Recent FAQS

FAQs

Beta-fresh answers, uploaded occasionally

Lets face it, our favorite comic strip is often obscure or inconsistent, and key characters are sometimes left stranded for years. Long-suffering readers are within their rights to demand some clarification. Use the "Ask GBT" form to email us your questions, and we will answer those we can on the Blowback page, and also archive the answers here.

Q: I'm shocked by the current storyline. B.D. losing a leg? What was Trudeau thinking?!?
-- Lela A., Portland, OR | Storyline | May 08, 2004
A:This is what GBT told ABC News on 'This Week with George Stephanopoulos' last Sunday:

The strips are about sacrifice, about the kind of shattering loss that completely changes lives. In B.D., I've placed a central character in harm's way, and his charmed life takes a dramatic turn on a road outside Fallujah. In the opening panels, he's in shock, hallucinating, with voices cutting in and out. Medics call this time the golden hour, that small window of opportunity when lives are most easily saved. B.D. is medevaced out, and in the third strip, the point of view is reversed, revealing just how grievous his wound really is. We also see his hair, its presence almost as startling as the absence of his leg.

What I meant to convey is that B.D.'s life has been irrevocably changed, that another chapter has begun. He is now on an arduous journey of recovery and rehabilitation. What I'm hoping to describe are the coping strategies that get people through this. There is no culture of complaint among the wounded -- most feel grateful to be alive and respectful of those who have endured even worse fates. But for many, a kind of black humor is indispensable in fending off bitterness or despair, so that's what will animate the strips that follow.

I have to approach this with humility and care. I'm sure I won't always get it right, and I'm also sure people will let me know when I don't. But it seems worth doing. This month alone, we've sustained nearly 600 wounded-in-action. Whether you think we belong in Iraq or not, we can't tune it out; we have to remain mindful of the terrible losses that individual soldiers are suffering in our name.

Q: What's the deal with the new "Blowback" feature? How is it different from the FAQ? How do I submit content?
-- A. Sims, Madison, WI | Out There | April 26, 2004
A:For years GBT has used this FAQ feature to answer selected queries from among those submitted to the DTH&WP. But Management has been criticized, understandably, for not making available a generous sampling of the other feedback the site receives. In response we have launched BLOWBACK, which will provide a constantly updated, judiciously edited supply of share-worthy e-mail regarding the strip and the site. Submissions to BLOWBACK can be made on the CONTACT page.
Q: Is there a winner in the Bush Guard contest?
-- Lauren P., Santa Rosa, CA | March 19, 2004
A:Few will be surprised to hear that not even the proferred $10,000 flushed out a reliable new eye-witness to George W. Bush's alleged service at Dannelly Air National Guard base. The good news is that over 1500 of you took a shot at the consolation prize, providing us with hours of fascinating and only occasionally vituperative reading.

Out of respect for the quality of the submissions received, we have upgraded the consolation prize -- an original strip signed by a top studio intern -- to an original strip signed by her supervisor (GBT). The second place winner will receive a fully-autographed copy of Got War?, the latest Doonesbury tome. Third place gets you a genuine Duke swizzle stick.

Only-partly-judgmental souls that we are, the DTH&WP staff has not been able to agree on a runner-up. But we have managed to winnow an overwhelming harvest of prose down to three striking submissions. We leave it to you to make the final selection by voting for one of these finalists in the current STRAW POLL.

Next up on FAQ: A generous sampling of Bush Guard Service contest submission.

