Ask the Archivist - Mr. Lodge

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ASK THE ARCHIVIST
March

Hey, all you Archie-information seekers out there -- you've come to the right place! It's another installment of "Ask the Archivist" with Archie Comics' resident archivist, Paul Castiglia.

Many fans write to me daily asking me when the first appearances of specific characters were. This month, in answer to many fan's requests, we answer the question:

"When was Mr. Lodge's first appearance?"

Unlike most of the Archie characters, Mr. Lodge didn't evolve gradually over time. On the contrary, he exploded onto the scene in full force! We first meet him in an untitled story from PEP COMICS #31 (September, 1942). The only real differences between this Mr. Lodge and the one we know today are his name-- he was originally "Burton K. Lodge," though now we know him as "Hiram Lodge;" and while today he's a millionaire businessman, he started out as a Boston politician. The things that stayed the same: his appearance, and his lack of tolerance for Archie!
Archie gets their relationship started off on the wrong foot in one of the funniest of the early Archie stories. Mr. Lodge was making a quick stopover to see Veronica before jetting back to Washington to try to get an important bill passed by the commerce committee! When Archie tags along for lunch with Veronica and her dad, he orders a Daiquiri, just like Mr. Lodge! When his order arrives, Archie is shocked and says, "I thought it was a sandwich!" When Mr. Lodge isn't looking, Archie tosses the drink under the table-- but it ends up in Mr. Lodge's hat! Of course, Mr. Lodge puts on that hat and winds up ruining his suit! Things go from bad to worse when Archie volunteers to "help" and pick up Mr. Lodge's ticket for him. Believing Mr. Lodge is already on the plane, Archie runs aboard-- only to have the plane take off while Mr. Lodge is stuck on the ground, without his ticket! And so, it is Archie who ends up addressing the committee-- and through sheer dumb luck, gets Lodge's bill passed! Thus began one of the most tumultuous relationships in comic book history!

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