Animal Crackers (comic)

Animal Crackers is the title of several syndicated newspaper comics over the years. The first was a 1930 comic strip signed by an artist known simply as Lane.

The second Animal Crackers was a cartoon panel by Dick Ryan and Warren Goodrich (1913–2002) that was published intermittently from 1937 through 1957. In some papers it ran as Animal Krackers. Goodrich recalled, "I used animals to relate human foibles with a little twist. Sometimes it would work, and sometimes it wouldn't. It seems the funny things are just short of tragic."

The third began in 1967 and continues today, distributed by Andrews McMeel Publishing's GoComics, which is run by Universal Press Syndicate. Rog Bollen drew the strip through 1994, and then Fred Wagner took over. It features a group of animals who live in a fictional jungle called Freeborn. This strip was adapted into a cartoon television series in 1997.

The San Francisco Chronicle described Animal Crackers as a "snappy little one-frame strip [that] featured a variety of animal life dealing with various silly situations of a human nature" and as a comic panel "which went on to acclaim in syndication." The San Francisco Chronicle printed the comic panel on its front page next to the weather report.Animal Crackers was syndicated by the Chicago Sun-Times to over 100 papers.

In later years, Goodrich drew a spin-off cartoon series, Creatures, collected in the book Creatures Or Not So Dumb Animals (Eden East Press, 2001). Although Goodrich drew his animal cartoons for years and then wrote newspaper columns ("Travelin' Man") and several books (An Artist's Life), his lasting fame came with a single drawing, "The Little Man," which he drew in 1942. Used alongside San Francisco Chronicle film reviews as a movie rating system, this Goodrich device was praised by Roger Ebert,Gerald Nachman,Austin Kleon, and other writers.

Passive, insecure, and a momma's boy, Lyle Lion is not what one might call "King of the Jungle". He's more (of a Prince who is trying to be king) intent on talking philosophy and ordering a pizza (preferably vegetarian) than be the dominant predator. His number one goal in life is to date Lana, being very persistent about it despite the multiple failed attempts; outside of that, his other goal is to be an astronomer. From the show, it is believed that he is left-handed.

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