A Tribute To The Far Side | STUFF YOU SHOULD KNOW

Welcome to Stuff You Should Know, a. production of iHeart Radio. Hey, and welcome to the podcast. I'm. Josh, and there's Chuck. Jerry's here, too. She just had to step away for a. second, but she'll be back, we imagined. And when she gets here, it'll really be. stuff you should know. >> That's right. I'm excited about this one. because this is sort of filed under our. tribute series. to things we love. >> Tribute to your taste.

>> Uh I don't know how you feel because we. didn't even talk about this, but uh the. the cartoon. from the funny pages and the books and. and more. The Far Side by Gary Larson. >> Yeah. Uh, it spanned from like fifth or. sixth grade to me through the end of. college, which is just kind of. crystallizes. to me the perfect time to be awakened to. something like Gary Larson's sense of. humor. >> Yeah, for sure. He definitely, the Far. Side, I should say, definitely helped. shape my sense of humor just from being.

exposed to that and finding it funny. You have to kind of find it funny to. begin with, >> but once you do it, it definitely can, especially during formative year, help. shape your. >> um humor. And if you go back and look at. them now, they're still great, but. there's there's something that's just it. just had something before that it's not. like it lost it now, but it's just. diluted now. >> And I was looking around to try to. figure out what the deal is. And the.

best explanation I could come up with is. that it had such an impact on culture. >> that it actually normalized. and spread that sort of humor so far and. wide. >> that it became less I guess humorous in. and of itself because it made it well. normal to be funny in that way that. people weren't really nobody was doing. anything like Gary Larson was when the. Far Side came out but it was so popular. he made it a thing.

>> Yeah. The only thing you need to add. about that statement is to me because I. still think it's amazing and I I have. had the best time over the past couple. of days just reading these over and. over. >> Oh, good. Yes. No, I like them, too. But. I'm Yeah, there's just something I guess. it's I don't know what it is. I think I. already said it. >> Yeah. Uh but we're talking about one of. the best cartoons uh ever. Um the. difference between a cartoon and a. comic. Um, generally, I mean, they're. kind of interchangeable in a way, but a. a comic is generally a strip of several.

panels that tell a story and have a bit. of an arc. >> A cartoon is a single panel thing, uh, that tells all you need to know and in. one picture, sometimes with words, sometimes without words. >> It's kind of like comparing a book to a. poem. Like a a good poem is really. really hard to write compared to pros. because it has to be more efficient and. economical. And so a one panel cartoon. has to have the same impact or in the. case of far side a far far greater.

impact than a strip because you have to. figure out how to get things across like. the the movement of time or what's like. cause and effect in just one single. image. So when you take that into. account too, it just makes it even more. impressive what he did, I think. >> Yeah, for sure. Uh it's a it's a cartoon. that ran for 15 years. Uh it's been gone. for about 30 years, but is still uh one. of the most like just his style is so. instantly recognizable is Gary Larson. Uh he's not a guy that used, you know,

characters. It wasn't like Family Circus. where, you know, you knew these people, but he had certain a certain way of. drawing and he had certain sort of stock. characters he would bring in like the. beehive lady with the the cat eye. glasses and the the little freckle. frecklefaced glasses kid with the crew. cut. >> Uh lots of animals. Um, so he would kind. of bring in these, >> you know, kind of uh characters in and. out, but they were never like named. characters with any kind of story. >> No. And sometimes they would have names, but it was totally inconsequential. It'd.

be somebody addressing them and just. using a name. Like you wouldn't point to. that person, be like, "Oh, there's. Barry." Or something like that. Like. they were just interchangeable. archetypes that he created. >> Yeah. And uh as we'll see, you know, toward the end, a great intersection of. um of comedy and art and science. Uh. because Gary Larson is was a bit of a. science nerd. Uh he was born in 1950 and. raised in Tacoma, Washington, and got. his sense of humor apparently from his.

family. He said, "My older brother and. his his parents, uh his dad was a car. sale salesman, his mother was a. secretary." Um and they just had a. really wacky sense of humor. But he's he. hasn't done a ton of interviews over the. years, but in the interviews he's given. he said I just that was just my family. sense of humor and I didn't hear things. like wacky and left of center until much. later. >> Right. Yeah. Like people would describe. his family like that. It's not like the. family was like look at how wacky we. are. Right. >> Yeah. >> Yeah. So um I one of his big influences.

in addition to like his just his mom and. his dad was his older brother who I. think you called out. But I saw that one. of the things his older brother did was. introduce him to like a love of nature. Um they would go around the beaches of. Puet Sound and collect live animals when. they could and then bring them home and. put them in cages or terrariums or. aquariums. And later on he was like, I I. don't think you're supposed to do that. I don't think you should keep animals. captive. But uh growing up as a kid, he.

