Doonesbury's Greatest Hits: A Mid-Seventies Revue

by G.B. Trudeau, William F. Buckley Jr. (Introduction)

Reprints DOONESBURY comic strips from 1975-7.

Genres: Humor, Comics, Cartoon, Politics, Fiction, Comic Strips, Graphic Novels

250 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1978

About the author

Garretson Beekman "Garry" Trudeau is an American cartoonist, best known for the Doonesbury comic strip. In 1970, Trudeau's creation of Doonesbury was syndicated by the newly formed Universal Press Syndicate. Today Doonesbury is syndicated to almost 1,400 newspapers worldwide and is accessible online in association with Slate Magazine at doonesbury.com. In 1975, he became the first comic strip artist to win a Pulitzer, traditionally awarded to editorial-page cartoonists. He was also a Pulitzer finalist in 1990. He was nominated for an Oscar in 1977 in the category of Animated Short Film, for A Doonesbury Special, in collaboration with John Hubley and Faith Hubley. A Doonesbury Special eventually won the Cannes Film Festival Jury Special Prize in 1978. Other awards include the National Cartoonists Society (NCS) Newspaper Comic Strip Award in 1994, and the Reuben Award in 1995. He was made a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1993. Wiley Miller, fellow comic-strip artist responsible for Non Sequitur, called Trudeau "far and away the most influential editorial cartoonist in the last 25 years." In addition to his work on Doonesbury, Trudeau has teamed with Elizabeth Swados and written plays, such as Rap Master Ronnie and Doonesbury: A Musical Comedy. In 1988, Trudeau joined forces with director Robert Altman for the HBO miniseries Tanner '88 and the Sundance Channel miniseries sequel Tanner on Tanner in 2004. In 1996, Newsweek and The Washington Post speculated that Trudeau wrote the novel Primary Colors, which was later revealed to have been written by Joe Klein. Trudeau wrote the political sitcom Alpha House, starring John Goodman and Bill Murray. The pilot was produced by Amazon Studios and aired in early 2013. Due to positive response Amazon has picked up Alpha House to develop into a full series.

Reviews

[Manny · Rating 5 out of 5]

Back when Doonesbury was absolutely at its peak. I can read this book any number of times. The writing is razor sharp.

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The bizarre pictures of Britain's new power couple that have been plastered all over the media the last day reminded me of this classic Doonesbury exchange.

JOURNALIST: Senator, how long does it take to betray everything you ever stood for?

POLITICIAN: Oh, at least 36 hours. The paperwork's incredible!

[Kaethe · Rating 5 out of 5]

Here's an interesting question: should I knock off one star from this early collection, in order to distinguish how much better he gets, or do I keep it at five, because I loved it so much at the time (and still do)?

[Darcy · Rating 5 out of 5]

In my opinion the mid-70s was when Doonesbury really hit its stride. The characters were fully developed, the satire was in full swing, and it was also when i had first discovered the strip so this was a real journey down memory lane. There is nothing like coming across a favorite panel or punch line and exclaiming, "I remember that!" In fact, there was a Sunday feature that I had not seen that explained a daily joke I had read numerous times over the years that I did not get, until today! Sometimes, things are worth the wait.

Joanie graduates from law school and gets a job working with Lacey Davenport on the house Ethics Committee (There is an oxymoron if I ever heard one!); Duke is made ambassador to China where he first meets Honey; Zonker strikes up a complex relationship with house plants; Mike is more firmly established in his role as the conscience of the group; Mark has some of his best radio personality moments; and BD does what BD does so well in providing the conservative counterpoint to the rest of the group. This and much more is contained in this wonderful compilation.

Most of these books received 4 stars from me and I went with 5 on this one. I must confess it was due more to the pleasure it gave me in reminiscence but also because, if you want to understand the true spirit of Garry Trudeau's creation I cannot think of a better place to start. This was an old friend I ran into and it was a joy from start to finish.

[The other John · Rating 4 out of 5]

This Doonesbury collection features some strips from 1975-1978. Ongoing storylines include Duke's stints as governor of American Samoa and U.S. ambassador to China, adoptee Kim's new life in America, bicentennial recollections of minuteman Nate Harris, Ginny's congressional campaign, as well as various jabs at the Ford and Carter administrations. Having read biographies of both Presidents in the past year, I could better appreciate the political jokes. It makes me wonder if I should move on to the next Doonesbury collection I have or wait until after I read a biography of Ronald Reagan.

