Riverdale High School (comics)
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Riverdale is a
fictional town A fictional city refers to a town, city or village that is invented for fictional stories and does not exist in real life, or which people believe to exist without definitive proof, such as Plato's account of Atlantis. Cultures have always had l ...
in the United States where most of the characters live and appear in
Archie Comics Archie Comic Publications, Inc., is an American comic book publisher headquartered in Pelham, New York.Sabrina the Teenage Witch ''Sabrina the Teenage Witch'' is a comic book series published by Archie Comics about the adventures of a fictional character, fictional American teenager named Sabrina Spellman. Sabrina was created by writer George Gladir and artist Dan DeCarlo ...
'' comic book series. In the television series '' Riverdale'', it is located near Greendale related to the television series ''
Chilling Adventures of Sabrina ''Chilling Adventures of Sabrina'' is an American comic book series published by Archie Horror, an imprint of Archie Comics, beginning in 2014. The series is a darker take on the characters and setting of ''Sabrina the Teenage Witch''. It is writ ...
''.


Overview

Riverdale is the setting of the stories in the Archie Comics universe. It is usually depicted as a medium-sized town (possibly a suburb of a bigger city), with all the usual amenities of shopping malls, restaurants, and parks. In the first Archie stories in the 1940s, it was identified as
Riverdale, New York Riverdale is a residential neighborhood in the northwestern portion of the New York City borough of the Bronx. Riverdale, which had a population of 47,850 as of the 2000 United States Census, contains the city's northernmost point, at the College ...
, a real neighborhood in
The Bronx The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New Y ...
. In ''
Jackpot Comics ''Jackpot Comics'' was the name of an American anthology comic book magazine series published by MLJ Magazines Inc., more commonly known as MLJ Comics, for nine issues between Spring 1941 and Spring 1943. It featured new stories of a number of cha ...
'' #5 (Spring 1942), a story written by
Bob Montana Robert William Montana (October 23, 1920 – January 4, 1975) was an American comic strip artist who created the original likenesses for characters published by Archie Comics and in the newspaper strip '' Archie''. Early life He was born in Sto ...
has the gang going on a river trip. One panel says "...the good ship 'Peter Stuyvesant' settles into the
Hudson Hudson may refer to: People * Hudson (given name) * Hudson (surname) * Henry Hudson, English explorer * Hudson (footballer, born 1986), Hudson Fernando Tobias de Carvalho, Brazilian football right-back * Hudson (footballer, born 1988), Hudso ...
, as Riverdale High clambers aboard for a happy trip to Bear Mountain." Riverdale has been shown to have beaches, lakes, rivers, deserts, farmland, woodland, mountains, plains, a transit system, and four distinct seasons with changes in climate. Archie Comics publisher
John L. Goldwater John Leonard Goldwater (born Max Leonard Goldwasser;Saunders, David ''Field Guide to Wild American Pulp Artists''. Accessed Oct. 22, 2018. February 14, 1916 – February 26, 1999) co-founded (with Maurice Coyne (publisher), Maurice Coyne and Loui ...
and initial ''Archie'' artist
Bob Montana Robert William Montana (October 23, 1920 – January 4, 1975) was an American comic strip artist who created the original likenesses for characters published by Archie Comics and in the newspaper strip '' Archie''. Early life He was born in Sto ...
differed on the inspiration for Riverdale, with Goldwater saying it was based on his hometown of
Hiawatha, Kansas Hiawatha (Chiwere language, Ioway: ''Hári Wáta'' pronounced ) is the largest city and county seat of Brown County, Kansas, Brown County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population of the city was 3, ...
, and Montana saying the town's high school was based on his own in
Haverhill, Massachusetts Haverhill ( ) is a city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. Haverhill is located 35 miles north of Boston on the New Hampshire border and about 17 miles from the Atlantic Ocean. The population was 67,787 at the 2020 United States Cen ...
, where as in the comics a replica of
Auguste Rodin François Auguste René Rodin (12 November 184017 November 1917) was a French sculptor, generally considered the founder of modern sculpture. He was schooled traditionally and took a craftsman-like approach to his work. Rodin possessed a uniqu ...
's famous statue
The Thinker ''The Thinker'' (french: Le Penseur) is a bronze sculpture by Auguste Rodin François Auguste René Rodin (12 November 184017 November 1917) was a French sculptor, generally considered the founder of modern sculpture. He was schooled tradi ...
stands. In one issue of ''Archie and Jughead Digest'', when one of the readers asked in a letter, "Where is Riverdale located?", the editor replied, "Riverdale is more of a state of mind than an actual physical location. It could be anywhere that kind people live and just have fun, like Archie and his friends. It could be in the Midwest, or along the Eastern Seaboard, or even a town in Canada, Mexico, or England."