had a real interest in in animals and. developed a real love of biology. But. his his brother had a dual influence on. him. I saw a a quote where he said his. brother introduced him to like the. beauty of a a jellyfish and then also. used that same jellyfish to smack me in. the face with. >> Which I think gets a that's a good big. brother right there. >> Yeah. He sounded like kind of the. classic tormenting uh big brother but in. a in a loving way is what I gathered at. least. >> Yeah. >> Um but yeah, he's always been into.

animals. He's very much into nature and. animal uh the treatment of animals and. conservation. Now, since his retirement, he's gotten really into that. But, uh he. went to school at Washington State in. 1972. Go Cougars. And was initially a. biology student, but he realized he. didn't want to go to school for more. than four years, and he wasn't sure what. he could do with a biology degree. So, he switched to communications, but. apparently always regretted that switch. uh and feels like he should have stayed. a biology major. >> Yeah. said it's one of the most idiotic.

things I ever did. >> Yeah, >> we should all be pretty grateful though. that he did switch because it's not. clear that he would have still made the. far side. Um, one of the reasons he did. make far side is because he had a lot of. time on his hands. So after he graduated. with a communications degree, he got. jobs like playing banjo or working in a. music store. Um, I think very cooly he. uh became a humane society investigator. Um, and that's what he was doing when he. created a strip called Nature's Way,

which if you look at the original. Nature's Way cartoons. It's just early. Far Side without with a different name. essentially. >> Yeah, it was the Far Side. the the San. Francisco Chronicle changed the name uh. which you know that they've asked him. about that because remember Charles. Schultz was very particular about naming. it Peanuts and keeping it that and Gary. Larson did not mind the the name change. but he he sold he he got a few days off. from work apparently uh and realized. like boy I don't like my job um so I'm.

going to try something else and he he. didn't have any formal art training at. all um and I love his his his style but. none of that was like from art class or. anything like that, >> right? >> And in 1976, sold six cartoons uh to. Pacific Search uh a regional science. magazine for 90 bucks. Um sold another. handful to another local magazine for. you know 3 to five bucks each and then. uh eventually got in 1979 got a weekly.

gig at the Seattle Times for Nature's. Way at $15 a week, >> right? um which is I think 85 bucks something. like that now. >> Yeah. So not money to live on. >> But he did have a place in the local. paper. I mean Seattle Times is big time, right? >> Yeah. >> Um I think that same year in 1979, he said, "I I think I can do bigger. I. can do better." And he took a trip to. San Francisco and he took his portfolio. with him, just one copy of portfolio. He.

managed to get it to the right people at. the San Francisco Chronicle and they. said, "Hey, we really love your stuff.". Apparently the same day um they got in. touch with them and said, "Hey, come in. here. We want to talk to you." And they. said, "Not only do we want to run. Nature's Way, which we're going to. change to the Far Side, um we have a. syndication company, so we can get you. in 30 different papers across the. country automatically." This is like. beyond life-changing. And Laura Clawson.

helped us with this. And she went on to. really kind of, I think, point out just. how nuts it was that this happened to. him. Not just because he had no. experience, no art training, that he'd. only made, you know, a handful of. cartoons to this point, but just the way. that comics pages are and how stodgy and. rooted in nonchange they tend to be. Um. that that really it's just crazy that he.

got this chance that it just all fell. together for him like this. >> Yeah, absolutely. It was uh and it's. still an industry where um it's hard to. get in. you know, the the comics section. is only so big. >> It's like it's real estate, you know, and there's just not room. And the the. classics. >> just don't go away seemingly. Um there's. an artist uh a cartoonist named Georgia. Dunn who does Breaking Cat News. >> Mhm. >> And she and this is, you know, sort of a. point about women in the industry, but. she said there are more dead men than. living women in the funny pages, but.

also just sort of illustrates how how. hard it is to break in to the funny. pages. So, the fact that he got his. chance with um such a weird cartoon. um like the the the person that um that. would take it out to the different. newspapers to syndicate it and try and. you know sell it to him um has some. pretty great stories on like the. reactions he got cuz Far Side is one of. those things that you kind of get or you. don't. Early you said you know you have. to to really grow to love, you know, love it, but some people never do. Some.

people hate the Far Side still. >> Yeah. One of the comments that the. salesman got when he was out beating the. pavement was, "This is not a Buffalo. product.". >> Yeah, >> I could just see that scene like the. whatever the Buffalo newspaper is, the. guy's just like, "This is not a Buffalo. product." Like very sternly, >> please leave, sir. >> Uh, and apparently he said uh the. initial response has been quite funny. and uneditor-like. And he was basically like the they were.

so diverse and unpredictable like he. even from people he knew really well. from editors he really knew he's like I. never knew if they were going to offer. me like to stay and have a cup of coffee. or just like say get out of my office. >> Yeah because people would have a. visceral response to it. Either they. thought it was great. They they didn't. like it. The idea that the far side was. ever divisive is just hilarious to me. But it just really kind of goes to show. how much Gary Larson changed the culture. with the far side that it was just.

