Bloom County
The cover of the first Bloom County collection
Author(s)	Berkeley Breathed
Current status / schedule	Discontinued by author
Launch date	December 8, 1980
End Date	August 6, 1989
Syndicate(s)	Washington Post Writers Group
Genre(s)	Humor, Politics, Satire
Preceded by	The Academia Waltz
Followed by	Outland

Bloom County was an American comic strip by Berkeley Breathed which ran from December 8, 1980 until August 6, 1989. An author is defined both as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created Guy Berkeley "Berke" Breathed (born June 21, 1957) is an American Cartoonist, children's book Author / Illustrator, Events 1609 - Biblioteca Ambrosiana opens its reading room the second public library of Europe. Year 1980 ( MCMLXXX) was a Leap year starting on Tuesday (link displays the 1980 Gregorian calendar) Events 1538 - Bogotá, Colombia, is founded by Gonzalo Jiménez de Quesada. Year 1989 ( MCMLXXXIX) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link displays 1989 Gregorian calendar) Print syndication is a form of syndication in which News articles columns, or Comic strips are made available to Newspapers, Magazines The Washington Post is the largest and most circulated Newspaper in Washington D The Academia Waltz was Berke Breathed 's first cartoon published daily from 1978 to 1979 in The Daily Texan at The Outland was a Sunday-only Comic strip written and illustrated by Berkeley Breathed from 1989 until 1995. A comic strip is a sequence of drawings that tells a story Currently in the Western world, most comic strips are written and drawn by a Comics artist Guy Berkeley "Berke" Breathed (born June 21, 1957) is an American Cartoonist, children's book Author / Illustrator, Events 1609 - Biblioteca Ambrosiana opens its reading room the second public library of Europe. Year 1980 ( MCMLXXX) was a Leap year starting on Tuesday (link displays the 1980 Gregorian calendar) Events 1538 - Bogotá, Colombia, is founded by Gonzalo Jiménez de Quesada. Year 1989 ( MCMLXXXIX) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link displays 1989 Gregorian calendar) It examined events in politics and culture through the lens of a fanciful small town in Middle America, where children have adult personalities (and vocabularies) and animals can talk. Middle America is an American Colloquialism used to describe either a cultural mindset or region of the United States that geographically comprises the It grew out of a strip called The Academia Waltz, which Breathed produced for the student newspaper while attending the University of Texas. The Academia Waltz was Berke Breathed 's first cartoon published daily from 1978 to 1979 in The Daily Texan at The The Daily Texan is the Student newspaper of The University of Texas at Austin.

Characters

Core characters

• Opus is a large-nosed penguin with a herring addiction who lost track of his mother during the Falklands War. Opus the Penguin ( Opus T Penguin) is a character in the Comic strips and Children's books of Berkeley Breathed, most notably the popular 1980s Herring are small Oily fish of the genus Clupea found in the shallow temperate waters of the North Atlantic, the Baltic Sea, the North The Falklands War (Guerra de las Malvinas/Guerra del Atlántico Sur also called the Falklands Conflict/Crisis, was fought in 1982 between Argentina and the (Both were later reunited. ) Initially, Opus was only a bit player in one of the strip's throwaway gags, but his hopeless naïveté made him a favorite, the center of the strip, and the subject of two "sequel" strips (Outland and Opus), three children's books, and a television special entitled A Wish for Wings That Work. Outland was a Sunday-only Comic strip written and illustrated by Berkeley Breathed from 1989 until 1995. Opus was a Sunday strip drawn by Berkeley Breathed for a period of circa five years from 2003 to 2008 A Wish for Wings That Work An Opus Christmas Story was a children's book by Berkeley Breathed that was published in 1991.
  