Q: What's up with this $10,000 reward thing?
-- A. Mitchell, Amenia, NY | Storyline | March 09, 2004
A:For the past several weeks, trolling-for-trash journalists have made repeated forays into the continuing mystery of George W. Bush's Air National Guard service (to catch up on developments, read Salon's "Bad news doesn't get better with age", The Decatur Daily's "Former Dannelly worker: Bush not AWOL", The Nation's "W's AWOL Spin Update!", and -- of particular interest -- The Memphis Flyer's "On Guard -- Or Awol?"). With just eight months left in the presidential campaign, GBT is hoping to speed the disclosure process along by offering a $10,000 reward to coax a witness to step forward and confirm President Bush's story, thereby putting the whole sordid mess behind us. For details, go to our special Bush's Guard Service page. We also encourage you to take a moment to vote in our current Straw Poll on the subject.
Q: I love the Heart of Darkness storyline, but we younger readers would appreciate some background to get a better sense of what B.D. has been asked to do (eliminate Duke). How do these two know one another? Thanks!
-- P.N., La Jolla, CA | March 02, 2004
A:Many strands of plot bind Duke and the denizens of Walden Commune, which included both B.D. and Zonker, Duke's nephew. Through this connection B.D. was aware of Duke's innumerable misadventures -- such as his appointment as general manager of the Washington Redskins , or the time Zonker was notified by mail that Duke's caretaker Zeke had had him declared legally dead. Mike's future wife J.J. roomed at Georgetown with Honey Huan (Duke's former translator and future love-slave) and dated Zeke when he published Duke: Portrait of a Mentor. In 1983's Doonesbury: A Musical, Walden Commune disbanded, but not before B.D. and Boopsie paired off for good, Mike and J.J. got engaged, and Duke was attacked by bats in the kitchen. So many storylines, so little time...
Q: I heard that the TV series Trudeau and Robert Altman did about the 1988 presidential election is coming back. True?
-- Owen V., Portland, OR | Out There | February 20, 2004
A:Starting Tuesday, February 3, the Sundance Channel will be re-broadcasting an updated edition of Tanner '88: The Dark Horse, written by GBT and directed by Robert Altman. This innovative weekly series tracking the fictional presidential campaign of Jack Tanner was filmed in real time against the backdrop of the 1988 primaries. The show starred Michael Murphy, Pamela Reed, Cynthia Nixon (Sex and the City), and featured interactions with real-life candidates Bob Dole, Gary Hart, Pat Robertson, Bruce Babbit and others. Originally aired on HBO, Tanner '88 won a special jury prize at Cannes for best TV series.

For the Sundance Channel broadcast, each of the 11 episodes will be introduced by recently-filmed interviews with the characters, who look back on their experiences in campaign '88 from the vantage point of campaign '04. You can read more about Tanner '88 in this Boston Globe article, or this CNN piece.

This week?s schedule: Tuesday, 9 pm; Friday 11:30 pm; Sunday 5:30 pm.

Q: I read that Trudeau did some strips on John Kerry and Vietnam back in the early days. Could you please post them on the site, to give those of us who weren't around at the time a look?
-- Jane E., Portland, OR | Characters | February 03, 2004
A:It is our pleasure to help candidate Kerry flesh out his campaign bio. The future-senator spoke at Walden College on behalf of Vietnam Veterans Against the War in a three-day series that ran on October 21, 1971, October 22, 1971 and October 23, 1971.
Q: According to Zonker in the 1-13-04 "mail silo" strip, Trudeau has killed off four characters so far. Who were they?
-- David B., Oak Hill, WV | Characters | January 26, 2004
A:Avid birder Dick Davenport passed away in 1986 during a moment of triumph, having finally spotted the rare Bachman's Warbler. Andy Lippincott died of AIDS in 1990 while fulfilling his dream of hearing "Pet Sounds" on CD. Succumbing to Alzheimer's, Congresswoman Lacey Davenport was escorted Heavenward by her dear departed in 1998. In the wake of Phil Slackmeyer's offstage demise in 2002, son Mark had difficulty rounding up mourners for the funeral.
Q: I love daily desk calendars but really want one with Doonesbury cartoons for 2004. Is it out there somewhere?
-- Will G., South Bend, IN | January 14, 2004
A:The Doonesbury Desk Diary enjoyed a pretty good run back in the late 20th century -- 1984, 1985, 1988, 1989, 1990 and 1991 to be exact -- and served as the inspiration for our current SayWhat? feature, but there are no plans to revive the item. Sorry!
Q: Some years ago I had the pleasure of seeing a display of original Doonesbury comic strips. I've regretted to this day that I was too poor at the time to buy one. I've been saving up for one ever since and am ready to buy one now. Are the originals still available? If so, how does one select and order one? Thanks!
-- Tom S., Nashville, TN

I'd like to give my husband an original Doonesbury strip for Christmas. Is this possible? How do I make it happen?
-- "A.G.", location withheld for obvious reasons

January 07, 2004
A:GBT has been using originals for fundraising purposes for some time, and would be happy to send you one in exchange for a check made out to "Coalition for the Homeless" for $1,000 (daily) or $1,750 (Sunday). The older strips are now on deposit with the Beinecke Library at Yale, but the past five years or so are available. If this appeals to you, please feel free to write to us at themanagement@doonesbury.com and indicate the strip or strips you are interested in. We'll check the archive for availability and get back to you -- quickly, if Christmas-gifting is your goal.