totally far out offthe-wall offensive to. some people. And now because he kind of. laid the groundwork and launched that. kind of humor and made it far and wide. in in the United States especially, um. it's just it it's that much funnier now. when you look back and think like people. were offended by the far side. >> Yeah. There's another good quote here. from one of the editors. I don't know. what this is, but it's not for us, >> right? But other people would say like,

"What a mind this man has. He's. brilliant.". >> Yeah. Yeah. Again, it's just one of. those things. It was very divisive. cartoon. Um, >> should we take a break? >> Yeah. >> All right. We'll be right back with more. on the brilliant Gary Larson. Learning. stuff with Joshua. Charles. Stuff you should know. [Music].

So, uh, one other thing happened to Gary. Larson that week that he went down to. the Chronicle. Uh, he got news from the. Seattle Times that they were dropping. him. >> Yeah. >> And he went on to blame the placement in. the paper. Apparently, they put it next. to a kids crossword puzzle. That's not.

the place for the far side. Of course, you're going to get complaints, right? Um, but he also said that had the. Seattle Times fired him a week before, uh, he never would have gone to San. Francisco or to the Chronicle. It would. have just completely deflated his. >> any self-confidence he had. So, the. timing of it was just amazing when you. put it all together. Uh, one other. thing, too, apparently one of the. Chronicles syndication heads tried to. talk him into turning it into a comic. strip with recurring characters.

>> No. and he was like, I think I'm just. going to hold with this. So, if you put. all the components together, the fact. that we even have the far side is. significant. It also makes it seem like. we are probably the only version of the. universe that has the far side. All the. other multiveres didn't get it because. nothing fell into place quite right. >> Multiverse, huh? >> Mhm. >> All right. So, because it was so. divisive, it it wasn't like wildfire out.

of the gate. Um, it was in 30 papers. initially. Uh, I think three years later. it was up to 80. And you might be. thinking like, hey, 80 newspapers is. pretty great. But not bad. >> For syndication, that's that's small. beans. Um, it really just sort of took a. very natural path to growing. Uh, in 3. years it went from 30 to 80. Then a. couple years later it was up to 200 and. really kind of launched after that. and. uh at its peak was in um 1900 newspapers. which made Gary Larson a very very rich.

guy uh because he started putting out uh. books and calendars um in 83 84 and 85. he had books on the New York Times. bestseller list and eventually uh I. believe all but one of his 23 books was. on the New York Times bestseller list. and sold a combined 41 million copies. and almost 80 million calendars. Yeah, those books were like when you had that. book in your hands at the time, it was. the greatest thing in the world. >> Yeah. And those books were coming out. when I was like 12 and 13. So it was.

just Christmas morning at at the Bryant. house was I would just grab that thing. and basically run to my room. >> Nice. And it was also uh in 17 different. languages, which I I just I know it's. not even a terribly American thing, but. I'm just trying to imagine the far. side's weird sensibilities going over in. a a foreign language country. I don't. know. It just sort of surprised me. >> Uh yeah, you'd think way way more.

languages, right? >> No, I'm just surprised it went over at. all in in other countries. So, yeah, I. gotcha. Yeah, I know. I I could see. there being 17 different languages that. could find it humorous. >> No, you could. All right. >> Yeah, because there's like two or three. million languages, you know. >> Yeah. >> So, um he was also very unsurprisingly. an award-winning artist and cartoonist. um from the his the beginning of his. peak I think around 1985 he won uh the.

first award for best newspaper panel all. the way up to till the end in 1994 uh. winning for um our outstanding. cartoonist of the year. Um and like you. said he was like the calendars the books. like he was making mad bank as he puts. it every time he's interviewed about it. Um, but he he he really kind of drew the. line at a a lot of merchandising. Like. they wanted to do everything and he was. like, "One of my rules is you can't take. these things out of context. Like you're.

never going to see a t-shirt with just a. picture of the beehive lady, beehive. herdo lady with cat eye glasses. Like. that's out of context. Doesn't make. sense. I don't want to do that. No. dolls, nothing like that." But just as. much as like kind of protecting what he. created, he also didn't want to seem. like he was making any kind of cash grab. to the to the fans of the Far Side. He. was a very sensitive person who was. really probably, from what I can tell, overly aware of what people thought of.

him or how they took his work. >> Yeah. I mean, you could have a t-shirt. or a mug or something, but it was just. like a a a cartoon, >> right? like a Far Side panel. Uh, which. was was pretty brilliant because I mean. that's where the humor is. And also. since they weren't characters, I think. that kind of helped that decision along, right? >> Um, although I I got to say like a if I. had the doll of the the little crew cut. kid, >> I wouldn't mind that. I'm sure Etsy. might be ripping him off and doing. something like that. So, I'm not sure.