  Milo Bloom
• Milo Bloom is a 10-year-old newspaper reporter and probably the most worldly-wise of the bunch. Milo Bloom was a central character in the American comic strip Bloom County. Milo was the original protagonist of Bloom County. Much of the action takes place at the boarding house owned by his family. A boarding house, also known as a "rooming house" (mainly in the United States) or a "lodging house" is a House (often a family home
• Steve Dallas is Bloom County's sole defense attorney and the strip's antagonist/anti-hero. Steve Dallas is a fictional character in the American comic strips of Berke Breathed, most famously Bloom County in the 1980s An antagonist (from Greek ανταγωνιστής - antagonistes, "opponent competitor rival" is a character or Dallas was either directly or tangentially involved in most of the conflicts which occurred in the strip over the years. A former frat boy, Dallas has held onto the mentality into adulthood, and spends most of his time off either trying to pick up women or concocting get rich quick schemes, including forming and then managing a heavy metal band Billy and the Boingers (previously known as Deathtöngue). Fraternities and sororities (from the Latin words la frater and la soror, meaning "brother" and "sister" respectively are fraternal Billy and the Boingers is a fictional heavy metal rock band from the comic strip Bloom County, originally known as Deathtöngue. Billy and the Boingers is a fictional heavy metal rock band from the comic strip Bloom County, originally known as Deathtöngue.
• Bill the Cat is a large orange tabby. Bill the Cat, or Bill D Cat, according to the final Outland strip is a fictional Cat appearing in the works of Cartoonist Berkeley Breathed Originally introduced as a parody of the comic character Garfield, and saying little beyond his trademark responses, "Ack" and "Pbthhh", he has become something of a blank slate around which various plots have revolved. Garfield is a daily-syndicated Comic strip created by Jim Davis. Numerous strips indicated that his persistent near-catatonic state was the result of drug use or brain damage resulting from once being legally dead and then revived after too long of a period. Catatonic is a syndrome of psychic and motoric-disturbances In the current Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders published by the American Psychiatric Association He's been a cult leader ("Bhagwan Bill"), televangelist ("Fundamentally Oral Bill"), perennial Presidential candidate (for the National Radical Meadow Party), heavy metal rock star ("Wild Bill Catt"), and, in the last months of the series, had his brain surgically replaced with Donald Trump's. This article does not discuss "cult" in the original sense of "veneration" or "religious practice" for that usage see Cult (religious practice Bhagavan, also written Bhagwan or Bhagawan, from the Sanskrit nt -stem bhaga-vant- (nominative/vocative sa भगवान् Televangelism is the use of Television to communicate the Christian faith President is a Title leaders of Organizations companies, Trade unions universities, and countries. The National Radical Meadow Party (sometimes known as the American Meadow Party or simply the Meadow Party') was a fictional Political party from Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American Business magnate, Socialite, Television personality, and He has been known to speak on occasion, most notably during the Communist witch-hunt trials he conducted, when he remarked, "Say, you don't suppose the "Jury Box" is anything like a litter box, do you?"
• Michael Binkley originally owned Opus ("A boy and his penguin!") and is wishy-washy and overly reflective (in the mold of Charlie Brown), when not contemplating the lives of pop culture icons. Red Menace redirects here For the 2007 Wildstorm Productions comic book series see Red Menace (comics. Michael Binkley was a major character in Berke Breathed 's cartoon strip Bloom County. Charles "Charlie" Brown is the main character in the Comic Popular culture (or pop culture) is the Culture — patterns of human activity and the symbolic structures that give such activities significance and importance — His "anxiety closet" has been a staple of many storylines, and appears in sequel strips without Binkley.
• Oliver Wendell Jones is a young African-American computer hacker and gifted scientist, having invented a miracle hair-growth formula, among other things. Oliver Wendell Jones was the most recurring African American character in Bloom County and Outland, two Comic strips by African Americans or Black Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have origins in any of the black populations of Africa He once tried to bring an end to the Cold War by introducing onto the front page of Pravda the headline, "Gorbachev Urges Disarmament: Total! Unilateral!", but faulty translation caused the headline to read, "Gorbachev Sings Tractors: Turnip! Buttocks!" He has a fairly extensive criminal record as a result of his numerous computer pranks. Cold War is the state of conflict tension and competition that existed between the United States and the Soviet Union (USSR and their respective allies from the Pravda (Правда "The Truth" was a leading Newspaper of the Soviet Union and an official organ of the Central Committee of the Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev ( Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachyov;; born 2 March 1931 in Privolnoye Stavropol Krai) is a Russian politician Disarmament refers to the act of reducing limiting or abolishing Weapons. Unilateralism ("one+side -ism " is any doctrine or agenda that supports one-sided action Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev ( Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachyov;; born 2 March 1931 in Privolnoye Stavropol Krai) is a Russian politician In the sociological field, crime is the breach of a rule or Law for which some governing authority or force may ultimately prescribe a Punishment
• Cutter John is a wheelchair-bound Vietnam veteran, noted for Star Trek fantasies and anti-war protests. Cutter John is a Fictional character in the 1980s Comic strip Bloom County by Berke Breathed. The Vietnam War, also known as the Second Indochina War, or the Vietnam Conflict, occurred in Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia The term anti-war usually refers to the opposition to a particular nation's decision to start or carry on an armed conflict unconditional of a maybe-existing just cause. He is not a womanizer like Steve Dallas, but he is more popular with the ladies.
• Bobbi Harlow is the feminist schoolteacher of Milo and Binkley and the love interest of both Steve and Cutter. Bobbi Harlow is a fictional character in Berke Breathed 's comic strip Bloom County. Feminism is a discourse that involves various movements theories, and Philosophies which are concerned with the issue of Gender difference, advocate She was only a major character until 1983, when she disappeared. She appeared only once in the strip's later years, when Opus learns she has joined the crew of The Phil Donahue Show. The Phil Donahue Show, also known as Donahue, was the first Tabloid talk show.
• Hodge-Podge is a rabbit who is best friends with Portnoy and Cutter John. Hodge-Podge the Rabbit is a fictitious character from Berke Breathed 's Comic strip Bloom County. He is politically conservative and fanatical about various issues, despite the fact that he is extremely ignorant about those same issues. Conservatism is a term used to describe political philosophies that favour Tradition, where tradition refers to various religious cultural or nationally defined Fanaticism is an Emotion of being filled with excessive uncritical Zeal, particularly for an extreme religious or political cause or in
• Portnoy is a groundhog, although his species was a mystery for most of the strip's run. See also the Portnoy disambiguation page Portnoy is a character in Berke Breathed 's Comic strip Bloom County Before the revelation that he was a groundhog, he was portrayed as a squirrel, woodchuck, gopher, and possum. Portnoy was the grouchiest and most bigoted character by far.

