Bill Watterson is more than the creator of the popular comic strip, Calvin and Hobbes. He is a creative man who understands human nature, and who has non-negotiable principles and beliefs. Many cartoonists merchandise their work as much as possible; while most want to exploit their creations, Bill Watterson does not. He believes that a comic strip's characters should not be ruined by commercialization, through the sales of toys, t-shirts and other paraphernalia. Each strip of Calvin and Hobbes is a thoughtful dialogue that takes imagination and hard work to create. Watterson argued that something with that much thought cannot be summed up in a phrase on a t-shirt.
   Watterson does not want his strip to be given a voice by a stranger. He enjoys writing Calvin and Hobbes, and is proud that he writes every word, draws every face, and colors every picture. He does not want to supervise other artists in the drawing of his comic strip; he wants to continue to personally create every strip. Bill Watterson does not want to get rich by sacrificing his beliefs.
   He has an incredible understanding of human nature, and has the ability to effectively sum it up into a few short words. He has created two characters who are good friends but who nonetheless argue constantly with each other. He is able to take serious philosophical ideas and present them logically and humorously. With a comment he is able to turn a serious concept into a joke, or make it seem irrelevant. He uses Calvin's innocence to poke fun at human nature and to show the difficulties of growing up -- a task that is difficult to do, especially since Watterson has no children of his own. Hobbes is the voice of reason and satire. Calvin and Hobbes present the ongoing dilemma between fantasy and reality.
   Bill Watterson refuses to be limited. When newspaper editors shortened the size of the strips, he still found a way to be creative. Whenever possible, he avoided drawing in the typical box style. In his Sunday strips he shied away from using boxes, and was still able to have an interesting and comprehensible order to the strip.
   Faced with strong pressure to adapt his strips to newspaper and licensing demands, Watterson chose to stop publishing his work in newspapers. He enjoys drawing strips about a young kid growing up and his tiger. Fans can still read his work in the books he continues to publish.

by Denver, Vulture Staff