Readers reject Fort Knox comic strip

Readers reject Fort Knox comic strip

Last month the Standard-Examiner began running a new comic, "Fort Knox," on a trial basis. We asked readers for their comments on the worthiness of the strip. Needless to say, the response was underwhelming. Here are some of the e-mails and letters we received. You are welcome to add your own comments.

I'd like to respond to the request for readers to comment on the new comics Fort Knox...It is a pretty average cartoon and something I would skip over as I do Luann,Pearls Before Swine{it's printed too small} Blondie{got tired of it in my teens}Dilbert and Cathy. Suggest trying new cartoons, eliminate LuAnn for the spot.Also another suggestion, eliminate Dilbert and put Zits in the Sunday paper.....That's all folks...

Thank you

Carol Williams

Fort Knox is by far the worst comic I have ever read and needs to be gotten rid of.

Kendrick

I appreciated your article "Changing comics doesn't always bring laughter."

You closed the article asking us to respond to what we think of "Fort Knox."

I hope you discontinue the comic strip!

I know that there are many opinions about the comics, but I would much rather read a re-run of "For Better or For Worse" (because it is funny and yet teaches many important values) than "Fort Knox."

It would also be my vote that you discontinue "Tundra", "F Minus", & "Pearls Before Swine."

I enjoy "Born Loser" and "Sally Forth" in the Sunday comics. It is my understanding they could also be run in the daily paper. I would be very much in favor of that.

I do appreciate having the daily comics in color. I don't think there are many newspapers that do that.

Best of wishes on the tough decisions you have to make.

Sincerely,

Don Beesley

Fort Knox" is a comic strip I skip (never read) after having looked at it the first time you ran it. (Of course, there are others I skip, also. They do not fit my sense of humor.) You may definitely quit running it after your four weeks' trial.

CPratt

Fort Knox, F minus and Pearls Before Swine are not funny and should be removed from the paper. They are not even good enough for use as TP.

Please put back somethings we can laugh at and enjoy as this is why we subscribe. ie. For better or worse etc.

Thank you

Jack Olson

Thanks for listening to your readers. I know the impossibility of pleasing everybody.

My vote is to lose Fort Knox. It's just stupid and the art really is too sharp and 'pointy'.

No loss to me if that old and tired FBOFW is sent out to pasture, also.

Keep Pearls...; F Minus; BC; Red and Rover; Tundra; and of course Zits.

The rest are superfluous.

-just vince

I just read your article in Todays (10-31-2009) paper, and I would like to share my opinion with you. I think Fort Knox is a very intesting new idea, one that could be quite entertaining. I come from a Military Family and can lightly identify with the theme of moving to new places, and the dream of world domination. Now that being said, I would miss For Better or For Worse if it were ever taken out. Here's an idea I have. What about removing F Minus. Now there's a sorry excuse for a comic. I just don't get it. Poor drawing, pitiful jokes, the only comical thing about it is the title. Clearly the artist either never went to school, or did very very poorly in it. No orginality, no point.

I collect the most steller comics that I find in your paper. When I find a good one, it gets clipped and saved on the fridge. Almost always, its Tundra or Baby Blues. These are the highlights of the paper, and greatly offset the negative news we find ourselves submersed in daily. Well, that's what I have to say. Thank you for your time.

-Mr. Nelson

(Also, if you could stop putting Dilbert in isolation in the Business section, I would greatly appreciate it. I miss out on the color as well as the Monday joke. Just a thought...)

I absolutely hate "Fort Knox". I do not like the images, it reminds me too much of the "Simpsons" which I also despise. However, that being said, I do not like F Minus more than I do not like "Fort Knox". If you insist on adding "Fort Knox", get rid of F Minus. Thank you,

Rebekah Blume

I noticed your column in Saturday's paper, about 10 minutes after reading the comics page and wondering to myself what the heck was supposed to be funny or interesting about the new Fort Knox strip. I don't find it the least bit entertaining - thanks for letting me "vote"!

Elsa

I find the facial renditions jarring. I can't get past the graphics to read the script so I can't comment on whether or not it is funny.

Ruth Grant

Drop Fort Knox. It is neither fun to look at nor funny. The grotesque faces really turned me off on the first day. While deciding, why don't you do away with Pearls Before Swine while you're at it.

Signed, a faithful comics reader since 1937--back when Dagwood first started knocking over the mailman.

RoyLayne Staffanson

You asked for input on Fort Knox. I don't like it. I don't like the irrecverence. In fact if you can replace Pearls before Swine as well, that would be great. I like neither of those comics.