Other characters

See also: Minor characters in Bloom County

• Quiche Lorraine
• Lola Granola
• Milquetoast the Cockroach
• Rosebud the Basselope
• Ronald-Ann Smith

Notable storylines

For detailed summaries of all storylines, see the entries for the individual books. The following are minor characters from Berke Breathed 's comic strip Bloom County. The following are minor characters from Berke Breathed 's comic strip Bloom County. Lola Granola, also known as Fatima Struggle, is a fictional character in the comic strips Bloom County and Opus by Berkeley Breathed Milquetoast the Cockroach was a fictional character in Berkeley Breathed 's comic strips Bloom County and Outland. The following are minor characters from Berke Breathed 's comic strip Bloom County. Ronald-Ann Smith was a character in Berkeley Breathed 's comic strips Bloom County and Outland

• Opus was originally intended to have a run of just two weeks, but his status was cemented with a memorable Sunday strip involving a Hare Krishna asking for money. The Hare Krishna Mantra, also referred to reverentially as the Maha Mantra ("Great Mantra" is a sixteen-word Vaishnava mantra made well Opus continued to misunderstand the Krishna's request for money before finally misinterpreting "Prayer temples for Hare Krishnas" as "Pear pimples for hairy fishnuts!" Breathed wrote in one of the Bloom County books that the reaction was so overwhelmingly strong he made Opus a permanent member of the cast.
• A common gag in early strips was to have Opus and other characters riding on Cutter John's wheelchair, often in parody of Star Trek. One strip featured the gang turning and fleeing from the AT&T globe logo of the 1980s, calling it "the Death Star!" Bloom County was the first major pop culture outlet to point out the resemblance between the AT&T logo and the iconic Star Wars base, and the analogy stuck for many years. Before proposing a merge request please see Talk and see if the merger you propose has recently been made and The Death Star is a Fictional Space station and Superweapon appearing in the Star Wars movies and expanded universe. Star Wars is an epic Space opera franchise initially conceived by George Lucas during the 1970s and significantly expanded
• Steve forms a heavy metal band with Opus, Hodge Podge, and Bill, initially called "Deathtöngue". Steve is forced to rename the band Billy and the Boingers after he is dragged before a congressional hearing investigating the effect of heavy metal music on youth, similar to the Parents Music Resource Center. Billy and the Boingers is a fictional heavy metal rock band from the comic strip Bloom County, originally known as Deathtöngue. The United States Congress is the bicameral Legislature of the federal government of the United States of America, consisting of two houses The Parents Music Resource Center (PMRC was an American committee formed in 1985 by four women Tipper Gore, wife of Senator and later Vice President The Boingers disband after their frontman, Bill the Cat, is caught attending a Bible study group with a woman whose character is based on Mother Teresa. Mother Teresa, Blessed Teresa of Calcutta, (born August 26, 1910 – September 5, 1997) was an Albanian ref>Spink Ironically, the group suffers but the woman ends up with a Pepsi endorsement. Pepsi-Cola is a carbonated beverage that is produced and manufactured by PepsiCo.
• Oliver Jones finds out about Apartheid and builds an "electro-photo-pigmentizer" (a device that resembles a camera's flashgun, which temporarily turns white people black) with which he plans to start an international brouhaha by using it on the South African ambassador to the US. The Republic of South Africa (also known by other official names) is a country located at the southern tip of the continent of Africa Oliver sends the machine to Washington D. C. with Cutter John on a balloon chair, and Opus is accidentally dragged along. While airborne, several balloons are popped by shotguns, sending the two plummeting into the Atlantic Ocean. Both are assumed dead, so Opus' money is given to Bill the Cat, who wastes it all. Eventually, Opus turns up at the Bloom County Boarding House with amnesia, which lasts until he is shocked by an erroneous news report that Diane Sawyer has married Eddie Murphy, after which he reveals that he and Cutter John survived the splash-down and were captured by Russians. Amnesia (from Greek) is a condition in which Memory is disturbed Lily Diane Sawyer (born December 19, 1945) is a Television Reporter for ABC and co-anchor of its morning news show Edward Regan "Eddie" Murphy (born April 3 1961 is an Academy Award -nominated Golden Globe - Screen Actors Guild Award -winning American Russia (Россия Rossiya) or the Russian Federation ( Rossiyskaya Federatsiya) is a transcontinental Country extending The Russians kicked Opus off the submarine and took Cutter John back to Russia. The citizens later swap Bill the Cat for Cutter John.
