Tank McNamara

Infobox Comic strip
title=Tank McNamara
creator=Jeff Millar (writer) /Bill Hinds (artist)
status=Running
syndicate=Universal Press Syndicate (1974-present)
comictype=print
genre=Humor
first=August 1974

"Tank McNamara" is a daily syndicated comic strip written by Jeff Millar and illustrated by Bill Hinds. The strip debuted in 1974.

The title character is a local sports television reporter who used to be a defensive lineman in the National Football League, hence his name (whether nickname or given name is unclear). The strip focuses primarily on contemporary American athletics, which allows it to remain topical and also to dabble in related subjects such as politics and social issues.

Plot and characters

Before becoming a multi-sport broadcaster and reporter, Tank McNamara played college football for "Enormous State University" (team name: the Sandcrabs), which serves the role of a generic NCAA Division I university with problem-plagued athletic programs. The local professional teams are fictional American major-league franchises (baseball's "Bashers"; football's "Smashers"; ice hockey's "Igloos"; basketball's "Stuffers"). The strip also portrays fictional sponsors, including "Heavy Beer", spoofing the light beer ads that are so common in American sports broadcasts. It also features caricatures of many real figures from sports.

In earlier years, Tank was portrayed as a buffoon ex-professional athlete (an NFL defensive linebacker, jersey number 55) unqualified to do his journalistic job. Recurring gags focused on Tank's "fumble-mouth" mistakes, and on his tendency to jump on anything loose on the floor as if it were a fumbled football. An annual feature was a Christmas tale of Tank's last minute quest to obtain that year's "must have" toy for his nephew.

Tank has matured with the strip, which has gone on to highlight his loyalty, inherently gentle nature, and good heart. Recent years have seen several sequences dealing with Tank's youthful indiscretions. His behavior is never as damning as he believes it to have been, and he is always deeply sorry for his actions. While these sequences flesh out the background of Tank's character, they show the reader that he has always been a decent human being.

Tank, who is a bachelor portrayed as being vulnerable to romantic injury, began seriously dating a woman named Angela in 2005. Angela works at his TV station, and the two met after she beat him in the station's 2005 NCAA tournament pool, despite choosing teams based on their uniform colors. Angela is the single mother of an athletically gifted son to whom Tank serves as a father figure, and she has eschewed competing in sports since a youthful tennis talent took over her life. She accompanies Tank to many work assignments, often assisting him in undercover reporting.

ocial issues

The strip consistently addresses contemporary social problems related to sports, including gambling addiction, steroids, the arrests of pro athletes, and athlete salaries. Sometimes these issues are portrayed fictionally, as when Tank's 'Little Brother' battles an online gambling problem, but sometimes the strip treats specific controversies by naming names. One popular example is its "Sports Jerk of the Year" award, which allows readers to nominate the figure they have found most objectionable and then vote on who is the worst. Previous 'winners' include Terrell Owens (2x), Bud Selig (2x), Daniel Snyder, John Rocker, Lleyton Hewitt, Latrell Sprewell, Ronald Curry, and Roberto Alomar.

Tank McNamara in popular culture

* In the NBC TV series 'Seinfeld' episode #142 - "The Chicken Roaster", Jerry refuses to give up his copy of a newspaper to a friend because he "hasn't read Tank McNamara yet".
* Robert B. Parker's detective character Spenser is a fan of Tank, often making comments such as reading it twice to make sure there wasn't a clue hidden in it.

References

* Strickler, Dave. "Syndicated Comic Strips and Artists, 1924-1995: The Complete Index." Cambria, CA: Comics Access, 1995. ISBN 0-9700077-0-1.

External links

* [http://www.ucomics.com/tankmcnamara/ Tank McNamara at ucomics.com]