[James · Rating 4 out of 5]

Revisiting reprinted strips of this groundbreaking hybrid comic strip / editorial cartoon creation is like going back in time and being comic strip bitch slapped to how times haven't changed much especially in politics. Artist and commentator Trudeau deftly blended commentary on current events (then) with a defined stable of comic characters that used the four paneled daily strip (and Sunday) to criticize and analyze with well done comedy. The strip is so good and he has the panels SET UP SET UP SET UP and then bang ... the kicker. It is funny, but it is so smart, too.

[Brian Rogers · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fascinating snapshot of the time. I read this originally in the mid 80's, and revisiting it now is just bizarre in what has changed and what hasn't in USAn culture. Plus a lot of them are still darn funny.

[Patrick · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great look back into the 70's. Nearly fifty years later, one would think these quirks of politics would be resolved by now, but it seems today is still more of the same as it was back then. It appears that Trudeau had his finger on the pulse of America even back then!

[Michael P. · Rating 3 out of 5]

I suspect this collection seemed more vital when it was published in 1978 than it does today. It does not help that the color Sundays are published out of order from the daily strips.

[Ianju Gytnnrq30 4y3 · Rating 5 out of 5]

hapilly ever after

[Brent Liam]

this book never gets you feel bored!

[Rena Sherwood · Rating 4 out of 5]

Even though I was born in 1969, I find it difficult to learn about American history in the 1970s because it was so damn complicated. Also screwing up my learning are people who lived through the decade and each have wildly different memories of the exact same events. In these instances when teachers clash, it's time to turn to the comic strips of the 1970s to give you a real look at what was going on. Doonesbury has been a much better American history teacher for me than any human teacher or professor I was ever unfortunate to be assigned to.

It's also good to see the beginnings of such characters I've gotten to re-know in strips since 2005 (when I returned to America and started reading the Philadelphia Inquirer again.) It was especially interesting to see the beginnings of Duke and his Chinese Honey.

As I get older, Doonesbury just keeps getting funnier and funnier.

[Robert · Rating 5 out of 5]

During my teens and early 20s, I thought Doonesbury was the greatest thing ever. It was a smart person's comic strip and I read it religiously. My sister is the one who turned me onto the strip, although I was aware of it prior to these books. Doonesbury was hip!

Trudeau became full of himself and turned Walden Puddle into a political mess. I lost touch with the strip. This book represents the heyday of the gang.

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

The second large-format Doonesbury anthology, covering the mid-1970s, the end of Ford and the beginning of Carter, Joanie's progress as a lawyer, Ginny & Clyde, Zonker's Minuteman ancestor, Nate Harris & Amy who will take her chances with being a woman who reads, et al. I literally picked this one up abandoned on a table in a laundry room in my apartment building in the mid-1990s, and it is the only one that I have never seen in a bookstore.

[Doug · Rating 2 out of 5]

I may not always agree with the political views expressed, but Doonesbury pretty much always provides a chuckle. The anthologies are not my favorites as they tend to skip the 'lesser' strips - but for me the older collections of the day-to-days strips are priceless in their day to day progress of both the Doonesbury gang and America in general.

[Geoff · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderfully entertaining look at the 70s, with the perfect mix of absurd and highly insightful humor. This is Doonesbury when it was at its peak. The strips are best read together, as in this book, so you can follow the character development and appreciate the humor fully.

[Nicole Diamond · Rating 2 out of 5]

If it has one star I liked it a lot
If it has two stars I liked it a lot and would recommend it
If it has three stars I really really liked it a lot
If it has four stars I insist you read it
If it has five stars it was life changing

[Douglas Wilson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very funny. Also read in December of 1980.

[Dave Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

Funny look at the 1970s. Great political cartoons when Trudeau was at his artistic peak. This got passed around a lot (and fought over) when I lived in the ISU dorms (1981-82).

[Mckinley · Rating 2 out of 5]

Another popular cartoon that a read some of but didn't really get into.

[Tim Pixley · Rating 5 out of 5]

I remember purchasing this book back in the 70s and still have it. That's when Doonesbury was at its best regarding characters and plotlines.

[marcus miller · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun - and brought back memories of the 70's.

[David Ward · Rating 3 out of 5]

Doonesbury's Greatest Hits by G.B. Trudeau (Holt Rinehart & Winston 1978)(741.9573). This is Trudeau's mid-seventies collection of Doonesbury panels. My rating: 7.5/10, finished 1979.

[Karen-Leigh · Rating 3 out of 5]

Best editorial cartoon ever.

[Barbara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love Trudeau. These Yale ones are so fun