Robin Jensen

I haven't written to you about FORT KNOX because I'm sure you get a lot of complaints and grumpiness. I didn't want to add to it. However, since you insist we tell you our opinion of FORT KNOX...here goes. It stinks! It totally stinks! I agree with the writer who said the only thing funny about it is that someone actually printed it because they thought it might be funny.

I like FOR BETTER OR WORSE, but I understand it's over. The story has ended! I have on previous occasions asked you to look into one of my favorite comic strips to consider running, but I guess you must not like it. I still think GET FUZZY is one of the best of all time comic strips. Please consider it.

Thank you.

Terri Stearman

I can't tell you how glad I was to find out this morning that "For Better or For Worse" had not been permanently replaced. We've been away, didn't know what was happening. I thought the strip was gone forever. I know you said you didn't need any votes for FBFW, but it's tops in my book. I've laughed and cried with them for over 25 years in many newspapers.

I'm not going to vote one way or the other on "Fort Knox." The last time you asked for a reader vote, I selected "Pearls Before Swine" among others. Now I don't read it. It reminds me a lot of "Kathy" in that both are terribly repetitious.

While I'm at the "Pickles" stage of life (although not that sedentary), my favorites, other than FBFW, are "Luann" and "Zits." I guess they remind me of the challenging, but very happy, times when our children were growing up.

Sandra Perkin

In response to your request that readers give you feedback concerning the "being tested" comic strip "Fort Knox" all I have to say is it aint gold. Art work is too stiff and sharp and humor is practically non-existent. As a veteren of the military services (both Army and Navy) I find the strip lacking in military practicality. "Beetle Baily" is more original and is definitely funnier in the tradition of the military. OOOOO-RAH for Beetle and "Fort Knox" gets a NO GO!

Wayne B. Neff

I read your piece on the comics changing on Saturday, Oct. 31st. Here are my 2 cents worth.

Fort Knox is not drawn well, and as a result, I don't even read it.

It is a waste of space and should not continue. It is not that I miss 'For Better or For Worse' as I no longer read that either since it was all re-runs and not worth reading. It was always a long drawn out drama before that didn't make any sense if you just read one or two per week - they were not stand alone strips - more like an ongoing saga. Surely, there has to be something better out there.

Also, while I am ranting, get rid of 'Pearls Before Swine' and 'F Minus'. Both of these are poor examples of what a comic strip should be, and basically a waste of your valuable space. They are not entertaining at all. 'F Minus' deserves an F minus in my book, or worse. It is stupid drivel that is almost insulting. The humor is so dry, that often times, I just don't get it, and often don't bother to read it. I look at it occasionally to see if the artist is improving with age, but always come away disappointed.

Thanks for your hard work - I know it can't be easy.

Mike

Since you asked; I find no redeeming value in "Fort Knox". It just does not belong on a comics page. Same goes for "Pearls before Swine". A comit that I really enjoyed was "Calvin and Hobbs",

For what it's worth.

Michael Welsh

Fort Knox is poorly drawn and not funny. I prefer the For Better or For Worse reruns

F Minus is weird and usually not funny. I urge you to bring back the daily Peanuts reruns in its place. Peanuts was one of the very best strips of all time and has decent appeal to all generations. I like it well enough to read it daily on the Internet.

If The Far Side ever becomes available as reruns, I would encourage you to subscribe and run it in place of Real Life Adventures. As a (now retired) university professor I began each lecture with a Far Side slide, and I know its appeal to young people as well as college graduates everywhere. It was one of the very best.

Dilbert is my current favorite. I don't know how Scott Adams can so consistently satirize management foibles year after year. Please keep it.

Pearls Before Swine is OK, but I wonder if his crocodile accent might offend some bilingual Hispanics. It seems pretty overt to me.

Lowell S. Adams.

I just have to weigh in on the comic situation. I know there are a lot more important things out there, but its such an

easy target!

I think Fort Knox stinks, very closely followed by F Minus and Pearls Before Swine. And I am heartily sick of Frank and Ernst.

None of these is even remotely funny, and I have a pretty eclectic range for funny! You may feel free to drop any or all of

them as far as I'm concerned.

Bringing Pickles on for Sunday was brilliant. That strip, along with Zits and For Better or For Worse are by far the best

comics anywhere. Probably because they point out the absurdities in our own lives.

Thanks for bringing a few additional minutes of pleasure into my life. I think you do a great job editing the Standard Examiner. When my husband and I go on vacation, I suffer withdrawals if I don't have my fix of Charlie Trentelman and Mark Saal. And the comics.

Sincerely,

Karin Ferguson

Hi - I do not think Fort Knox is funny at all. While reading it, I do not crack a smile. Since this is a comic that is obviously supposed to be funny, I judge it accordingly. Also, the style of the drawings is unpleasant.

