Bloom County by Berkeley Breathed for June 26, 1981

First appearance of Opus?

looks that way.. good morning Opus

Ah, the Opus that didn’t know English. Many had forgotten that he started as Binkley’s pet before becoming a Liberated Bird.

P. Opus. Owner of Bill T. Cat in later years, Meadowcrat Vice Presidential candidate for 1984, 1988, 1992, and even 2012, Personals clerk for the Bloom Beacon and the Bloom Picayune Ombudsman and Scruples Boy, loyal pet of Mike Binkley, and comic strip megastar for 25 years from June 26, 1981-November 2, 2008. And this was his first appearance: as an illiterate one-time gag, a mistaken German Shepard, whose name was first spoken about a year after his creation.Huh.

And really…seeing the earlier strips, it really is sad what happened to the poor penguin’s nose later on in the comic.

This is also the debut of Tom Binkley. Anyone else notice?

My boy has arrived!

The first appearance of both Opus and Binkley’s father.

OPUS!! <3 <3 <3 My cute little turnip twiddler! Bring those toes here – I have herring ;p

hide your turnip twaddlers

My spirit animal makes his formal debut. While as Berke notes in the complete works it takes a few more months before he rejoins the cast, it’s still a monumental moment.. and still a joke that really works.