The Far Side

The Far Side
Wiener Dog Art, one of many The Far Side collections published in the United States, features an artist stamping a paint-covered dachshund on a canvas.
Author(s)	Gary Larson
Current status / schedule	Ended
Launch date	January 1, 1980
End date	January 1, 1995
Syndicate(s)	Chronicle Features (1980–1985) Universal Press Syndicate (1985–1995)
Genre(s)	Humor, satire, avant-garde
Preceded by	Nature's Way

The Far Side is a single-panel comic created by Gary Larson and syndicated by Universal Press Syndicate, which ran from January 1, 1980, to January 1, 1995 (when Larson retired as a cartoonist). Its surrealistic humor is often based on uncomfortable social situations, improbable events, an anthropomorphic view of the world, logical fallacies, impending bizarre disasters, (often twisted) references to proverbs, or the search for meaning in life. Larson's frequent use of animals and nature in the comic is popularly attributed to his background in biology. Reruns are still printed in many newspapers.

The Far Side was ultimately carried by more than 1,900 daily newspapers, translated into 17 languages, and collected into calendars, greeting cards, and 23 compilation books.^[1]

Larson was recognized for his work on the strip with the National Cartoonist Society Newspaper Panel Cartoon Award for 1985 and 1988,^[2] and with their Reuben Award for 1990 and 1994.^[3]

History

The series was preceded by a similar panel called Nature's Way, also by Larson. Larson decided that he could increase his income from cartooning by selling his Nature's Way strip to another newspaper. While on vacation in San Francisco, he pitched his work to the San Francisco Chronicle and, to his surprise, the Chronicle bought the strip and promoted it for syndication, renaming it The Far Side.^[4] Its first appearance in the Chronicle was on January 1, 1980. A week later, The Seattle Times dropped Nature’s Way.^[5] The Far Side ran for fifteen years, syndicated initially by Chronicle Features and later by Universal Press Syndicate, until Larson retired with his final strip published on January 1, 1995.

One of The Far Side cartoons shows two chimpanzees grooming. One finds a blonde human hair on the other and inquires, "Conducting a little more 'research' with that Jane Goodall tramp?"^[6] Goodall herself was in Africa at the time, and the Jane Goodall Institute thought this was in bad taste, and had their lawyers draft a letter to Larson and his distribution syndicate, in which they described the cartoon as an "atrocity." They were stymied by Goodall herself when she returned and saw the cartoon, as she stated that she found the cartoon amusing.^[7] Since then, all profits from sales of a shirt featuring this cartoon go to the Jane Goodall Institute. Goodall wrote a preface to The Far Side Gallery 5, detailing her version of the controversy, and the Institute's letter was included next to the cartoon in the complete Far Side collection.^[8] She praised Larson's creative ideas, which often compare and contrast the behavior of humans and animals.

The Complete Far Side and The Prehistory of The Far Side include letters from angry readers alongside the comics. The letters were written to newspaper publishers and often demanded the removal of The Far Side. Despite these protests, The Far Side remained popular and continued to run in many newspapers. Larson himself often laughs at the controversies as evidenced in The Prehistory of The Far Side, in which he writes that the people complaining have usually misunderstood the cartoon.^[9]

In 2003, Gary Larson drew a cover for the November 17 edition of The New Yorker magazine^[10] (the Cartoon Issue), a prestigious offer he said he could not refuse.^[11]

Design overview

Most The Far Side cartoons are a single rectangular panel, occasionally split into small sections of four, six, or eight for the purposes of a storyline. A caption or dialogue usually appears under the panel as typed text, although word-balloons are sometimes used for conversations. Sunday comics were double-sized, done in watercolor or colored pencils, with captions handwritten in Larson's own hand. Most of Larson's comics relied on some combination of a visual and verbal gag, rather than just one or the other. Some recurring themes in the comic include people being stranded on desert islands, aliens, heaven, hell, and the life of cavepeople. Many cartoons focused on animals, especially cows, bears, dogs, flies, and ducks. Notably, virtually all characters portrayed in the comic were overweight or obese, and usually wearing glasses. In addition, unless needed for a facial or comic expression, eyes are almost never drawn and characters usually show only a brow ridge.

Books

Gary Larson produced 23 The Far Side books, which were all on The New York Times Best Seller list. The cartoons were first collected in small books (see list below), and some were then republished in larger best-of collections such as The Far Side Galleries. Additional best-of collections were published, such as The Prehistory of The Far Side, culminating in the final publication, The Complete Far Side in 2003.

Television productions

In 1994, Larson produced an animated special, Tales from the Far Side, featuring his art style and gags from the strips. He produced a sequel in 1997.

Online

Larson has asked people not to use Far Side cartoons on the internet, writing a widely distributed letter in which he explains the "emotional cost" to him of people displaying his cartoons on their websites and asks them to stop doing so.^[12]

Exhibitions

In 1987, a special exhibit of 527 black and white Far Side panels was shown in the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of Natural History in Washington D.C. 127 of the panels were originals, displayed in the rotunda on boards that held 50 panels each. Later the display became a traveling exhibit that was shown in San Francisco, Washington D.C., Orlando, Chicago, Toronto, New York City, Denver, and Los Angeles.^[13]

There was a Far Side gallery at the California Academy of Science that featured some of Larson's panels. The exhibit included a giant microscope under which visitors could stand, based on one of Larson's cartoons. Looking up through the objective lens revealed a giant blinking eyeball. The building was torn down and replaced and the exhibit is no longer in the new facility.^[14]

See also

• Strigiphilus garylarsoni
• Thagomizer

Notes

External links

• Gary Larson's The Far Side official site