Riverdale High School

Riverdale High School is the local educational institution of Riverdale where Archie and his friends attend the 11th grade. Its school colors are blue and gold, and its school newspaper is the ''Blue and Gold''. Only a few of Riverdale High's staff appear regularly in the comics; these include the school principal
Mr. Weatherbee Waldo Weatherbee is a fictional character in the Archie Comics universe. Mr. Weatherbee is the principal of Riverdale High School, where Archie Andrews is a student. To Riverdale students and (most) staff, he is commonly called Mr. Weatherbee, du ...
, homeroom teacher
Miss Grundy Miss Geraldine Grundy is a fictional character of the Archie Comics series. A younger version of Miss Grundy was portrayed by Sarah Habel in '' Riverdale''. Fictional history and character An early version of Miss Grundy appears in ''Jackpot Co ...
, chemistry teacher Mr. Flutesnoot, history teacher Miss Haggly, physical education teachers Coach Kleats and
Coach Clayton The following is a list of characters in the '' Archie Comics'' universe. Licensed characters like Sonic the Hedgehog and Mega Man are not included in this list. ''Archie'' series Main characters Archie Andrews The character Archie Andrews ...
, cafeteria cook
Miss Beazley Miss Beazley (October 28, 2004 – May 17, 2014) was a Scottish Terrier which belonged to former U.S. President George W. Bush and former U.S. First Lady Laura Bush. Miss Beazley's father, a Scottish terrier named Clinton, was born on ...
, custodian
Mr. Svenson ''Mister'', usually written in its contracted form ''Mr.'' or ''Mr'', is a commonly used English honorific for men without a higher honorific, or professional title, or any of various designations of office. The title 'Mr' derived from earlier ...
, secretary Miss Phlips, and superintendent of schools Mr. Hassle. in the TV show, the staff frequently shown/mentioned in Riverdale are
Mr. Weatherbee Waldo Weatherbee is a fictional character in the Archie Comics universe. Mr. Weatherbee is the principal of Riverdale High School, where Archie Andrews is a student. To Riverdale students and (most) staff, he is commonly called Mr. Weatherbee, du ...
(principal),
Miss Grundy Miss Geraldine Grundy is a fictional character of the Archie Comics series. A younger version of Miss Grundy was portrayed by Sarah Habel in '' Riverdale''. Fictional history and character An early version of Miss Grundy appears in ''Jackpot Co ...
(former, deceased music teacher),
Coach Clayton The following is a list of characters in the '' Archie Comics'' universe. Licensed characters like Sonic the Hedgehog and Mega Man are not included in this list. ''Archie'' series Main characters Archie Andrews The character Archie Andrews ...
(football coach) and
Mr. Svenson ''Mister'', usually written in its contracted form ''Mr.'' or ''Mr'', is a commonly used English honorific for men without a higher honorific, or professional title, or any of various designations of office. The title 'Mr' derived from earlier ...
(caretaker) In the five-issue miniseries ''Faculty Funnies'' (cover-dated June 1989May 1990) by writer
George Gladir George Gladir (September 27, 1925 – April 3, 2013) was an American writer for comic books. Primarily known as a scripter for Archie Comics, he co-created that publisher's character Sabrina Spellman, with artist Dan DeCarlo. Biography George G ...
and penciler
Stan Goldberg Stan Goldberg (May 5, 1932 – August 31, 2014) was an American comic book artist, best known for his work with Archie Comics and as a Marvel Comics colorist who in the 1960s helped design the original color schemes of Spider-Man, the Fantastic F ...
, faculty members Mr. Weatherbee, Mr. Flutesnoot, Miss Grundy and Coach Clayton secretly become the superhero team the Awesome Foursome after a lab accident involving Archie's science project. They lose their powers after putting out a chemical fire. The series ''Archie at Riverdale High'' ran 113 issues (August 1972February 1987). This was followed by ''Riverdale High'', which ran six issues (AugustJune 1990). After a brief hiatus, it was retitled ''Archie's Riverdale High'' and then canceled with issue #8 (AugustOctober 1991).


