Bill Watterson created Calvin and Hobbes and it began its first run on Nov. 18, 1985 in only about 35 newspapers. It eventually grew in popularity and expanded its audience. It would appear that at the end of its run on Dec. 31, 1995, it was being run in every major city in the world. Calvin and Hobbes was a remarkable success.

The reason for its popularity is because it was written at more than one level. It can be read at face value by the young or young at heart while at the same time it is not very difficult to discern the deeper meaning that appears in many of the strips.

There are more than 23 million "Calvin and Hobbes" books in print, and each of the 14 book collections has been a million-seller within the first year of publication. The most recent collection, "The Calvin and Hobbes Tenth Anniversary Book," was published in the fall of 1995 by Andrews McMeel and rose to number one on the New York Times best-seller list. It remained on best-seller lists across the country for weeks after publication.

Bill Waterson regretfully retired from creating the Calvin and Hobbes comic strip at the end of 1995. The legacy lives on in a large collection of books that have collected the large amount of strips that were created in a peroid of over ten years. They can still be enjoyed to this day. Great characters and a lot of fun!