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"Chick?"

This year (December, to be precise) marks eighty years since the first appearance of America's Typical Teenager, Archibald "Archie" Andrews. Whether as a star athlete (or hopeless klutz), a ladies' man (or perpetual failure in love), Riverdale High's/the entire town's reliable go-to problem solver (or bane of Hiram Lodge's and Waldo Weatherbee's existence), pure-hearted superhero (or petty mob enforcer... Riverdale Season 2, I'm looking at you)... Archie's been many things over the years, yet still one of the most instantly recognizable characters in American pop culture. Let's celebrate him and his world with some representative posts from across the decades!

Archie debuted in MLJ's Pep Comics #22 (Dec. 1941), replacing the more horror-oriented strip Madam Satan. He was the creation of artist Bob Montana and writer Vic Bloom. As this first story opens, we see him impressing his new neighbour Betty by riding a bike while standing with one foot on the seat and the other on the handlebars. Next, he offers to walk her fence blindfolded.

Later at home, Archie's dad Fred, having received a phone call from Mr. Cooper, is about to spank him, when Arch's "Gramps" talks him out of it. Instead, he tells his son he'll have to pay for the ruined portrait. While pondering where to get the money, Archie learns from Betty that her father's lodge is holding a carnival, and if he volunteers there, Mr. Cooper will let the matter of the portrait slide. Though less than enthusiastic about his assignment helping Betty run the taffy stand, Archie agrees.

At the carnival, Betty learns that the scheduled tightrope walker has had an accident, so she volunteers her new boy crush to replace him. He readily agrees, then discovers he's mistaken the carnival barker's clothesline for the tightrope, which is of course much higher up. Too late to back out now, though, if he wants to stay in Betty's and her father's good graces. So up he goes, only to fall victim to a pesky fly landing on his nose when he's partway across, with predictable results:

As often happens with the first installment of any series, there are some things here that the reader otherwise familiar with Archie Comics may find strange:

-- Archie, Betty and Jughead here seem to be middle-school aged. Starting with the very next story, Arch and friends would be depicted in their better-known form as high-school sophomores or juniors.

-- Archie preferring the nickname "Chick." That too wouldn't last beyond this story.

-- No Veronica! She'd make her debut only a few issues later, though, and quickly replace Betty as Archie's main love interest. (Though he would still date Betty often enough. It wasn't until sometime in the fifties that the role of Betty as eternal second fiddle to Veronica became fixed.)

-- While on the subject of wealthy Riverdale families: in this story, the Coopers seem to be more well-off than generally depicted later, given J.B.'s ability to afford a formal self-portrait and a "priceless vase." Mr. Cooper is also noticeably older than his more familiar, middle-aged appearance. (And it'd be a long while before his first name was standardized as "Hal." In the second Archie story, he was no longer J.B. but Sam!)

That said, some of the basic elements that'd define Archie stories for many years to come are already here: Archie's clumsiness (again, not always a trait of his but often enough). Betty's near-worshipful feelings for him. Jughead's iconic "whoopie cap" (back then a real-life teen fashion fad), his habitual closed eyes and of course his "girls are trouble" attitude.

More Archie 80th anniversary posts to come!