Going Down to South Park…
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the gang in glorious South Park. In honor of the show’s 100th episode, we
thought we’d give you an up close and personal look at the world’s wildest,
crassest, most wonderfully obnoxious third graders around.
Did you know
that South Park all started with a short cartoon called Jesus Vs. Frosty,
from University of Colorado film students Matt Stone and Trey Parker? Somehow,
the cartoon made its way to Fox executives, who then commissioned the duo for
another short to be sent to a list of celebrities for the Holidays. The
resulting short was a hit, and was soon developed into a cartoon series for
Comedy Central.
The very first episode of this new show, which aired
on August 13, 1997, set the bar for the utterly bizarre, completely irreverent
and at times controversial standard to which the show would adhere. Clearly,
it’s a system that has worked – and 1 movie, several Christmas specials and
plenty of belly laughs later, South Park is still one of the
highest rated cartoon shows around. So, let’s take a closer look at a few of the
denizens of this small Colorado town…
First, there’s Eric Cartman, or
simply “Cartman.” He’s on the portly side, he’s not the brightest kid on the
block, and his mother/father is a hermaphrodite. Next, there’s Kyle Broflovski,
who is constantly being made fun of because he is Jewish. He has a little
adopted brother Ike, who is Canadian. We know this, because the top half of
Ike’s head just sort of floats above the lower half – as is the case with all
Canadians on South Park. Next, there’s Stan Marsh, football star, who
lives with a cantankerous old grandfather who is always demanding that Stan kill
him. Finally, there’s the heartbreaking Kenny, who dies in a different hideous
way in each episode. He speaks in little, practically inaudible mumbles, and
lives (when he’s alive, that is) in a shack with a family of belligerent
drunkards.
But while these are the stars, there are also plenty of weird
and wacky supporting characters. They include the large, Barry White-esque Chef,
the psychotic teacher Mr. Garrison, Canadian TV stars Terrance and Philip (who
have heads not unlike Ike’s), the Ethiopian import Starvin’ Marvin, the
way-too-jazzed-up-on-coffee Tweek, the very Dickensian Pip, Big Gay Al – owner
of the Big Gay Animal Sanctuary, the Acrobatic Romanian Quints, Phil Collins
(yes, Phil Collins), Sexual Harassment Panda, Mr. Hankey the Christmas Poo,
Death, Underpants Gnomes…the list really just goes on and on, with each
character more outlandish than the next.
But why take our word for it?
If you’re not easily offended, and your sense of humor walks the boundaries of
good taste, then you simply must check out South Park on Comedy Central.
Howdy ho!
ad on her coffee table and in
her china cabinet. Still, I figured, ”What the hell, it’s for free.”<br><br>What
I discovered was something totally unexpected: Old juke boxes, comic books,
Coca-Cola signs, and something absolutely wonderful - comic toys. I saw my first
Popeye toy at that show (Popeye carrying the parrot cages), and I couldn’t
believe my eyes. I decided I just had to have it and, at that moment, I decided
I was going to collect comic toys, specifically Popeye toys.<br><br>It took me
several weeks to save up enough to buy that toy; after all, $125 wasn’t peanuts
(or spinach, I should say). I reacted to the toy the way everyone should react
to any toy they buy. Because of a feeling, something inside that draws you to
the piece. In collecting, you should be knowledgeable about what you’re buying.
But, most of all, buy it because you love it. Buy it because it makes you feel
good.<br><br>Today, what I look for in what I buy is the essence of the
character. When Elzie Segar created Popeye, I believe he had a vision, a look,
an attitude, a personality that he believed was right for that character. When I
buy Popeye toys, I think to myself, ”Would Segar approve of this image? Does
this capture what he was trying to say?”<br><br>There were many toys that I
believe captured the essence of the character, my favorite being Popeye in the
Rowboat, manufactured by Hoge in 1935. To me, if Elzie Segar made toys, he would
have made this one. The look is pure Segar: long face, mean, and ugly (which is
interesting, considering that this toy was made when Popeye’s face had already
taken on a much rounder look). Plus, it’s the only tin toy from the 1930s
depicting Popeye being what he was created to be: a sailor.<br><br>I’ve been
collecting Popeye for 22 years. My collection, which is constantly evolving,
ranges from tin wi