''The Lockhorns'' is a United States single-panel cartoon created September 9, 1968 by

Bill Hoest William Pierce Hoest (February 7, 1926 – November 7, 1988) was an American cartoonist best known as the creator of the gag panel series, '' The Lockhorns'', distributed by King Features Syndicate to 500 newspapers in 23 countries, and ''Laugh ...

and distributed by King Features Syndicate to 500 newspapers in 23 countries. It is continued today by

Bunny Hoest Bunny Hoest (born 1932), sometimes labeled The Cartoon Lady, is the writer of several comic strips, including '' The Lockhorns'', ''Laugh Parade'', and '' Howard Huge'', the first of which she inherited from her late husband Bill Hoest.King Featur ...

and

John Reiner John Reiner (born 1956) is a cartoonist who collaborates with writer Bunny Hoest on three cartoon series: '' The Lockhorns'', syndicated by King Features, and ''Laugh Parade'' and '' Howard Huge'' (both for ''Parade'' magazine). Life and career ...

Characters and story

The married couple Leroy and Loretta Lockhorn constantly argue. They demonstrate their mutual deep-seated hatred by making humorously sarcastic comments on each other's failings as spouses. The strip initially was titled ''The Lockhorns of

Levittown Levittown is the name of several large suburban housing developments created in the United States (including one in Puerto Rico) by William J. Levitt and his company Levitt & Sons. Built after World War II for returning white veterans and their ...

'', and many of the businesses and institutions depicted in the strip are real places located in or near Huntington, New York, on the North Shore of Long Island. "When we use names, we get permission," Bunny Hoest said in 2019. “Dr. aroldBlog was our doctor for many years. He passed away. We still use him. He stays alive in the comic." Anticipating national syndication, Bunny Hoest suggested shortening the title to ''The Lockhorns''. It began as a single-panel daily on September 9, 1968, with the Sunday feature launched April 9, 1972. The Sunday feature employs an unusual layout that ganged together several single-panel cartoons. Comics historian

Don Markstein Don Markstein's Toonopedia (subtitled A Vast Repository of Toonological Knowledge) is an online encyclopedia of print cartoons, comic strips and animation, initiated February 13, 2001. Donald D. Markstein, the sole writer and editor of Toonopedi ...

described the couple's battle of wits: Bill Hoest died in 1988. His widow, Bunny Hoest, continued the strip with Bill Hoest's longtime assistant, John Reiner.

''The Lockhorns''

*Leroy Lockhorn – The man of the house who drinks a lot, plays golf too much and chases everything good-looking in a skirt. Holds an undergraduate degree in philosophy. *Loretta Lockhorn – The woman of the house is a shopaholic, who drives and cooks terribly and does most of the handiwork around the house because either Leroy is too lazy to do it, or because he feels she should earn all the money she spends. *Loretta's mother – Never named and rarely seen (usually only during the Christmas season when she comes to stay), but hated mercilessly by Leroy. *D. Pullman, marriage counselor – Whom Leroy and Loretta routinely see but to no avail. *Arthur the bartender – Local saloonkeeper to whom Leroy often bemoans his circumstances.

Parodies

*"Marital Mirth", part of the "Super-Fun-Pak Comics" in ''

Tom the Dancing Bug ''Tom the Dancing Bug'' is a weekly satirical comic strip by cartoonist and political commentator Ruben Bolling that covers mostly US current events from a liberal point of view. Tom the Dancing Bug won the 2002, 2003, 2007, 2008,Gardner, Ala ...

'', is a parody of ''The Lockhorns''. *''

The Better Half ''The Better Half'' is an American comic strip created by Bob Barnes. It follows the lives of a married couple, Stanley and Harriet Parker, and the usual annoyances couples have with one another after years of marriage. In 1958, the strip won Bar ...

'' comic strip is often seen as a tamer version of ''The Lockhorns''. *An early '' Liō'' strip featured Liō's ants attacking numerous comic strips on a newspaper page, all of which parodied real comic strips. ''The Lockhorns'' appeared as ''The Hateeachothers'', depicting a non-plussed Leeroy Hateeachother comparing the monstrous ant to Loretta's mother. *A '' Watch Your Head'' comic featured a movie trailer "Dear Loretta, Love, Leroy" where the bickering turns out to be a romantic comedy.

Books

At least nine ''Lockhorns'' collections were published by Signet between 1968 and 1982. Tor reissued the first in the series as ''The Lockhorns: "What Do You Mean You Weren't Listening? I Didn't Say Anything"'' in 1992.

Awards

Bill Hoest received the National Cartoonists Society's Newspaper Panel Cartoon Award for the strip for 1975 and 1980.

References

Sources

* Strickler, Dave. ''Syndicated Comic Strips and Artists, 1924–1995: The Complete Index.'' Cambria, California: Comics Access, 1995.

External links

''The Lockhorns'' official site