Places

Places in Riverdale besides the high school include the following: * Pop Tate's Chocklit Shoppe, the soda shop frequented by the teenaged cast. *Pickens Park, the community park named for the fictional Civil War hero General Pickens. *The Lodge Mansion, the large and luxurious home of wealthy
Veronica Lodge Veronica Cecilia Lodge is one of the main characters in the Archie Comics franchise, and is the keyboardist and one of the three vocalists of rock band The Archies. She is from New York but currently resides in the town of Riverdale (Archie Com ...
and her parents. *Homes of other members of the gang, including the Andrews residence, Jones residence and Cooper residence. *
Dilton Doiley Dilton Donald Doiley is a fictional character in the Archie Comics universe, where he is considered the smartest teenager in Riverdale High School. History Characters resembling Dilton (in appearance and personality) appeared quite early in A ...
's science lab, a home-based setup where Dilton invents and conducts experiments. *
Chuck Clayton Charles Clayton is a teenage fictional character published by Archie Comics. Chuck lives in the fictional town of Riverdale, and is the friend of Archie Andrews, Betty Cooper, Jughead Jones, and other students at Riverdale High School. Chuck fir ...
's studio, where Chuck draws his cartoons at home. *The beach, where Archie and the gang spend much of their time in the summer. *The Riverdale Mall, a source of shopping and entertainment, particularly for the girls. * The Blossom Mansion, the larger and luxurious home where wealthy
Cheryl Blossom Cheryl Marjorie Blossom is a fictional character of the Archie Comics universe. She is a wealthy teenage girl, the privileged daughter of a businessman. The live action version of Cheryl is portrayed by Madelaine Petsch in '' Riverdale''. Histor ...
and her family live. * Riverdale High, where all the teens go to school, and where all the dances and some parties are hosted, like homecoming.


Nearby towns

Some nearby towns include Greendale and Midvale. Greendale is the home of
Sabrina, the Teenage Witch ''Sabrina the Teenage Witch'' is a comic book series published by Archie Comics about the adventures of a fictional American teenager named Sabrina Spellman. Sabrina was created by writer George Gladir and artist Dan DeCarlo, and first appeared ...
, who once lived in Riverdale but eventually moved. Characters who appear in
Josie and the Pussycats Josie and the Pussycats (sometimes simply known as The Pussycats) are a fictional girl group A girl group is a music act featuring several female singers who generally harmonize together. The term "girl group" is also used in a narrower sense i ...
come from Midvale. Riverdale High School's main scholastic and athletic rival is Central High School, located in another nearby community. Central High seems to consist of nothing but villainous types. The males are generally thuggish, conniving brutes, and the females are usually lecherous, scheming vamps. In most of their encounters, Central students seldom compete without using unsportsmanlike conduct, if not out-and-out cheating. The coaches and teachers often are not only aware of this skullduggery, but encourage it. In most cases, Central's team colors are bright red and silver-white. In the fourth season of the iconic show, Stonewall Prep is heavily mentioned as one of the nearby rival schools. Student often dress in rabbit memorabilia and carry fake looking axes to intimidate unwanted newcomers. In a rather charming episode, Betty and Jughead have relations in Jughead's dorm during the winter months. As Jughead courageously ventures outside their cozy abode to buy them an extravagant meal of vending machine memorabilia, he is nearly attacked by one of these bunny loving students. Pembrooke Academy is a private school attended by siblings
Cheryl Cheryl is a female given name common in English speaking countries. There are several prevailing theories about its etymology. The most common is that it has Italo-Celtic roots and is an Anglicised version of either the French name Cherie (from ...
and
Jason Blossom The following is a list of members of the families of Archie's Gang appearing in Archie Comics. Primarily featured are the parents of Archie Andrews, Betty Cooper, Veronica Lodge and Jughead Jones. The Andrews family Fred Andrews Frederick "Fr ...
and their snobbish friends Bunny and Cedric. They look down on Riverdale students as "townies" and will not (except for the Blossom twins) willingly associate with them. Other schools that have been featured as Riverdale rival schools include Hadley High and Southside High. In one comic, a letter sent to Riverdale has "U." where the state should be, and a ZIP code of 10543 (which in real life is Mamaroneck, New York, the home of Michael Silberkleit, an Archie Comics editor).


