My childhood was full of comic books — Spiderman, Superman, Richie Rich, Casper… and Archie. When you’re a kid, you really look up to teenagers, and I related to Archie in the same way I related to Peter Parker. Archie was the good guy. His rival Reggie was the bad guy. Reggie was richer than Archie, a better athlete than Archie, and he drove a nice sports car while Archie got from point A to point B in a jalopy… if he got there at all. But Archie was more likable than Reggie, and Betty and Veronica were always fighting over him. (Years before the famous question “Ginger or Mary Ann?” was asked of guys, there was the question “Betty or Veronica?”)
Given the choice between Archie and Reggie, most kids probably wanted to be more like Archie.
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