Premise
The Lockhorns presents the ups and downs of committed relationships through the lens of the married couple Loretta and Leroy Lockhorn. The two exchange witty barbs and sarcastic quips all while demonstrating their deep love and affection for each other. Through thick and thin, couples counseling and Leroy's occasional trips to the bar, Loretta and Leroy exemplify the enduring nature of their relationship, bound together "til death do us part." The strip initially was titled ''The Lockhorns ofCharacters
Leroy works at an unspecified job, trying to make ends meet while Loretta keeps the home fires burning...literally. A notoriously bad cook, she has on more than one occasion set off smoke alarms in every part of the house. She is also a self-confessed shopaholic. Loretta plays the piano - and drives the car - both by ear. Leroy's wandering eye and lazy lifestyle form part of the couple's comic conflicts too. The humor comes primarily from the exchanges between the couple themselves, with an occasional appearance by Leroy's outspoken mother-in-law and a hapless marriage counselor, Dr. Pullman.Books
Hoest has published multiple collections of The Lockhorns with Signet, Tor and Simon and Schuster's Wallaby Books. Tor has reissued expanded collections of several of these books. Hoest has published other books for other strips the studio has produced. "What's the Garbage Doing on the Stove?" Signet (1975), "Loretta, the Meatloaf is Moving" Signet (1976), "Who Made the Caesar Salad, Brutus?" Signet (1977), "Is This the Steak or the Charcoal?" Signet (1979), "I See You Burned the Cold Cuts Again" Signet (1981), "Of Course I Love You - What Do I Know?" Signet (1981), "You Name It... I'm Guilty" Signet (1982), "Let's Go For a Walk and Bring your Wallet" Signet (1982), "I Could Live without These Meatballs-Probably Longer" Signet (1982), "This is Our Twenty-Fifth Anniversary. Don't You Think That's Enough?" Simon and Schuster's Wallaby Books (1982), "What Do You Mean You Weren't Listening? I Didn't Say Anything" Tor (1983), "Leroy is Very Proud ofThat Trophy and Wouldn't You Know it, He got if from Running Backwards" Tor (1984), "I'm Sticking to My Story...Whatever It Is" Tor (1985), "Dessert! We Made It into the Homestretch!" Tor (1985), "I'm Trying to Improve My Marriage, But I Can't Get her to Leave" Tor (1990), "It's a Letter Inviting Mother to Come Visit with Us I'll Mail it Myself" Tor (1990), "The Trouble With You is that You Judge Food Too Much by its Taste" Barking Hollow Studios (2015), "You Have to Spend Money to Make Money...I can Handle That" Barking Hollow Studios (2024)Awards
Bill Hoest received theOrigin and location
Bill Hoest was a prolific gag cartoonist, submitting work to nearly every publication in the 1960s. He noticed that many of his submissions were on the subject of marriage and decided to create a comic strip with that theme. King Features liked the strip samples but suggested it would work better as a single panel, ironically having Hoest return the work into its original single-panel form. The Lockhorns began syndication later that year. Originally titled "The Lockhorns of Levittown," a reference to the new post-war Long Island suburban community, the single-panel cartoon appeared as a daily feature on September 9, 1968 until April 9, 1972, when its growing popularity brought about the addition of a Sunday cartoon, which incorporated a number of individual, stand-alone panels. Due to its widening appeal, the feature shortened its name to simply "The Lockhorns." The panel's humorous and universal take on a couple's life together resonated with readers around the world, appearing in many different countries, for more than 50 years. They appear in Spanish as "Los Melaza," in French as "La Famille Chicane," as well as in Chinese, German, Finnish, Hebrew, and more.References
Sources
* Strickler, Dave. ''Syndicated Comic Strips and Artists, 1924–1995: The Complete Index.'' Cambria, California: Comics Access, 1995.External links
See also
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