That bamboo fence is brilliant! Difficult to imagine how anyone can maintain that level of brilliance for forty years, yet there it is, in plain sight. 

Ah, Nixon! Remember the good old days, when all a rogue president did was condone a breaking and entering, and then lie about it? And he got driven out of office for it! Those were the days... Oh, wait, I forgot about the chemical warfare against civilians (Agent Orange and napalm).

Dynastic closure? Funny. But what I would like to see is closure of dynasties!

Wonderful. Today's 40-year-old strip gives a view of the early days of Lacey's life -- quite in character with everything I already knew about her, but charming and enlightening nonetheless.

Today's 40-years-ago strip is why I thought the Davenports were not actually married. Maybe Dick was just being romantic. I'm going to my 50th in two weeks, so I am freaking about the reunion strips.

The 8/12/1974 strip, which is today's 20-years-ago flashback-within-a-flashback (very meta), is one I will always remember. Watching the President and all his men twist and spin was a very painful experience for my 16-year-old self. I thought it then, and I can say it now; thanks GBT, for so elegantly and simply showing us the definition of "stonewalling."

The 5/11/14 toon may Trudeau's best ever!

Everyone needs something to help them get going each day. When one is 'up,' it might be family or students (I teach) or great weather, etc. But when one is down, it is good to have something in reserve. Today's four panels end with "Dare to be great, Ms. Caucus." Specifically, the cover of the eponymous collection has been my lifeline for thirty-nine years. Of course, for thirty-three of those years it has shared my desk with "Sir, I'm Worried About Your Mood Swings." Thanks, again, but not for the last time. Yesterday's effort just nailed it!

Bravo, sir. Bravo. I'm off to buy a hat, that I might doff it in your direction.

Excellent portraits in the Museum of Bush Art today. Please offer them for sale as prints, with or without Mark's helpful footnotes.

Finally, someone stating the obvious about Putin and about Bush, who spends so much time painting because as an international war criminal he can't leave the USA. Too bad the commentary comes from a cartoonist, but at least someone is sayin' somethin' to power. The best undressing of W. since Colbert praised him in his famous dinner speech.

Baby Jesus as a 40-watt lightbulb. That's when I knew that I would read Doonesbury forever. And to my great joy, the 40-watt lightbulb made a reappearance on December 25, 2012.

Those anti-school people quoted in the Mudline crawl at the top of the page make my skin crawl. They exemplify the need for mental health care.

I, too, am really enjoying the reruns. I do miss Trudeau's daily take on current events and will be happy when he returns. However, right now I am more than content with the repeats. Thank you for thinking of this.

I'm loving the classic strips. I started reading Doonesbury right after it went into syndication and I'm surprised how many of these I remember, even after all of these years. Per my admittedly hazy memory, it seems like we're skipping some strips. Are you fast forwarding past some stuff or are you re-running each strip in its original order?

I'm really, really enjoying the Classic Doonesbury look further back in history. During the hiatus last fall the reruns of more recent strips -- especially the Red Rascal stuff -- was too soon after their original publication. The depth of years of stuff here -- brilliant.

I hate to break it Rick, but "Boehner Seeks Rules Change" would have bombed back in the days of print, too. First rule of headline writing: What's the news? "Boehner Seeks Rules Change" isn't news. "Boehner: Limit Back-Benchers' Power" is inside baseball, but that'd be news. Or if you're at the NY Post: "Boehner To Back-Benchers: Drop Dead."

I've been a reader since the early 80s, thanks to the Guardian. I showed the "How did you know it was an American plane?" strip to my daughter (born '84). Her response? "That could be a drone today." The more things change...

What?! Facts at a Congressional hearing? And the questioner accepts them? I mean, I know it's a fantasy cartoon, but you wouldn't be able to get away with that today.