Calvin and Hobbes is an American daily comic strip created by cartoonist Bill Watterson and syndicated from November 18, 1985, to December 31, 1995. The strip centers on Calvin, a six-year-old boy characterized by his vivid imagination and rowdy behavior, and Hobbes, his stuffed tiger, who is a sentient being to Calvin but a regular toy to everyone else. Set in the contemporary United States, the strip includes a recurring cast such as Calvin's parents, his classmate Susie Derkins, his teacher Miss Wormwood, and his babysitter Rosalyn.
A recurring element of the strip is Calvin's use of imagination, often depicted through alter egos such as Spaceman Spiff and Stupendous Man, as well as his reinterpretation of everyday objects, including cardboard boxes, as devices such as time machines. Watterson's artistic style, influenced by earlier comic strips including Peanuts, Pogo, and Krazy Kat, developed over time to incorporate more varied panel layouts and watercolor illustrations in Sunday strips.
At its peak, Calvin and Hobbes was published in more than 2,000 newspapers internationally. Watterson firmly opposed the licensing of the strip's characters for commercial merchandise and engaged in disputes with his syndicate regarding creative control. As such, no official merchandise or animated adaptations were produced during the strip's original run. Watterson ended the strip in 1995, stating that he had explored the format to his satisfaction.
Described by some commentators as "the last great newspaper comic", Calvin and Hobbes has enjoyed enduring popularity and influence. The 18 official book collections have sold millions of copies globally, and the strip continues to attract significant academic and philosophical interest. In 2014, Watterson's contributions to the medium were recognized with the Grand Prix at the Angoulême International Comics Festival, cementing the strip's legacy as one of the most celebrated works in comic history.
Bill Watterson conceived and developed Calvin and Hobbes while working in advertising. United Feature Syndicate agreed to publish one strip titled The Doghouse, which featured a side character (the main character's little brother) who had a stuffed tiger. The syndicate identified these characters as the strongest and encouraged Watterson to develop them as the focus of their own strip. United Feature ultimately rejected the new strip as lacking marketing potential, although Universal Press Syndicate took it up.
The first Calvin and Hobbes strip was published in 35 newspapers on November 18, 1985. Within a year of syndication, the strip appeared in approximately 250 newspapers and achieved wide international circulation in translation.
As the strip grew in popularity, the syndicate expressed strong interest in merchandising the characters and expanding into other media. By 1991, Watterson secured a contract granting him legal control over the strip and all future licensing arrangements. After gaining creative control, Watterson relocated to New Mexico and largely disappeared from public engagements, refusing to attend ceremonies for the cartooning awards he won.
In 1995, Watterson announced that Calvin and Hobbes would conclude at the end of the year. He stated that he had achieved his intended goals within the medium. The final strip ran on Sunday, December 31, 1995, depicting Calvin and Hobbes sledding down a hill after a fresh snowfall, with Calvin delivering the final lines: "It's a magical world, Hobbes, ol' buddy... Let's go exploring!"
Speaking to NPR in 2005, animation critic Charles Solomon opined that the final strip "left behind a hole in the comics page that no strip has been able to fill." After the strip concluded, it was described as "the last great newspaper comic".
Almost no legitimate Calvin and Hobbes merchandise exists. Watterson believed that comic strips should be regarded as an art form. Although he did not initially oppose all forms of merchandising, he rejected an early syndication deal that would have involved incorporating a more marketable, licensed character named Robotman into the strip.
When Calvin and Hobbes was accepted by Universal Syndicate and grew in popularity, Watterson disagreed with the syndicate, which urged him to merchandise the characters and tour the country to promote the first strip collections. Watterson refused, believing that the integrity of the strip and its artist would be undermined by commercialization, which he saw as a major negative influence in the world of cartoon art, and that licensing his characters would violate the spirit of his work. However, having signed away merchandising control in his initial contract with the syndicate, Watterson began a lengthy and emotionally draining battle with Universal to gain control over his work. Ultimately, Universal did not approve any products against Watterson's wishes, understanding that, unlike with comic strips, it would be nearly impossible to separate the creator from the strip if Watterson chose to walk away. One estimate suggests that Watterson forwent $300–$400 million.
In a 1989 interview in The Comics Journal, Watterson described the appeal of being able to do things with a moving image that a simple drawing cannot achieve: the distortion, the exaggeration, and the control over the length of time an event is viewed. Although the visual possibilities of animation appealed to Watterson, the idea of finding a voice for Calvin made him uncomfortable, as did the idea of working with a team of animators. Ultimately, Calvin and Hobbes was never made into an animated series. Watterson later stated in The Calvin and Hobbes Tenth Anniversary Book that he liked that his strip was a "low-tech, one-man operation", and that he was proud to have drawn every line and written every word himself. Calls from major Hollywood figures interested in adapting his work, including Jim Henson, George Lucas, and Steven Spielberg, were never returned. In a 2013 interview, Watterson stated that he had no interest in an animated adaptation, as he saw no upside to it.
The strip borrows several elements and themes from three major influences: Walt Kelly's Pogo, George Herriman's Krazy Kat, and Charles M. Schulz's Peanuts. Schulz and Kelly particularly influenced Watterson's outlook on comics during his formative years.
Watterson's artistic style features diverse and often exaggerated character expressions, particularly Calvin's. Watterson experimented freely with different panel layouts, art styles, stories without dialogue, and greater use of white space. Watterson intentionally leaves certain elements to the reader's imagination, stating that the imagined results are "more outrageous" than what he could portray.
Watterson's technique began with minimalist pencil sketches drawn with a light pencil (though the larger Sunday strips often required more elaborate work) on Strathmore brand Bristol board. He then used a small sable brush and India ink to fill in the rest of the drawing, preferring not to simply trace his penciling in order to keep the inking spontaneous. Mistakes were covered with various forms of correction fluid, including typewriter fluid. Watterson lettered dialogue with a Rapidograph fountain pen, and used a crowquill pen for odds and ends.
Watterson spent considerable time choosing colors for the weekly Sunday strip. He cut the syndicate's color tabs into individual squares, laid them out, painted a watercolor approximation on tracing paper over the Bristol board, and marked the strip accordingly before sending it out. When Calvin and Hobbes began, there were 64 colors available for the Sunday strips. For his later Sunday strips, Watterson had 125 colors and the ability to fade them into each other.
Characters and recurring themes
The strip features two titular characters, six-year-old Calvin and his stuffed tiger Hobbes, along with a small recurring cast including Calvin's unnamed parents, his classmate and neighbor Susie Derkins, his teacher Miss Wormwood, and his babysitter Rosalyn, and school bully Moe.