The Better Half

The Better Half

"The Better Half" is the title of a comic strip created by Bob Barnes. It has been syndicated since 1956. Creators who have worked on the strip include Barnes (1956-1972), Ruth Barnes and Dick Rogers (1973-1978), Vinnie Vinson (1979-1982), Jay Harris (1982-1992), and Randy Glasbergen (1993-present).

Premise

The strip follows the lives of a married couple, Stanley and Harriet Parker, and the usual annoyances couples have with one another after years of marriage.

Comparisons to The Lockhorns

The strip is seen by many as a much tamer version of "The Lockhorns", but with a few differences:
*Though both are single-panel strips featuring one character talking most of the time, "The Better Half" occasionally shows frames where both are talking, which "The Lockhorns" never does.
*Like The Lockhorns, Stanley and Harriet do not have kids. However, they do discuss wanting to having them from time to time.
*While The Lockhorns do not have pets, Stanley and Harriet have a cat that often appears in the background of strips.
*While The Lockhorns appear to generally hate one another, Stanley and Harriet do appear to try to love one another despite everything.

Trivia

*Jay Harris was actually a pseudonym of Randy Glasbergen. He didn't want to confuse publishers who were familiar with his different style of humor and character design. As he was able to transform the designs to his own style, he began using his own name. "Harris" was his wife's maiden name.
*Bob Barnes received the National Cartoonist Society Newspaper Panel Cartoon for 1958 in the strip.
*James Coco and Lily Tomlin made a sitcom pilot based on the strip for ABC in the early 1970s. It wasn't picked up for a series.

References

*Strickler, Dave. "Syndicated Comic Strips and Artists, 1924-1995: The Complete Index." Cambria, CA: Comics Access, 1995. ISBN 0-9700077-0-1.

External links

* [http://www.reuben.org/ncs/awards.asp NCS Awards]


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужен реферат?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • The Better Half (cómic) — The Better Half Publicación Formato Tira de prensa Comic book Primera edición 1956 Editorial Tribune Syndicate …   Wikipedia Español

  • The Better Half (play) — The Better Half is a one act play by Noel Coward first performed in 1922 by the Grand Guignol company. It was never published and thought to be lost until Richard Hand and Mike Wilson, researchers writing a book on the theatre company, discovered …   Wikipedia

  • The Dark Half — This article is about the novel. For other uses, see The Dark Half (disambiguation). The Dark Half   …   Wikipedia

  • Better half — Better Bet ter, a.; compar. of Good. [OE. betere, bettre, and as adv. bet, AS. betera, adj., and bet, adv.; akin to Icel. betri, adj., betr, adv., Goth. batiza, adj., OHG. bezziro, adj., baz, adv., G. besser, adj. and adv., bass, adv., E. boot,… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Better half — Half Half (h[aum]f), n.; pl. {Halves} (h[aum]vz). [AS. healf. See {Half}, a.] 1. Part; side; behalf. [Obs.] Wyclif. [1913 Webster] The four halves of the house. Chaucer. [1913 Webster] 2. One of two equal parts into which anything may be divided …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • the better part of — More than half of • • • Main Entry: ↑better * * * almost all of; most of it is the better part of a mile * * * the better part of see ↑part, 1 • • • Main Entry: ↑better …   Useful english dictionary

  • (the) better part of something — the best/better/part of something phrase almost all of something, especially a period of time The journey will take him the best part of a year. Thesaurus: almost and almost notsynonym Main entry …   Useful english dictionary

  • (the) better part of something — the better part of (something) more than half of something. We waited for the better part of an hour, then called again. Usage notes: usually used with periods of time, as in the example …   New idioms dictionary

  • (the) better part of — the better part of (something) more than half of something. We waited for the better part of an hour, then called again. Usage notes: usually used with periods of time, as in the example …   New idioms dictionary

  • better half — n. one’s wife, and occasionally, one’s husband. □ My better half disapproved of the movie. □ I gotta go home to my better half …   Dictionary of American slang and colloquial expressions

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
… Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”