Today, in a special Monday edition of Archie Sundays (I figured we’d do it for “President’s Day”), we look at who was the first President that Archie met in the comics.
This is Archie Sundays. Every week, I share a preview of the newest Archie Comics releases that week, plus occasional spotlights on the latest Archie news and whatever else I feel like discussing, Archie-wise.
As noted, I’m doing a Monday edition this week because of “President’s Day” (quotes because the holiday is technically Washington’s Birthday, but we all call it President’s Day), where, before we go into previews of the brand-new Jaguar one-shot this week (as well as a FULL story from the Archie 1000-page all-reprint collection this week), let’s have some fun with Archie Comics history by looking at the first time that Archie Andrews met a United States President in a comic book story!
This, of course, is a bit of a tricky bit, as obviously, like most comic book characters, the first time that Archie interacted with Presidents was in a dream sequence where Archie would meet famous Presidents from history. This occurred in 1948’s Archie Comics #36, in a story by Ray Gill and artist Bill Vigoda, where Archie is not doing well in history, but after he hits his head, he meets Abraham Lincoln…
Archie is then introduced to George Washington and Theodore Roosevelt, and Archie then re-enacts famous scenes in history with the Presidents…
I have found that when it comes to Theodore Roosevelt, there are three types of people. 1. Those who don’t know that he didn’t like being called Teddy Roosevelt, and preferred T.R. as a nickname, 2. Those who know that he didn’t like being called Teddy Roosevelt, and preferred T.R. as a nickname, and think that it is, like, their mission in life to correct everyone when they refer to him as Teddy Roosevelt and 3. Those who know that he didn’t like being called Teddy Roosevelt, and preferred T.R. as a nickname, and don’t care if you call him Teddy Roosevelt, because who cares? I am in group three.
After his various adventures with the three Presidents, he is snapped out of it, and goes on to write a really good paper on American history, with his love of U.S. history reinvigorated….
Okay, so meeting guys like Lincoln and Washington is a normal enough thing for comic book characters, but how about the first SITTING President that Archie met, dream sequence or not? The answer to that question came in 1972’s Pep Comics #264, in a story called “Sum Fun,” where Archie daydreams of how much money he will have if he begins to save up all of his money, and imagines President Richard Nixon bringing him on board as a teen financial advisor…
When this story gets reprinted, the Nixon sequence is often removed, as, well, it kind of obviously dates the piece, ya know? The story was written and drawn by Al Hartley.
Okay, finally, in 1985’s Archie at Riverdale High #103, in a Cheryl Blossom story by writer Rich Margopoulos and artist Stan Goldberg, Cheryl tries to snare Archie from Betty and Veronica by pitting the two other girls against each other in the planning of a charity carnival (you know, “Veronica, Betty is trying to steal the spotlight by doing a charity carnival.” “Betty, Veronica is trying to undermine you and take over the charity carnival for herself”), but in the end, the girls get so into it that they attract a visit from President Ronald Reagan, who Betty, Veronica and Archie all go on a trip to visit with…
So yes, Ronald Reagan was the first U.S. President that Archie met “for real.”
Okay, let’s look at the previews for this week! First up is The Jaguar #1 one-shot, part of Archie’s latest revamping of their superhero characters.
Something is killing the Pampas cats of Northern Peru. A group of zoologists has come together to investigate these mysterious slayings. They know the culprit is a bird of prey, but the method of killing is unlike any of the birds local to the region. It’s going to take someone with apex predator abilities to find out who’s causing these murders…someone like Ivette Velez, aka The Jaguar! But will the predator become the prey?
The Jaguar
Script: Keryl Brown Ahmed
Art: Tango
Colors: Ellie Wright
Letters: Jack Morelli
Cover: Maria Sanapo, Ellie Wright
Variant Cover: Reiko Murakami
On Sale Date: 2/21
32-page, full color comic
$3.99 U.S.
Also out this week is a new 1000 page all-reprint collection!
ARCHIE 1000 PAGE COMICS TRIUMPH
Archie and his friends make their TRIUMPHANT return with 1,000 more pages of hilarity, hijinks, and heartwarming tales!
Script: Various
Art: Various
Cover: Dan Parent, Rosario “Tito” Peña
978-1-64576-821-0
$15.99 US / $19.99 CAN
5 ¼ x 8”
1000 pp, Full Color
Direct Market On-Sale Date: 2/21
The FULL STORY that we can share with you all is a classic Super-Teens story by Frank Doyle and Dan DeCarlo, where the villainous Magnet Girl keeps making Archie and the gang attract various things…
Okay, folks, see you next week (presumably back to Sundays!)! Happy President’s Day!
“President’s Day” (quotes because the holiday is technically Washington’s Birthday, but we all call it President’s Day)
Thank you for that. It kept my eye from getting that Clint Eastwood-like twitch while reading the rest of your excellent piece.
(This might surprise you: T.R. was a personal hero of mine, but I fall in your group three, also. Aye, there are some things too inconsequential for even me to contest.)