In case you are interested in the demographics of the comic readers, I am a woman age 83. The first thing I turn to in the paper is the comics page. I've enjoyed the 'funnies' all my life. Some are funny, others are not meant to be funny, but tell a story. I enjoy both kinds.

I'm sure other people think Fort Knox is funny, so if they are in the majority, keep the comic.

Mrs. Jessie Bishop Lewis

Dear Sir:

I have been wanting to email you my opinion of the current daily comics but your column this morning (Saturday) spurred me to action.

Since your concern seems primarily around "Fort Knox" I'll address that first. "For Better or Worse" was our favorite for years but when Lynn Johnston became ill and was forced to end it and revert to the beginning, it just doesn't have the same timber. "Fort Knox" is a very poor substitute and we skip it entirely.

"Zits" is a hoot and usually good for a laugh.

On the other hand "F minus" seems appropriately titled. It never gets read here. "Pearls Before Swine" is another that we'd like to see replaced. Please keep trying. I'm sure that its tough to find consistently good comics that become lasting favorites.

All the others have their moment and I encourage you to keep them.

Apparently the Sunday Comics is on a different contract, but when the time comes I'd like to mention a few of those that have become tedious and are skipped Sunday morning. If you want my list of those, please reply to this and I shall do so.

Don Fisher

I vote to cancel "Fort Knox". I would not classify Mr. Boscacci as an artist. His style is very elementry schoolish and very boring. Another that should be on the next calcellaion list is "Pearls Before Swine", for the very same reasons. In my opinion they both are loosers.

Don Garside

On a grade scale of A to F, I'll give "fort Knox" a "D"

and just an extra note that you don't want but I'll give it to you any way.

the apptly named strips "perls before swine" & " F - minus" are both "F - minus", drop them!

thanks for your time

Craig Collins

I have given Fort Knox a chance in my perusal of the comics for the last few weeks. I have found nothing in the comic to draw me to it. The drawings of the people are difficult to differenciate from each other. I am not sure if it is the father or the son sometimes because they look the same. The drawing themselves are not pleasant. They are so angular that they are kind of creepy looking. I have also tried to follow a story line and I find nothing humorous or interesting about it. I just don't get the appeal of this particular strip.

Cindy

There's no gold to be found in this unfunny, poorly drawn "comic" strip.

Please count my vote against keeping Fort Knox on the Standard-Examiner's comic page. Thank you.

Susan Anderson

Hi,

I was just writing to let you know my feelings on the comics. I know they are only the comics but they are very enjoyable, and can make your day with the exception of two of them. Fort Knox is ok, but I would rather have For Better or For Worse back. If they want to put Fort Knox in they should put it in the place of F MInus that one is so lame, it's not even funny. Plus it would be great if they would bring back Calvin and Hobbs. That one is great, I love that kid. That one could take the place of Pearls before Swine. That one isn't funny either. Thanks for letting me get this off my chest. Hopefully, maybe there can be some changes for the better.

Sincerely,

Barbara Gregory

My father read me the comics during the depression...as a military family we always read the comics...

now retired we still read the comics each day...Fort Knox is hard to read with all the sharp lines and so far I have not enjoyed the humor in it. I read the SLC Tribune each day as well as the Standard Ex and enjoy Baldo by Cantu & Castellanos and Grand Avenue by Breen and Thompson both about families. I think this is the appeal of For Better or Worse. We need to continually invite young readers and parents to read the newspapers and family comics may be a way to encourage that readership.

I appreciate your columns and the opportunity to comment on the comic page which has given me so much pleasure over the years. Thanks for the comics as they are often the only bright spot in the daily

readings.

Pat Baker

IMHO (In My Humble Opinion), F- is the grade that comic deserves.

Now that that's off my chest, the other side of the soapbox: Please consider adding Mark Parisi's "Off-the-Mark" comic.

His home page with search functions is http://www.offthemark.com/main.htm

His daily panel (week delayed) is http://www.offthemarkcartoons.com/daily.php/

Denver Miller

You asked about the cartoon Fort Knox.

I have been reading it. it is not bad. I am sure it will grow on us as your customers. If I were to vote one off the comic page it would be F-minus. I don't care for the humor, but as commander Spock from star Trek say's " Humor it's such a difficult concept."

Thanks

Rew Wiley

I do not like it at all. The drawing alone is 'off' and is not conducive to pleasant reading. I don't think it is even amusing either.

I also do not like Pearls before swine and think that one is just stupid.

I read the funnies every day and enjoy most of the rest of them.

D. Thibodeaux