Calvin and Hobbes: The Last Sunday, “Let’s Go Exploring”
"Though Bill Watterson is gone from your comic pages, he hasn't forgotten. The enclosed color proof is a thank-you from him…” –Lee Salem, Editorial Director of Universal Press Syndicate, presenting this proof
RARE LARGE COLOR PROOF, SIGNED BY BILL WATTERSON, OF THE FINAL CALVIN AND HOBBES STRIP.
“[I]t was only fitting that for the final Calvin and Hobbes strip, Watterson sent Calvin out on one last existential careen through the great outdoors. Luckily, the December 31, 1995, strip fell on a Sunday, letting Watterson conclude his ten-year, 3,100-strip run using the boundless, more expansive palette that he’d become famous for… In the first panel, Calvin and Hobbes run through fresh, waist-deep snow into the woods. Calvin’s in full winter gear. Hobbes is wearing a red scarf. They’re in full color, but the rest of the snowy landscape around them is all white. The pair marvel at how the snowfall has changed the woods. ‘A new year… a fresh, clean start!’ says Calvin. It’s like having a big white sheet of paper to draw on!’ Hobbes adds. They lay the sled down on the ground and climb on. ‘It’s a magical world, Hobbes, ol’ buddy,’ Calvin says. ‘Let’s go exploring!’ And together they take off down the hill, wild grins on their faces, already fading into the blank, snowy distance by panel’s end. Once again, Calvin and Hobbes were gone – only this time, it was for good.” (Michael Hingston).
This signed color proof was one of a small number produced that Watterson sent as a thank-you gift to select newspapers who carried the strip.
WITH: The original typed presentation letter signed from Lee Salem, Editorial Director of Universal Press Syndicate, to Richard Walker of the Roseville, CA, Press Tribune, 1 p, Kansas City, April 15, 1996, on Universal Press Syndicate letterhead; and original shipping envelope.
Calvin and Hobbes. ["Let's Go Exploring."] [Kansas City]: Universal Press Syndicate, 1995.
Signed color proof, 250 x 350 mm (approx. 10x13.5 in); image size approximately 225 x 323 mm. Printed in black and half-tone colors. Light handling creases to margins. Housed in spectacular box by noted book artist Sjoerd Hofstra.
References:
Michael Hingston. Let’s Go Exploring: Calvin and Hobbes. Toronto: ECW Press, 2018. p.75.
Price: $35,000 .