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CSotD: Merry Christmas 50 Years Later

Published: December 25, 2025 1 minute 30 comments

December 25, 1975

Apartment 3G
L’il Abner*
B.C.*
Brenda Starr#
Steve Canyon#
The Family Circus
Gordo#
Hagar the Horrible
They’ll Do It Every Time#
Hi and Lois
Judge Parker
Lolly#
Nancy*
Peanuts*
Red Eye#
Rex Morgan, MD
Rick O’Shay#
Dick Tracy
Trudy#
Winnie Winkle#
Mary Worth

* — Older Strips
# — Special Materials

Mike Peterson has posted his "Comic Strip of the Day" column every day since 2010. His opinions are his own, but we welcome comments either agreeing or in opposition.

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Comments 30

  3. Merry Christmas. Thank you for the special column today, and for the daily commentary.

  4. Merry Christmas! But Pogo will always have a special place in my heart. I can’t find if there was a Christmas strip in 1975, when Pogo was finished.

    1. I see, after using better search terms, that the last strip was in July 1975. It was a valiant effort to keep Pogo going after Kelly died.

      1. Pogo wouldn’t be revived again for comic strips until January1989 when the second Pogo incarnation lasted until November 1993.

  5. Mike,

    May you have a wonderful Christmas. Enjoy you son’s family. Peace.

    Dave

  6. Merry Christmas 2025!

    1975 was the first ever Christmas without Pogo since the Pogo comic strip ended in July 1975.

    By the way, how did Dennis the Menace and Heathcliff celebrate Christmas 50 years ago in 1975?

    1. Also, how did these comic strips celebrate Christmas day 50 years ago in 1975?:
      Archie
      Gasoline Alley
      Brenda Starr
      Alley Oop

      1. OOPS! Noticed Brenda Starr was there in the December 25, 1975 montage.

      2. And here are more strips that I would like to know how they celebrated Christmas on December 25, 1975 50 years ago:
        Blondie
        Beetle Bailey
        Marmaduke
        The Lockhorns

      3. Couldn’t run them all, but some of the ones not seen didn’t have dedicated holiday strips.

      4. Leroy, to Loretta: “Why can’t you ever lapse into moody silence?”

    2. Archie: Non-Christmas. Ethel is crying because she’s been invited to be the before picture in a before-and-after(Chicago Tribune)

      Blondie: Seemingly ignorant of Christmas. The Bumsteads have shown up at a fancy restaurant but they’re late and have lost their reservation. Dagwood bribes the waiter $3 and they get in.(Lansing Cap Journal)

      Gasoline Alley: I’m no Alley reader, so I don’t know it as well. A bunch of people are in a room with dinner. “It’s after 8 and nobody’s come!” The other panel is a line outside Bugsy’s Bar & Grill. “Are you sure this is where Melba’s party is, Walt?”(Freep)

      Alley Oop: Generic “Merry Christmas” strip like most continuity strips above.

      Heathcliff: Similar to Marmaduke below, but with the milk & cookies. Better than Marmaduke because it makes more sense and that look on Grandma Nutmeg’s face(This one I found at heathcliff.fandom.com)

      Marmaduke: Mr. What’s-his-name/Marmaduke’s owner is looking under the tree. “What became of that giant salami I got from the boss?” Marmaduke licks his lips in the background.(Freep)

      Lockhorns: TBD

      DENNIS: Two panels. The first Dennis comes down the stairs Christmas morning & exclaims “All That!” upon sight of the gifts. In the second panel, the gifts are all open with caption “Is That All?”(WaPo)

      BEETLE BAILEY: Rocky is asking Beetle what he got Sarge for Christmas. Rocky inquires a case of beer, but in the 3rd panel, Beetle reveals his gift to Sarge is a two week furlough for himself.(Lansing State Journal)
      By the way, Merry Christmas!

      1. You’re right. I quit. I’m useless. You can take over now.

      2. I don’t know about everyone else, but I mostly come here for the commentary. All I gave were descriptions. With the actual images, descriptions aren’t even needed. Commentary becomes a thousand times more valuable. You’re definitely better at commentary than me. I actually had to resort with Lockhorns for searching it up on newspapers.com and reading through the transcript for the caption. I’m also too lazy for anything like this.

  7. Wishing you and yours a Merry Christmas!

    Jon

  9. Merry Comics Christmas and a Happy New Year!

  10. Mike, I hope you enjoy creating CSOTD every day as much as we enjoy reading them.

    1. It’s like jogging for the brain. And, like jogging, there are mornings where you know if you don’t get up and get with it, you’ll find more excuses to snooze the next day.

  11. Merry, merry Christmas – and thanks for a little bit of daily comic sanity in our crazy world.

  12. Merry Christmas to all. Spent the morning watching my 16 month old grandson figure out what all of the hoopla was, and what opening those things he hadn’t been allowed to touch for weeks under that tree could mean. He’s an observant kid; next year is going to have to be a bit more controlled.

    1. I remember when my firstborn had Christmas at 15 months. He really enjoyed it, but wanted to do it again the next morning.

  13. Every party needs its pooper, and that’s why we invited Chester Gould.

    Anyway, Merry Christmas, Mike. Always look forward to seeing where your mind has jogged that day.

    1. All I can find is that Gould might have been mad about in 1975 was the Court finding in “United States v. Brignoni-Ponce” that year, which the decision struck against racial profiling by the police.

      Meanwhile, Milton Caniff had the less-than satisfying conclusion of the US involvement in Vietnam to rail against, rather than his typically touching remembrances/reminders of the price paid by soldiers and military families in defending the nation.

  14. Not to sound sycophantic, but every day is Christmas at Mike’s and D.D.’s.

  15. OMG! Taking me back to my Chicago Tribune comics page of old! Loved Brenda Starr and Winnie Winkle. Completely forgot about Lolly and Rick O’Shay!! Such great memories. I named my first and only cat BelleStar after that cat. 🧡😂😂

  16. Wee Pals marked Christmas ’75 with the cast surrounded by excerpts of Martin Luther King’s I have a Dram speech. (Cincinnati Post)

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