>> I'll bet you're right, actually. And I. know somebody's got a Christmas coming. up. Uh he was also very sensitive to. offending people even though he did that. all the time. It's not something he ever. set out to do. Um you know he very. famously always uh would feature God as. a character. Um and it wasn't even you. know like oh let me make God some like. sort of wimpy weirdo. Like it was this. like sort of big all powerful God with. long flowing hair and uh but religious. people didn't like that. Uh that's I.

guess still sort of some sort of craven. image. Um, cat people definitely didn't. like him because there was a lot of a. lot of dogs preying on cats in various. ways. But, uh, he he just didn't want to. ruffle feathers. He said, "I just ended. up doing it.". >> Yeah. He was just being humorous. And. one of the great great great things. about the Far Side is it it's not making. a comment on anything. >> Yeah. It's just dropping in on an absurd. moment in life somewhere in the universe. or somewhere on Earth. Which is why.

those characters are all. interchangeable. They're not specific. someone. It could be anyone who's having. an absurd moment, right? And the best. description I saw came from Carrie Soer, who's the biographer of uh not just Gary. Larson, but the Far Side. He said that. the point of faright is that we're all. just fools flailing against the. universe. And that the far side is just. basically a camera dropping in on on. those moments where it's most. pronounced, I guess.

>> Yeah, that's that's brilliant, actually. That kind of says it best. Um, >> we should probably illustrate a couple. of uh verbally illustrate a couple of. cartoons. Just if you haven't seen The. Far Side, so you kind of know what we're. we're going for here. You should. definitely look these up u because these. are some classics. But um one that. really kind of crystallizes what he does. uh is early experiments in. transportation and that is a panel and. at the bottom that's all it says early. experiments in transportation. >> Mhm. And it features uh these cave dudes.

uh these three cave guys holding an. early kind of stone wheel with another. cave guy strapped to the top of it just. sort of sitting there with his legs out. with obviously the idea is it's going to. be pushed down the hill and they haven't. thought it through and this guy is going. to be rolled over uh you know with this. wheel crushing him. >> Uh and that's sort of the brilliance of. the far side. It's just a single panel. He doesn't have the next one showing the. wheel rolling and the guy going, "Oh, my. bones." Right? >> Like you have to put it's up to the the.

viewer and the reader to put all this. together in your head and imagine what. comes next. And that was sort of the. brilliance of it was he tapped into your. imagination. Mhm. >> Uh the other thing I think was very. Larsson is it it could have just been. that these guys on the hill, but then. about halfway down the hill, he adds a. guy, a cave guy looking up with a little. stone tablet uh to to record the. results. And it was those extra little. bits in the frame for me that just took.

far side over the top. >> Yeah, for sure. Um another good one is. the Midvail School for the Gifted. Probably my favorite all time. the best. known. Yeah, it's it's just amazing. There's no there's no quote. There's no. anything. There's no cut line or caption. or anything like that. It's just that. little glasses crew cut kid with. freckles pushing on a door to get into. the midvail school of the gifted where. he ostensibly goes to school and it. clearly says on the door pull.

>> Yeah. >> Yeah. And if I may comment on this one, the the brilliance of that one to me, like you could do that. You could have a. kid's hand on the door pushing that says. pull, but it's the way that he's leaning. in his whole body, >> right? >> And you get just when you see it. I. remember when I was a kid seeing that, thinking it looks like that kid has been. standing there for an hour, >> right, >> with his hand against that door. expecting it to open, >> right? >> And how he conveys that with just the. way he drew that kid leaning in, I don't.

know. That's the magic of the far side. Agreed, man. I'm glad you're. interpreting these for us because you're. doing a fantastic job. >> No, great. >> Uh there's another one that was pretty. famous, too, but not necessarily. everyone's seen, but you might have. heard of the one called Cow Tools that. came out in 1982. >> Yeah. And apparently this is the the. panel that taught Gary Larson that. there's a lot of people out there. reading The Far Side because Cow Tools. came out and it just baffled people to.

the point where they were starting to. get agitated because they didn't. understand the cartoon. It was a pop. culture phenomenon. People trying to. figure out what this cartoon meant. And. the problem was everybody was looking. way too deeply into it. and you had to. take it at face value. And it got so I. don't want to say out of hand, but just. such a just so widespread that the. syndicate asked him to write a letter. explaining it that got published in the.

papers that also published the Far Side. >> Yeah, it's definitely the most divisive. panel he did. And uh. >> I don't think I've ever seen that he. regrets it or anything. I think what he. what he didn't like was that people I. don't know if he didn't like it, but. people just didn't get it. And it is. even one that I looked at uh for the. first time when I was a kid and I didn't. fully get. >> right. >> But I don't think there was a lot of. subtext. He he came out and he said uh. I've never met a cow who could make. tools. So I felt sure it that if I did.

