# Do adults actually read newspaper comic strips? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [July 5, 2008, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-adults-actually-read-newspaper-comic-strips/455400 "2008-07-05T20:50:02Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![scrambledeggs](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/898d66/32.png) [@scrambledeggs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scrambledeggs)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2008, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-adults-actually-read-newspaper-comic-strips/455400/1 "2008-07-05T20:50:02Z")
Back in the day, when I was a boy, I would always race to the newspaper to get the comic strip page. I remember Calvin & Hobbes, Bloom County, Hagar, shoe, etc. But as a I grew older (high school age) I stopped and only read the actual news. today I never read any comics except dilbert & the editorial cartoons. You would think that the average adult would not find "Family circus’ and “Hagar the Horrible” very funny. They tend to be the same joke. And especially the average adult newspaper subscriber, who is more literal than the average joe. And children generally dont read the newspaper, even comics. So are there any numbers as to how many adults actually read the comic strips? Why do they even have strips like “Family Circus” that I would imagine no one buys the paper for? ---
**Author:** ![FairyChatMom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fairychatmom/32/21906_2.png) [@FairyChatMom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FairyChatMom)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2008, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-adults-actually-read-newspaper-comic-strips/455400/2 "2008-07-05T21:01:41Z")
I don’t take a paper, but I read several comics on line daily. If I happen across a paper, I’ll read thru most of the comics. There are some I avoid because I find them to be unfunny, bordering on stupid, but I’ve found it’s largely a matter of taste. For example, I think _Pearls Before Swine_ is a hoot. My mother, who is extremely intelligent and well-read, can’t stand it. She thinks _One Big Happy_ is hilarious - I don’t see the appeal. My son-in-law loves _Garfield_ - talk about a strip that has survived on 2 or 3 constantly repeated gags. _\_ When I lived in Jacksonville, the Times-Union would periodically have a comics survey, and the “classics” (most of which I find to be lame) were always voted in. The bottom line: it’s a business decision - the customers want _Cathy_ and _Family Circus_, so the paper subscribes to them. But to answer your question - yes, some adults actually read comic strips. ---
**Author:** ![WarmNPrickly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/d78d45/32.png) [@WarmNPrickly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WarmNPrickly)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2008, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-adults-actually-read-newspaper-comic-strips/455400/3 "2008-07-05T21:03:32Z")
I love the comics. I’m not terribly interested in Hagar, Family Circus, or BC, but some of them are quite funny. I read Doonsbury, Non-Sequiter, Get Fuzzy, Fox Trot, Zits, The Buckets, Shermans Lagoon, and Garfield just because I never give up. I’ll read most of the others, but some are only amusing and some aren’t entertaining at all. I think Family Circus is the only one that I never get any entertaqinment out of, but YMMV. On the other hand, I don’t get a paper anymore so, I only get to read them once in a while. ---
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2008, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-adults-actually-read-newspaper-comic-strips/455400/4 "2008-07-05T21:05:46Z")
[QUOTE=scrambledeggs] So are there any numbers as to how many adults actually read the comic strips? Why do they even have strips like “Family Circus” that I would imagine no one buys the paper for? [/QUOTE] I think many adults, like me, read some of the old comics because we grew up reading them. Same reason I watch Peanuts specials for Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas. For the Sunday paper, I think adults have more time to read it. Thus, they’re more likely to read the comics for a bit. It certainly beats reading about the latest school district scandal. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2008, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-adults-actually-read-newspaper-comic-strips/455400/5 "2008-07-05T21:06:08Z")
I read the comics every day in both the local paper and [online](http://www.overzealous.com/comics/index.html). ---
**Author:** ![Charlie\_Tan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/charlie_tan/32/12582_2.png) [@Charlie\_Tan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Charlie_Tan)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2008, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-adults-actually-read-newspaper-comic-strips/455400/6 "2008-07-05T21:06:31Z")
What makes you think that they are made for kids. Yes, kids read them, balloons with short lines, drawings. But who do you think get out more of Calvin and Hobbes - a ten year old or a 40 year old? Also, this might find a better audience in CS. I’ll report it for you. ---
**Author:** ![An\_Gadai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@An\_Gadai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Gadai)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2008, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-adults-actually-read-newspaper-comic-strips/455400/7 "2008-07-05T21:06:44Z")
Yes they do. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2008, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-adults-actually-read-newspaper-comic-strips/455400/8 "2008-07-05T21:11:37Z")
**scrambledeggs** , we’ve been moving a lot of your threads that have been opened in the wrong forums. We would like you to consider more carefully where a thread might belong before starting it. This one could go in either IMHO or perhaps CS. You are free to open another thread there. However, to encourage you to try to get the hang of posting here, I’m going to start closing threads that are in the wrong forum rather than moving them. Colibri General Questions Moderator