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Doggone funny at last

By JAY CRIDLIN
Published October 10, 2006

For the record, Stephen Levinson did not grow up a Marmaduke fan.

"I don't think anyone grows up a Marmaduke fan," says Levinson, a 33-year-old writer-comedian in Brooklyn. "He almost has no personality. He doesn't think, he doesn't talk. You don't have any clue what's going on inside."

That hasn't stopped sardonic bloggers from trying to mine the massive mutt's psyche. A handful of creative cartoon lovers are daring to reinvent Marmaduke - the 52-year-old creation of cartoonist Brad Anderson - in their own comedic image.

There's Marmaduke as a political statement. Marmaduke getting Photoshopped into New Yorker cartoons. Illogical Marmaduke panels dissected each day in brilliantly deadpan fashion.

Their goal: To impose a modern sense of humor on a half-century-old comic strip.

This isn't an entirely new trend. Last year, for example, several Garfield fans created a minor Web-wide buzz by removing the cat's thought bubbles from each strip. This made it seem as though Jon, his owner, was a depressed, slightly creepy loner babbling to himself about lasagna.

Some "remixed" comic strips thrive on language that can't be reprinted in newspapers.

Others don't thrive at all - sites like the Dysfunctional Family Circus and the Garfield Randomizer were shut down by cartoonists and syndicates.

Now it appears Marmaduke's time has come as a hot source of retro-ironic-subversive humor.

"Marmaduke seems to be able to drive cars, pay for pizza, use credit cards," says Jon Katz, another Marmaduke satirist in California.

"He's a pretty amazing dog, so I think it's only right that there should be a few blogs on the Internet devoted to him."

If you no longer think Marmaduke is funny, here are three sites to check out.

Joe Mathlete Explains Today's Marmaduke (In 500 Words or Less) marmadukeexplained. blogspot.com

What it is: Exactly what it sounds like, only much, much funnier. In one panel, Marmaduke is shown digging a hole in his owners' back yard, while their little girl, who is holding a garden hose, tells a neighbor, "Guess what, Mr. Snyder? We're getting a built-in pool." Underneath, Mathlete dryly explains: "Marmaduke is utilizing his gargantuan strength and uniquely canine disregard for local building codes to construct his owners a swimming pool. Also, Owner-Girl is developing into quite the braggart."

Who does it: Joe Mathlete, singer/instrumentalist for the Houston rock band the Mathletes.

What he says: "I'm hoping that explaining an unfunny or nonexistent joke can create humor where before there was only mild, confused irritation," Mathlete said via e-mail. "Though I suppose it's neat that people read what I write, I'm mostly irritated that I have no way of making any money off of this without getting sued. Still, at the end of the day, if I've managed to (make) Marmaduke funny in some way, I am serving some sort of purpose in the grand scheme of things."

The Marmaduke Project www.marmadukeproject.com

What it is: A compendium of Marmaduke-related humor: Recaptioned Marmaduke panels; a song called We Must Pity Marmaduke; tongue-in-cheek reviews of Marmaduke collections posted on Amazon.com; even Marmaduke haikus ("Enormous devil / You can't bury the ghosts of / Those hobos you ate").

Who does it: Levinson, also creator of the comedy Web site Supermasterpiece.com.

What he says: "We just put a spotlight right on this thing that's always existed, kind of in the background," Levinson says, referring to the oft-overlooked strip.

"Instead of just changing the captions, which a lot of people are doing, I want to take it in a different medium, like Marmaduke as an anime cartoon, or Marmaduke as a spy novel. We have one where, if Marmaduke was a radio show from the '40s."

Marmaduke Can Vote www.marmadukecanvote.blogspot.com

What it is: An attempt to give each Marmaduke panel a Doonesbury-esque political slant. Thus, a cartoon about Marmaduke hounding the mail carrier says: "Sorry Marm. The USA Patriot Act only allows the President to snoop through mail trucks!" Zing!

Who does it: Jon Katz, a 21-year-old Philadelphia film student who works in Burbank, Calif.

What he says: "It's such an easy target," Katz says. "Every Marmaduke strip I read, the punch line is: 'Man, that is one big, annoying dog.' After a while, I get to wondering: Why haven't his owners put him to sleep?"

[Last modified October 9, 2006, 19:49:27]