that the tools would lack something in. sophistication and resemble the sorry. specimens that I showed in the cartoon. >> And I I think people thought it was. something more than that. >> Right. >> And to him it was it was just that. It. was just these dumb rudimentary tools. that a cow would make. >> Yeah. That's all it showed. It was a cow. standing maybe a little proudly uh. behind a table with their with their. tools spread out. There's a barn in the. background. He's on a farm. >> And one of the tools you can you can. identify as a saw, but the other like. three you're like, I have no idea what.

that does. >> Yeah. >> And that's it. That's all it is. It's. like the cow made terrible tools, but. he's still proud that he made some tools. and these are cow tools. That's it. That's all there is to it. And if you. take it on its face, it's hilarious. But. if you start trying to figure out what. this tool means or what he's saying with. this, it it just completely loses it. >> Yeah. I mean, there were definitely. cartoons I didn't get uh when I was a. kid. I remember looking at some of them, not fully getting it, and thinking like, "Oh, this must be like something you. might get as an adult." But, you know,

maybe not cuz uh in the Simpsons and. Cheers, there were definitely pop. culture references where people like. Woody and Cheers wouldn't get a far side. or or Homer wouldn't get a far side. So, it became a thing to not understand the. panels, >> right? Um I I wanted to talk about one. more. Um there's the that Carrie Soer. author. >> Mhm. >> was asked, "What panel would you pick. out as the quintessential Far Side?". >> Wow. And he said the one uh lupus.

lipophobia. which is. >> it says like the caption says lupus. lipophobia fear of being chased in your. kitchen by timber wolves while wearing. socks on a newly waxed floor. And that's. exactly what's going on. There's this. kid who's being chased around a table by. two timberwolves. And he's wearing socks. and his floor is nice and shiny and he's. kind of hanging on to the table like. he's about to fall over. So like his his the other funny thing.

about it too is like this person's. really arcane phobia is coming true like. their worst nightmares happening. >> and that's what it is. >> That's a great one. >> That's so good. Uh I also love dog. threat letter. That's one he has a. regret about. He was a perfectionist and. would sometimes agonize over like oh I. should have done this or that. >> Um which is just I don't know. It's it's. hard if you're wired that way, but as as. any kind of creator, my advice is to. just go with it and don't look back on.

your work and regret something that you. didn't draw perfectly. >> Uh but in Dog Threat Letter, uh it was. it's a it's a panel of um these cats, one cat sitting down in a in a in a fat. chair and another one standing there and. there's a broken window. There's a letter that the cat is. reading. Uh there's glass on the floor. There's a a dog bone on the floor, >> which is so perfect to me because. clearly this this dog threat letter was. wrapped in this bone and thrown through. the window, right?

>> And it's the little cutout letters like. a like a, you know, a kidnapper's letter. would be cut and pasted and it just says. arf arf arf arf arf. >> and the cats aren't reacting. In fact, it's the backs of their heads, >> right? >> There's a portrait of a framed cat on. the wall, which is a nice touch. And he. regrets showing the dog running away. through the hole in the window. >> as if he had just thrown it. He wishes. he had just not had the dog. But I think. it's great as is. >> Yeah. I don't think it detracted from it. at all. >> Yeah. But I'm not Gary Larson. >> No, it's true.

>> Yeah. >> Um he also he got even more obsessive. than that with uh a regret, which was um. Harry Houdini's final undoing, which was. that Houdini um died because his fingers. got caught in Chinese finger traps. >> And that that was the thing that he. couldn't get out of. So now his dead. body is just on the ground leaning up. against the wall and he's a skeleton. >> and it's hilarious. Um, >> but the thing that Gary Larson was upset. about was that um the tilt of Harry. Houdini's skull should have been looking.

downward a little more. >> It's like dude, it's fine. Yeah, >> it's great. Like no one else except you. thought that what you just said. >> Yeah, totally agree. Uh should we take. another break? >> Yeah. All right, we'll be back and we're. going to finish up uh at the Midvail. School for the Gifted right after this. [Music]. >> You should know.

[Music]. All right. So, drawing seven of these a. week, you know, he put one out every. day. That's that's the work of a of a. cartoonist and a comic strip writer.