• Opus decides to reunite with his long-lost mother for Christmas in Antarctica, only to discover that the ship he's traveling on is the Rainbow Warrior. Early career The Rainbow Warrior was built in 1955 in Aberdeen, Scotland as a trawler named Sir William Hardy, and entered service with Escaping Russian whalers with his next-door neighbor, Mrs. Limekiller, he enters the world's least despoiled civilization only to be attacked by American troops invading. Opus later discovers that his Mother supposedly died saving soldiers in the Falklands war. Her gravestone reads, 'The Falklands Martyr: She Loved her Boy'.
• Opus discovers that his mother is alive. (He screams to Milo, "SHE ISN'T DEAD!", to which Milo replies "Who? The Democratic Party?"). The Democratic Party is one of two major Political parties in the United States, the other being the Republican Party. He tries to rescue her from captivity in the Mary Kay cosmetics testing centre. Mary Kay is a brand of skin care cosmetics and color Cosmetics sold by Mary Kay Inc He discovers his Mother in a cage (she vaguely resembles Opus wearing Mary Poppins' hat) only to be caught in a firefight between Mary Kay ladies with pink uzis and the Animal Liberation Guerilla Front. Mary Poppins is a series of children's books written by PL Travers and originally illustrated by Mary Shepard.
• In a spoof of Ayatollah Khomeini's fatwa on Salman Rushdie, Opus is the subject of a fatwa by the Mary Kay cosmetics company for writing an editorial suggesting that women wearing too much makeup look "ungodly. Seyyed Ruhollah Musavi Khomeini ( Persian:, pronounced muːsæviː-je xomejniː}}( September 24, 1902 – June 3 1989 A fatwā (فتوى plural fatāwā فتاوى in the Islamic faith is a religious opinion on Islamic law issued by an Sir Ahmed Salman Rushdie Kt (born 19 June 1947 is an Indian - British novelist and essayist " A woman in the role of Khomeini bellows for "the nose of the infidel!"
• Donald Trump's body is damaged by his own anchor, but his brain is successfully transplanted into the body of Bill the Cat. Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American Business magnate, Socialite, Television personality, and Trump/Bill sees the brighter side of the situation: "Legally, I can poop in Ed Koch's flower bed. Edward Irving Koch (born December 12, 1924;) was a United States Congressman from 1969 to 1977 and the Mayor of New York City from 1978 to 1989 "
• Opus receives 779 million dollars in cash from the U. S. Government under the mistaken belief that he is a scientist working on missile defense research. Missile defense is a system weapon or technology involved in the detection tracking interception and destruction of attacking Missiles Originally conceived as a defence against Opus uses the money to buy Bolivia, neglecting to keep the receipt. The Republic of Bolivia (República de Bolivia) named after Simón Bolívar, is a Landlocked country in central South America. When another boxful of money turns up asking for a Space Weapon, he and Oliver create a plan entitled 'Net Wars'; a suggestion that $500 billion should be sewn together and made into a ring around the earth, similar to those of Saturn. The government buys it.
• After the breakup of Billy and the Boingers, Bill the Cat becomes a Fundamentalist televangelist, "Fundamentally Oral Bill" (a play on Oral Roberts). Fundamentalist Christianity, also known as Christian Fundamentalism or Fundamentalist Evangelicalism, is a movement that arose mainly within British and Televangelism is the use of Television to communicate the Christian faith Granville Oral Roberts (born January 24, 1918, in Ada OK) is an American neo-Pentecostal Televangelist and is also a He declares "penguin lust" to be the biggest scourge on society. As a result, Opus is banished from Bloom County and briefly becomes a male stripper (who refuses to remove all his clothes).
• The cast of Bloom County goes on strike. Strike action, often simply called a strike, is a work stoppage caused by the mass refusal by Employees to perform work. W. A. Thornhump refuses to concede to any of their demands and attempts to have his office staff fill in. Things get ugly when Steve Dallas crosses the picket line and Thornhump hires strike-breakers to play Opus, Bill, and Oliver. In the end, the strikers are defeated, although Opus still throws eggs at Steve, saying "Here comes breakfast from Aunt Opus!!"

