites!

Johnny Hart also created the Wizard of Id cartoons (I loved those too!). He created the B.C. characters in the late 1950's. Wizard of Id came along in the 60s. Both cartoons ran in syndication in newspapers and were collected in multiple books until Hart's death in 2007.… (més)

I like to read cartoon collections as sort of a "palate cleanser'' between novels. A little something to lighten the mood or make an abrupt genre change seem a bit less severe to my brain. :) This year I have made a goal to read more books off my own shelves or to revisit favorite nostalgia reads (books I read years ago and enjoyed). Keeping that goal in mind, I jumped back in time to the prehistoric era for my palate cleansing. The B.C. cartoons by Johnny Hart always made me smile when I was a teenager (and another of his cartoons Wizard of Id was also a favorite). I wanted to see if I still found the cartoons funny now that I'm a bit (ha! a lot, actually) older. And the answer is YES! :) The topics that Hart pokes fun at in B.C. are still quite relevant -- relationships, society, feminism, therapy, politics, business, love, greed, the environment...... Basic human foibles and situations are timeless, and so are these cartoons.

B.C. features six cavemen, two cavewomen and an assortment of animals discovering the world around them, forming society, inventing necessities and, of course, forming the first neuroses. One caveman writes poetry and is afraid of water. Another likes to observe fish by sticking his head in the river. Then there's an inventor, the group therapist, the average guy...and of course the gang's sarcastic jerk. :) One cavewoman is young and sexy, and the other is older and....larger. Add in ants with marital problems, a suicidal aardvark, a turtle with his bird BFF, and a large dinosaur, and you get a wide range of humor.

B.C. first appeared in the late 1950s and was syndicated in many newspapers up until Hart's death in 2007. Hart also created the popular Wizard of Id cartoons.

I'm seriously enjoying re-reading these cartoons. I will definitely be re-reading Wizard of Id as well. Hart's humor is still relevant even all these decades later. Love it!

Gronk!!… (més)

Cartoonist Johnny Hart created his loveable cavemen characters in the 1950s. Over the next few decades his group of dysfunctional prehistoric humans invented the wheel, started the battle of the sexes, attended the first therapy sessions, and created team sports. :) The six cavemen and two cavewomen poke fun at everything from love and feminism to politics and society. Side characters range from ants pursued by hungry anteaters, a turtle and his bird BFF, and cute dinosaurs.

I loved these cartoons when I was in middle and high school. Hart poked fun at just about every part of life and society. In 2018, I am revisiting books and series that I have on my own shelves, or books I remember enjoying in the past. I decided it was time to re-read B.C. and another Hart creation, Wizard of Id. These cartoons are still amazingly relevant. I suppose the basic ponderings and challenges of humanity really don't change all that much. Some of the jokes or interactions between the male and female characters could be seen as a bit sexist....BUT.....it is never disrespectful, just truthful. The cute, sexy cavewoman is treated differently than the overweight, unattractive cavewoman --- but isn't that the way things really are? Might as well poke fun at it! :) Today it might be non-PC to crack jokes at uncomfortable truths....but that doesn't lessen the truth, just hides it. Most of Hart's jokes about the sexes point out the strengths of the women in a humorous way. An example.....while the cavemen are celebrating their invention of the wheel and trying to decide what they might be able to do with it, the cavewomen have already invented the bicycle.

B.C. Strikes back features an introduction by Rod Serling. It's a great collection of Hart's wit and humor. I enjoyed re-reaading this book, I still find the cartoons as funny as I did years ago, although some of the jokes have a bit different meaning for me now.

B.C. ran as a syndicated cartoon in many newspapers from the 1950s up until Hart's death in 2007.





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