Related media

* In the pilot of the 2017 series ''Riverdale'', the town is described as being located in "Rockland County." Only one county in the US has that name,
Rockland County, New York Rockland County is the southernmost county on the west side of the Hudson River in the U.S. state of New York. It is part of the New York metropolitan area. It is about from the Bronx at their closest points. The county's population, as of t ...
, close to Archie Comics' headquarters in
Pelham, New York Pelham is a suburban town in Westchester County, approximately 10 miles northeast of Midtown Manhattan. As of the 2020 census, it had a population of 13,078, an increase from the 2010 census. Historically, Pelham was composed of five villages ...
.


Cultural references

*In ''
The Simpsons ''The Simpsons'' is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical depiction of American life, epitomized by the Simpson family, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa, ...
'' episode "
Sideshow Bob Roberts "Sideshow Bob Roberts" is the fifth episode of the sixth season of the American animated television series ''The Simpsons''. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on October 9, 1994. Kelsey Grammer returns in his fourth major ...
" (Episode 2F02), several Archie Comics characters, including
Archie Andrews Archibald "Archie" Andrews, created in 1941 by publisher John L. Goldwater and artist Bob Montana in collaboration with writer Vic Bloom,
,
Reggie Mantle Reginald "Reggie" Mantle is a fictional teenager in stories published by Archie Comics; he is introduced by writer-artist Bob Montana and John L. Goldwater in ''Jackpot Comics'' #5 (cover-dated Spring 1942). He also appears in CW's '' Riverdale' ...
,
Moose Mason Marmaduke "Moose" Mason (often referred to as Big Moose) is a fictional character in the Archie Comics universe. He attends Riverdale High School where he is typically depicted as the best athlete but the poorest student. His difficulties with sch ...
and
Jughead Jones Forsythe Pendleton "Jughead" Jones III is one of the fictional characters created by Bob Montana and John L. Goldwater in Archie Comics who first appeared in the first Archie story, from ''Pep Comics'' #22 (December 1941). He is the drummer of th ...
have a cameo, as well as a copy of ''Archie Comics''. *In "
Marge the Lumberjill "Marge the Lumberjill" is the sixth episode of the thirty-first season of the American animated television series ''The Simpsons'', and the 668th episode overall. It aired in the United States on Fox on November 10, 2019. The writer was Ryan Koh. ...
" (Episode ZABF02) from the same series, Springfield Elementary students perform dramatic scenes that they write themselves, based on TV shows and YouTube, including one from'' Riverdale''.


See also

*
New Riverdale New Riverdale is the title used to refer to the relaunch of the core Archie Comics titles that began in July 2015. In December 2014, Archie Comics announced that its flagship series Archie would relaunch with a new first issue in July 2015. The ne ...
*
Duckburg The Donald Duck universe is a fictional shared universe which is the setting of stories involving Disney cartoon character Donald Duck, as well as Daisy Duck, Huey, Dewey, and Louie, Scrooge McDuck, and many other characters. Life in the Donal ...
*
Springfield Springfield may refer to: * Springfield (toponym), the place name in general Places and locations Australia * Springfield, New South Wales (Central Coast) * Springfield, New South Wales (Snowy Monaro Regional Council) * Springfield, Queenslan ...


References


External links


Archie Comics official site
{{authority control Fictional elements introduced in 1942 Archie Comics Fictional locations in comics Fictional populated places in New York (state) Riverdale, Bronx