Other notes

Breathed's hand-printed signature on his strips is usually presented in mirror image, i. e. right to left.

Among the topical issues discussed at length in Bloom County are US anti-drug policy (Dr. The War on Drugs is a prohibition campaign undertaken by the United States government with the assistance of participating countries intended to reduce the Illegal Oliver's Scalp Tonic, Snorting Dandelions), Christian televangelist scandals (Fundamentally Oral Bill), animal testing (Attack of the Mary Kay Commandos), hard rock and censorship (Deathtöngue and Billy and the Boingers), and mass-media advertising (Opus and his weakness for infomercials). Animal testing or animal research is the use of non-human Animals in scientific experimentation. Billy and the Boingers is a fictional heavy metal rock band from the comic strip Bloom County, originally known as Deathtöngue. Infomercials (or informercials are Television commercials that run for one minute or for as long as a typical Television program On a Sunday Strip, Bloom County also made fun of the controversy surrounding the change in the formula used to make the Coca-Cola soft drink.

Berke Breathed was awarded the Pulitzer Prize in editorial cartooning in 1987 for Bloom County. The Pulitzer Prize, ˈpʊlɨtsɚ PULL-it-sər is an American award regarded as the highest national honor in Newspaper journalism, An editorial cartoonist, also known as a political cartoonist, is an artist who draws Cartoons that contain some level of political or social commentary

Breathed decided to end the strip in 1989. In keeping with the continuity of the Bill the Cat/Donald Trump storyline, Trump "bought out" the comic strip and fired all of the cast. The strip's final weeks were centered around the cast finding new "jobs" with other comic strips. A "goodbye party" was held over the course of the week where characters talked about joining new strips. Portnoy and Hodge Podge got jobs as janitors behind the scenes at Marmaduke; Steve Dallas joined the cast of Cathy; Michael Binkley became a wild boar skinner for Prince Valiant; Milo Bloom was seen with a snake swallowing him head first and informing Opus he would be appearing Tuesdays in The Far Side. Marmaduke is a Newspaper Comic strip drawn by Brad Anderson from 1954 to the present day Cathy is a Comic strip drawn by Cathy Guisewite. Featuring a woman who struggles through the "four basic guilt groups" of life &mdash food love mom and Prince Valiant in the Days of King Arthur, or simply Prince Valiant, is a Comic strip created by Hal Foster. The Far Side is a popular one-panel syndicated comic created by Gary Larson. Oliver Wendel Jones was seen with the distinct features of Family Circus characters. The Family Circus (originally The Family Circle) is a syndicated Comic strip created and written by cartoonist Bil Keane and inked/colored He informed Opus he was being "bussed in" to the strip as part of a court order. Once Bloom County characters were scattered, only Opus was left as part of a plot to transition to Breathed's next strip in Bloom County's final week.

