October 19, 1995
Web posted at: 7:15 p.m. EDTD
From CNN Affiliate WFTS
CLEARWATER, Florida (CNN) -- Dagwood Bumstead is frazzled and it doesn't seem that the naps or giant sandwiches he's famous for are going to calm him down.
First, wife Blondie decided a few years ago that something was missing in her life, so she set up a catering business in their home. That sent Dagwood into a rage, insisting he didn't want his wife to work. He calmed down once he found out that the business meant he got plenty of good things to eat. But now that Blondie has decided to expand her business and move it to a downtown location, things have gotten worse and the marriage seems on the rocks. So on the comic strip pages where they've lived for 64 years, Dagwood and Blondie are seeing a marriage counselor.
"I wanted Blondie to relate to our world in real terms," said cartoon writer Dean Young. "It increases the level of humor if my readers are able to relate to what is really happening in real-life terms." Young, whose late father Chic started Blondie, believes the cartoon's creator would approve. (128K AIFF sound or 128K WAV sound)
Signs of trouble in the Bumstead marriage have been apparent for some time, according to Florida marriage counselor Kathy Baker. She said Dagwood's eating and sleeping habits "are classic signs of depression." (68K AIFF sound or 68K WAV sound)
Baker said the couple should get counseling while the problem is still fresh. "The first thing I would do is try to figure out mutual ownership of the problem," she said. "Blondie's already pointing her finger at Dagwood, saying, 'It's your problem.'"
But don't expect a divorce. The story line may mirror real-life but it is, after all, a comic strip.
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