Did you know today is Garfield’s 46th birthday?

[smahala1991]

Garfield debuted in Newspapers on this day in 1978, but here’s a prototype comic from 1976 when Garfield was initially called Jon and Odie’s name was Spot

Updates

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All the original “Jon” strips are intact and in public domain

[WhiteSteve]

LOVED Garfield when I was little. I have a bunch of books of the cartoons in storage somewhere. I always remembered one of them had a page where it was showing illustrations of Garfield in the styles of different decades, past, then-present, and I think it went up to 2000 or even 2020, and Garfield looked all futuristic. One of my favorite things in life is looking back on the inaccurate predictions of what life in the future would look like, like 1955’s envisioning of “The Year 2000”, and it’s like The Jetsons, lmao. Especially hilarious now that some of these times are well in the past and are old to us, so even the reality of that time period seems primitive in a lot of ways. But anyway, I remember that cartoon kind of bummed me out as a kid, because I knew cats didn’t really live that long, so I was pre-mourning Garfield’s eventual death. Fuckin’ morbid little kid😂

But I’m glad cartoons can live forever, and Garfield is alive and well, and maybe at an age more suitable to have such a curmudgeonly attitude, haha.

I wish Garfield an amazing day of naps and lasagna, and hopefully no Binky showing up to his door…

https://www.youtube.com/embed/rb2q1S-O4WY

[smahala1991]

I just found out today that there was a prototype strip series before Garfield went national

[WhiteSteve]

Yeah, never knew about the “Jon” comic strip, cool to hear👍

[OfMiceandMen]

Loved reading those comics when I was younger, I remember reading it in the back of my parents car or in the truck and laughing my ass off. I would buy one at the beginning of our family vacation and read a little everyday.

[smahala1991]

I loved them in 6th grade and even up to now

[OfMiceandMen]

I still get them once in awhile, especially if I am stuck in a hotel somewhere and need to kill time before I go out and to more surveys.

[AviatorTom]

Thanks for this interesting info. You've made my day.

[Theodoricus]

I've only watched his cartoons when I was a child.

[exitseven]

Boy, that cat lived a long time considering he eats lasagna

[strateguy632]

no, but i celebrate dc people birthday like hawkman superman etc.

46! wow almost as old as me!

[GoodGuyBreakingBad]

Happy Birthday, Garfield, 46th birthday.

[NathanDavis]

good'ol Garfield

[Fatoumamoud]

Happy birthday to carfield cat! 🎉🎉🥂

[FunkyMonkee]

Nor did I even care.