Shortly after Bloom County ended, Breathed started a Sunday-only strip called Outland with original characters and situations introduced in Bloom County's final days. Outland was a Sunday-only Comic strip written and illustrated by Berkeley Breathed from 1989 until 1995. However, Opus, Bill, and other characters eventually reappeared and slowly took over the strip. Outland ran from September 3, 1989 to March 26, 1995. Events 36 BC - In the Battle of Naulochus, Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa, Admiral of Octavian, defeats Sextus Pompeius Year 1989 ( MCMLXXXIX) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link displays 1989 Gregorian calendar) Events 1026 - Pope John XIX crowns Conrad II as Holy Roman Emperor. Year 1995 ( MCMXCV) was a Common year starting on Sunday. Events of 1995 Another Sunday-only spinoff strip called Opus started on November 23, 2003. Opus was a Sunday strip drawn by Berkeley Breathed for a period of circa five years from 2003 to 2008 Events 800 - Charlemagne arrives at Rome to investigate the alleged crimes of Year 2003 ( MMIII) was a Common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar.

Impact

Bloom County has had an influence on other cartoonists, particularly cartoonists who have a particularly irreverent bent or tackle political topics in their work.

For example, Scott Kurtz, creator of the popular webcomic PvP, acknowledged Breathed's contributions at one point with a strip expressing the opinion that "so many webcomics. PvP, also known as Player vs Player, is a Webcomic, written and drawn by Scott Kurtz, with around 100000 unique visitors per day . . are nothing but Bloom County ripoffs", then lampooning itself by mimicking Breathed's art and dialogue style itself in the final panel. Biological mimicry occurs when a group of organisms the mimics, have ^[1]

Aaron McGruder, creator of the comic and later animated series The Boondocks, has paid homage to Breathed's work as well, with a few aspects of the strip bearing more than a passing resemblance to important Bloom County features, and an episode of the animated series wherein the character Uncle Ruckus calls Breathed "Master Penguin Draw'er". Aaron McGruder (born May 29, 1974 in Chicago, Illinois) is an American Cartoonist best known for writing and drawing

Bloom County

The fictional setting of Bloom County served as a recurring backdrop for the comic and its sequels, although the nature of the setting was frequently altered.

Opus's last birthday in Bloom County
From left to right, Reynelda the doll, Ronald-Ann Smith, Binkley, Milo, Hodge-Podge, Portnoy, and Opus.

In the comics, the county is presented as a stereotypical American midwestern small town. The small town setting was frequently contrasted with the increasing globalization taking place in the rest of the world; though Bloom County contained the likes of farmers and wilderness creatures by default, it was frequented by Hare Krishnas, feminists, and rock stars. Globalization (or globalisation) in its literal sense is the process of transformation of local or regional phenomena into global ones The Hare Krishna Mantra, also referred to reverentially as the Maha Mantra ("Great Mantra" is a sixteen-word Vaishnava mantra made well Feminism is a discourse that involves various movements theories, and Philosophies which are concerned with the issue of Gender difference, advocate Rock and roll (also known as rock 'n' roll) is a form of Music that evolved in the United States in the late 1940s and early 1950s with roots in mostly African

While the location of Bloom County is never explicitly mentioned, there have been some clues in the strip. When Oliver Jones identified Bloom County as the place where Halley's Comet would crash into Earth, a sign was seen saying that it was at 35. Halley's Comet, officially designated 1P/Halley and also referred to as Comet Halley after Edmond Halley, is a Comet that can be seen every 05 N 146. 55 E. This would place it in the Pacific Ocean, about 300 miles off the coast of Japan. The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth 's Oceanic divisions For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Japan topics. Oliver's previous calculation was 39. 43 N 105. 01 W, which would place it just south of Denver, Colorado. The City and County of Denver (pronounced /ˈdɛnvɚ/ is the Capital and the most populous city of Colorado, in the United States Another strip has Opus trying to make airline reservations to Des Moines, Iowa. He balks at the outrageously high quoted price for a ticket stating that "Des Moines is just 94 miles from Bloom County". Geographically, this would place Bloom County in either Iowa or the far north-central tier of counties of Missouri, but likely referring to the distance from Iowa City, where the strip was produced, to Des Moines. The State of Iowa ( is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States of America. Missouri ( or) is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee Iowa City is a city in Johnson County, Iowa, United States. It is the principal city of the Iowa City Iowa Metropolitan Statistical Area which (See Real World References below)