It's it's a it's hard, you know, even. though it's a single panel. You got to. come up with something that great uh. every day because he he wanted to be. great. And everyone who does that kind. of stuff wants to be great. >> So, that's a lot. Uh he took a 14-month. sbatical in 1988. Uh by this time he was. married to an anthropologist, no. surprise, named Tony Carmichael. Uh they. traveled all over the world. They went. to the Amazon, they went to Africa. He. lived in New York for a few months, uh. taking jazz guitar lessons from the. great Jim Hall. >> Um apparently the story goes that uh he.

drew one of Jim Hall's album covers and. he I don't know if this is true or not. It might be apocryphal, but uh he. initially said, "I'll do it for a. million bucks." And then said, "All. right, how about this? you give me jazz. guitar lessons in exchange. >> So he was living his best life uh. >> in retirement, you know, enjoying. himself. >> He came back and said, "All right, I. I'll I can give you five a week instead. of the seven.". >> Yeah. So that was 88 to I think 89 or. early 90. And um I guess 89. And so even. dropping two cartoons a week, he was.

clearly getting tired. Um, he was more. than that. I don't know if more, but at. least tied with it. Uh, in addition to. fatigue, he was really worried that he. was his creativity was going to go. downhill and that he was going to start. making mediocre cartoons. >> And that is that is the mark of um a a. creative. >> genius, I guess, or at the very least a. deeply creative person. >> A pure artist. Yes. that they're like, I.

have to walk away because I don't want. to start making something mediocre. Not. even bad. Mediocre. Mediocre is actually. worse than bad in situations like that. Yeah. >> So, the fact that he he cited that in. addition to fatigue, I thought was. really telling about, you know, who he. is. >> Yeah, absolutely. Uh he also was never. um super comfortable in the spotlight. Uh, if you look up Gary Larson in an. image search, you're going to see couple. of old black and whites from back in the.

day, uh, if you specify like Gary Larson. today. I saw like one or two pictures of. him now. >> Um, so he didn't give a lot of. interviews. He never was comfortable. being in the limelight. When he did do. interviews, he felt like he screwed him. up. Um, there was one uh, particular. interview where he got tripped up by a. question and later on said, "I couldn't. think of anything to say. I was rooted. to the spot like the proverbial rabbit. caught in the headlights. >> Mhm. >> Which may have been the problem because. I think it's a deer that he was looking. for. >> The question was also like where is the.

far side and how do we get there? And he. was like this is like your first. question man. Yeah. >> Um so on January I don't remember the. date but let's just say January 1995. the very final um far side we should say. of the original run. Uh the final Far. Side ran and um it is it's perfect. It's. as perfect as the ending of the original. Bob New Hart show.

>> Yeah, agreed. >> Where he a man named Gary who looks. vaguely like Gary Larson is standing. with Glenda the Good Witch and um he's. surrounded by every character in the far. side. The cows, the cats, the beehive. hairdo lady, the nerdy kid with the. glasses. >> Yeah. 10gon hat guy. >> Yeah. a 10gon haircut. Everybody is. surrounding him just kind of watching. him talk with Glenda the Good Witch and. she says something like um well. basically what what uh Dorothy was told. at in the end of Wizard of Oz, right?

>> Yeah. Should I read it? >> Yeah, definitely. >> She says, "Why Gary, you've always and. that's underlined. You've always had the. power to go home. Just close your eyes, quack three times, and think to. yourself, there's no place like home. There's no place like home.". >> Right? Okay. So, that's panel one. It's. in color. The second panel, and this is. very rare, he usually only did one. panel. The second panel is in black and. white. And now Gary is in bed waking up. ostensibly in Kansas. And he's. surrounded by his family and friends.

And they all resemble the cow and the. cat and the nerdy kid. And he says he. explains to them that he just had this. crazy dream. And all the people in the. dream looked like them, just like the. end of Wizard of Oz. It was just. beautiful. Yeah, it was it was I mean. the perfect way to go out. I kind of. wonder if he the story behind that if he. came up with it just sort of when he. went to do the last one or if he always. sort of had something in mind. >> Yeah. >> Uh I always wonder that about TV shows. too if they sort of had the the final.

shot or the final episode in their brain. when they're doing it. But um yeah, it. was a beautiful way to go out. Um he had. in '94 97 animated films Tales from the. Far Side and Tales from the Far Side 2. >> Did you see those? >> Uh I did not surprisingly. Are they. good? >> The I I don't know. The only place I can. find it is a Russian website and I Oh, okay. >> Our work computers won't let us go. there. >> Did it say yet, >> right? But they look awesome. I did see. a clip and it's the cow but a real life. version. A real life animated version.

You know what I'm talking about? >> Uh yeah. >> Of a cow and it's just their hoof. playing a video game. And the video. game, I think it's called Stampede. And. in the video game, the cows from the far. side are stampeding. Um, and it's just. weird because you hear the cow breathing. and that's it. Like they're just playing. the game, but they're breathing as. they're playing it. And that's all you. just see their hoof playing with the. joystick. >> Yeah, I I made an intentional uh. decision to not see those. And I still.

don't want to see them. >> Okay. I'll see them for us and then I'll. be like, "Yay." or yet. >> Yeah, let me know cuz I just I don't. know. There's something you know how it. is when something exists in your mind as. a certain thing and it's just kind of a. perfect memory and thing for me still. and I don't want to take the chance of. of not liking it. So, I'm not going to. do it. Uh he also had a kids book in. 1999. I feel bad that I didn't know. about this. I would have gotten it uh. when Ruby was littleer. Uh called.

