- Momma
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Momma is an English language comic strip by Mell Lazarus which debuted on October 26, 1970. Initially distributed by the Publishers-Hall Syndicate, it is currently handled by Creators Syndicate and published in more than 400 newspapers worldwide.[1]
Although Lazarus based the character on his own mother, when he showed it to her, she thought the character was based on his aunt, exclaiming, “You caught Aunt Helen to a tee!”[2][1]
Contents
Characters and story
The central character is Sonja Hobbs, a short, opinionated senior citizen with a controlling, nagging personality. She has three grown children:
- Francis, a chronic and shameless slacker, is the single largest source of her exasperation. He has little interest in working and always looks for loopholes in work contracts. It suits him perfectly to sponge off her and sometimes other people, yet he cannot be bothered to lift a finger to help or to clean his own apartment. He has a single taste in women: airheads built and dressed rather provocatively. His friends with similar work ethics sometimes show up.
- Marylou, her youngest, has frequent relationship problems, particularly with her mother (as evidenced by her comment that she was living the comic strip Momma was talking about in the October 6, 2006 strip). She has a thing for losers and outcasts—the very types of men Momma loathes. She does not, however, favor the types of men Momma is determined she marry: well-educated and/or well-heeled.
- Thomas, her oldest, is employed and happily married. As far as Momma is concerned, her son's wife Tina will never do anything for Thomas as properly as Momma can. Tina doesn't think too highly of Momma either.
While Momma constantly tries to make them feel insignificant without her, they consider her to be an emotional burden. Still, they love her in their own way as she loves them in turn. Momma has a variety of dream sequences, which include a homeless Francis holding a cup for donations. Other dream sequences include her late husband Jerome and herself at Heaven, awaiting entrance.
Books
There are several book collections of the strip, including Momma (1972) and The Momma Treasury.
References
- ^ a b Creators Syndicate: About
- ^ "Don Markstein's Toonopedia: Momma". Toonopedia.com. 1970-10-26. http://www.toonopedia.com/momma.htm. Retrieved 2009-10-28.
External links
Creators Syndicate Comics Currently syndicated Agnes · Andy Capp · Archie · Ask Shagg · Ballard Street · B.C. · The Barn · Boo Crew · Cafe Con Leche · Chuckle Bros · Daddy's Home · Diamond Lil · The Dinette Set · Doodles · Dog Eat Doug · The Dogs of C-Kennel · Flo & Friends · Flare · Flight Deck · For Heaven's Sake · Free Range · Girls & Sports · Heathcliff · Herb and Jamaal · Liberty Meadows · The Meaning of Lila · Momma · Nest Heads · Natural Selection · On a Claire Day · One Big Happy · The Other Coast · The Quigmans · Rubes · Rugrats · Scary Gary · Speed Bump · State of the Union · Strange Brew · Thin Lines · Wee Pals · Winnie the Pooh · The Wizard of Id · Working It Out · Zack HillCategories:- Comic strips started in the 1970s
- American comic strips
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