Tracy and Vietnam

With all of the hoopla over “Dick Tracy” I am amazed that no Calendar writers seem to recall that in the ‘60s, when a generation took to the streets to legally protest an immoral war, the comic-strip Dick Tracy turned his crime-fighting skills against protesters, who were labeled “vile hippies and Communist agitators” in the strip.

Lest we forget, comic strips, besides their place in our childhood memories, have been a political weapon of great influence and have often been misguided and misappropriated.

Hats off to Dick Tracy as a crime fighter, but let’s put (the late) cartoonist Chester Gould’s track record in perspective.

KEN HOWARD

Hollywood Hills