There's a Hair in My Dirt. She'd. probably still like this actually. Yeah. Colon, a worm story, a book about a. princess from the worms point of view, which is very Gary Larson. >> Speaking of kids books, there was. something that he cited. Um, a screen. rant has like 500 articles on Gary. Larson and the Far Side. Apparently, somebody there really likes him, but. they turned up that uh he cited a. children's book from 1950, the year he. was born, as just kind of helping him. develop like his his sense of humor. But.

it's called Mr. bear squash you flat. Like that's Mr. Bear's name. And it's. this bear who goes around the woods and. sits on the other animals houses and. squashes them and basically just makes. all sorts of enemies and then finally. gets his comeuppants at the end. And. it's really bizarre. Like just the. sample I saw, it's like illustrated like. a 1950s children's book, but the. storyline is really weird. And the title. itself is incredibly weird, too. That. apparently just stayed with Gary Larson. Yeah, they almost they someone tried to.

develop at some point a live action Far. Side movie and I just thank God that. that never happened because there's no. way that would have been good. >> No way. No how. >> Uh so we mentioned Talk of Science. Um. this is kind of one of the most fun. things about Gary Larson to me now uh. that I'm an adult who is sort of more. into science than I was when I was 12. Mhm. >> But he very much had an interest in. science that was pervasive through the. through the series run whether it was. animals or weird nature things. And. there's a it was it's tendrils kind of.

reached through the science world. Um at. the time in 1998 the head of the. National Institutes of Health, Dr. Harold Varmmas said, "Boy, Dr. Harold. Varmas, has there ever been a more apt. name to lead the National Institute of. Health?". >> Right. It's also a farside name, too. >> Oh, really? Did he use that? No, I'm. just saying like that's a perfect. farside name. >> No, I I totally agree. It wouldn't have. surprised me though because as we'll see. they sort of overlap here and there, but. for sure he said his influence is. pervasive. I can't tell you how many. seminars I've been to that had a Gary.

Larson slide in them. And he ended up. getting like real animals named after. him. Right. >> Well, a chewing louse at least. >> Yeah. >> There's a a type of louse that's found. on the feathers of the South African. white-faced owl. And the parasytologist. Dale Clayton named it after Gary Larson. stridify Gary Larson I. And he said he. wrote to ask permission um that it's. simply meant to honor the enormous. contribution that my colleagues and I.

feel you have made to biology through. your cartoon. And um. >> like not saying you're a louse, >> right? Exactly. And so Gary Larson was. quite honored. He said he wrote that he. was honored in the prehistory of the far. side. He mentions it. What's funny is. that the prehistory of the far side came. out before the paper naming that chewing. louse strillis Gary Larssoni. So that. the paper actually cites the book the. the prehistory of the far side in it to. basically prove that it's actually a.

thing. >> It's pretty good. Uh he had also had a. butterfly named for him in 1990, but. sadly 14 years later, the uh Sarah Totga. Lararssoni uh was found to not be a. distinct species, so it was removed. So. for a while, I guess 14 years, he had a. butterfly named after him as well. >> Mhm. >> Uh and then I love the story of the th. the thagumizer. >> We'll take it. There was a uh a. scientific term that has kind of caught. on from one of his cartoons and that is.

the thagumizer t h a g- o miser. It was. from a 1982 panel where there's a. caveman teaching a class um about the. end of the Stegosaurus tail, the little. spikes on the end of a Stegosaurus. And. the caption was, "Now this end is called. the Thagamizer after the late Thag. Simmons,". >> right? >> Which is so such a Gary Larson sort of. sense of humor, sensibility in and of. itself. And apparently paleontologists. sort of started using that such that it. became the semi-formal name and ended up.

in the uh dinosaur national monument at. the Smithsonian. >> Yeah. Like their displays of the. Stegosaurus mention its thagumizer. >> That's amazing. >> So uh yeah, I think one of the reasons. that scientists really appreciated him. is this was a time when nerd was a. genuine put down. >> It was not a hip term at all. Like if. you called someone a nerd, you were. being mean to them. >> And he was celebrating them even while. also making fun of them to some extent, but no more than any other humans he was.

making fun of. He just had a really deep. interest in science and biology. And it. just happened to kind of cross paths. So. um that I thought that was worth. mentioning that like he was. >> he was glorifying nerds at a time when. nerds were not super thought well of. >> Yeah, man. That's very astute. I never. really thought about that, but that's. absolutely what he was doing. Uh he was. he was making fun of himself and also. shining a light on on nerddom at the. same time. >> Yeah. >> Um in 1987, the California Academy of.