The county was home to the Bloom Boarding House, Steve Dallas' law offices, the Bloom Beacon and Bloom Picayune newspapers, at least one pond, and Milo's Meadow. In the comic's later years, the county contained what appeared to be a big-city ghetto ("across the tracks", as it was known). A ghetto is described as a "portion of a city in which members of a minority group live especially because of social legal or economic pressure

The geographical profile of the county was fluid as the artistic style of the strip evolved. During most of Bloom County's run, the rural meadow setting was presented realistically, while in its later years it became increasingly more abstract.

The Outland setting of the strip was originally set apart from the county by way of a magical doorway. By Outland's end, the Outland appeared to be a part of Bloom County itself.

Opus currently takes place in Bloom County.

Real world references

Bloom County contained many similarities to Iowa City, Iowa, where Breathed lived at the time. Iowa City is a city in Johnson County, Iowa, United States. It is the principal city of the Iowa City Iowa Metropolitan Statistical Area which The Bloom Boarding House, for example, which appeared as a high contrast photo within the strip, was an actual residence located at 935 East College Street in Iowa City. Breathed lived in the home during part of the time he was publishing Bloom County.

In addition, Breathed used the call letters KRNA to refer to Bloom County's rock radio station featuring "Rockin' Charmin' Harmon". In Broadcasting and Radio communications a call sign (also known as a callsign or call letters, or abbreviated as a call, or otherwise KRNA is a Radio station licensed to Cumulus Licensing LLC with studios in Cedar Rapids Iowa, and a transmitter located west of Oxford Iowa. The following are minor characters from Berke Breathed 's comic strip Bloom County. The call letters belonged to an actual rock station based in Iowa City in the 1980s, which featured a disc jockey named "Charmin'" Jeff Harmon. The station still operates in Iowa to this day. ^[2]

Several Iowa City local news items also directly inspired Bloom County storylines. For example, Ronald Reagan's sexist gaffe, referring to women as "little dumplins", was taken directly from an incident when University of Iowa football coach Hayden Fry made the same comment, infuriating feminists at the university. The University of Iowa, is a major teaching service and Research university located on a campus in Iowa City Iowa, on the banks of the Iowa River

Another Iowa City landmark, The Prairie Lights Bookstore, was referenced in the strip as the Prairie Lights Newstand. Prairie Lights is an Independent bookstore in downtown Iowa City Iowa, founded in 1978 by Jim Harris

Further, the final Bloom County strip hangs in the Iowa City Public Library.

Bloom County books

As with many other popular comic strips, Bloom County has been republished in various collections and anthologies. As of 2006, the comic strip has been officially reprinted in a total of 11 books, the first having been published in 1983 and the last in 2004. Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar.

None of the reprints contain complete runs of the strip. Many Sunday strips have never been reprinted. All of the daily strips have been reprinted in Comics Revue magazine, however. Comics Revue is a monthly Small press Comic book published by Manuscript Press.

Regular collections

Anthologies featuring content from previous collections are listed in bold.

• Loose Tails (1983)
• Toons For Our Times (1984)
• Penguin Dreams and Stranger Things (1985)
• Bloom County Babylon: Five Years of Basic Naughtiness (1986)
• Billy and the Boingers Bootleg (1987)
• Tales Too Ticklish to Tell (1988)
• The Night of the Mary Kay Commandos (1989)
• Happy Trails! (1990)
• Classics of Western Literature (1990)

Other reprints of the strip

• One Last Little Peek, 1980-1995: The Final Strips, the Special Hits, the Inside Tips (1995)
• Opus: 25 Years of His Sunday Best (2004)

References

External links

• Berkeley Breathed's website
• Toonopedia
• Breathed interview in The A.V. Club, August 15, 2001
• Bloom County Zone
• 935 East College Street, Iowa City-- "The Bloom Boarding House"