Sciences did an exhibit that ended up. touring all around the country, including the National Museum of History. of Science Related Farside Comics. >> And uh evolutionary biologist Eio Wilson. wrote a uh he had a couple of bi or. scientists write forwards in his books. Uh Eio Wilson wrote u the forward for. the children's book There's a Hair in My. Dirt. And a paleontologist and. evolutionary biologist named Steven J. Gould, I believe we've talked about. before. >> Sure. >> Wrote the forward for the Far Side. Gallery 3 and called him the National.

Humorist of Natural History. >> And then there's a story we talked about. in the Jing Goodall episode. I think. it's worth mentioning again. >> Yeah, I thought we did. Yeah. So, in. 1987, Gary Larson had a cartoon showing. um an ape that's grooming another ape, and it seems very clear that they're. married. And uh the one ape uh with. glasses, I think, is the wife says, "Well, well, another blonde hair. conducting a little more research with. that Jane Goodall tramp.".

>> And of course, he meant nothing by it. Like, if you start to read too deeply. into it, you're like, "Wow, this is. what's he got against Jane Goodall.". That's not is all superficial, just. hilarious, right? >> That's not at all how Sue Angel, the. executive director of the Jane Goodall. Institute, apparently she read way too. deeply into it. And she wrote a truly. angry letter um to the uh the cartoon. editors that I guess by then he was at. Universal Syndicate, >> basically just lambasting them for even. running it. >> Yeah. She said, "It's incredibly.

offensive and in such poor taste that. readers might well question the. editorial judgment of running such an. atrocity in a newspaper that reputes to. be supplying the news to persons with a. better than average intelligence.". >> Right. So, she was mad. >> Yeah. >> Turns out that Jane Goodall was in the. field when all this happened. She hadn't. seen the cartoon. And when she got back. and did see the cartoon, she's like, "Actually, this is funny, Sue. I think. you may have overreacted.". >> Yeah. >> She ended up writing a forward to one of. the Far Side books. And then that. cartoon was licensed for the Jane.

Goodall Institute. I'm quite sure on. very favorable terms because uh Gary. Larson is a genuine conservationist and. in fact I think he gave all the proceeds. from his 2007 Faride a Day calendar um. to Conservation International. So he was. the real deal. >> Yeah. And then I think Sue ran to the. bathroom and cried. >> I'll bet, dude. >> Nothing's ever good enough for Jay. And. also I want to say I keep using was. Gary Larson is still very much alive. So.

I'm not sure why I keep referring to him. in past tense. I don't know anything. that he doesn't know. So don't worry if. you're listening to this Gary Larson. >> Yeah. Oh god. How great would that be? I. would just retire tomorrow if I found. out he like listened in like this. >> Oh yeah. Not that he was about to die. >> No, no, no, no. >> Okay. >> He'd probably find that funny though. >> Probably. Yeah. He's got a website he. finally put up and uh apparently uh will. occasionally put out a new thing or two. here and there. Definitely will put out. um some like lost archival stuff or uh.

you know stuff like that. But um I think. he got like a a sort of digital drawing. thing and was like, "Hey, I I found that. I'm sort of enjoying this again." And. everybody I remember when that happened. and everyone was like, "Oh my god, is it. happening?" And he's like, "No, it's not. really happening, but you know, here's. here's my website.". >> That's right. Uh, you got anything else? >> Got nothing else. That was a fun one. >> Just a thank you, Gary Larson. Thank you. for doing what you did and being you. >> That's right. >> Uh, and since we just thank Gary Larson,

everybody, as foretold in 2008, we've. just unlocked listener mail. >> That's right. I'm going to call this a. short and sweet correction. Hey guys, longtime listener, love the podcast, etc., etc. That's actually what Josh of. the letter writer Josh says. >> Mhm. Uh guys, I'm sure you're getting. millions of emails about this, but while. orcas are dolphins, uh I think you guys. said that this means they aren't real. whales, in reality, all dolphins are. whales. In phoggenetics, dolphin is a.

type of whale. Okay, thanks. Love you. Bye, Josh. >> Josh, you just come along and. razledazzle us with the word like. phoggenetics and expect us to believe. you? I don't know. >> Yeah. Yeah, exactly. >> We're gonna have to look that one up. before I formally thank Josh. >> Uh I looked it up. Yeah, all all. dolphins are whales. >> All right. Well, thank you, Josh. We. appreciate that correction. That was. actually a pretty good one. >> Yeah. >> Uh, if you want to be like Josh and get. in touch with us, please do. Send us an. email. Send it off to stuffodcast.com.

[Music]. Stuff You Should Know is a production of. iHeart Radio. For more podcasts, iMheart. Radio, visit the iHeart Radio app, Apple. Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your. favorite shows. [Music].