Secondary characters in Calvin and Hobbes
Bill Watterson's comic strip Calvin and Hobbes features a wide range of secondary characters, ranging from Calvin's nameless classmates at elementary school to gargantuan aliens on distant planets.
Calvin’s family
Calvin's mother and father are for the most part typical Middle American middle-class parents; like many other characters in the strip, their relatively down-to-earth and sensible attitudes serve primarily as a foil for Calvin's outlandish behavior. Both parents go through the entire strip unnamed, except as "Mom" and "Dad", or such pet names as "hon" and "dear." Watterson has never given Calvin's parents names "because as far as the strip is concerned, they are important only as Calvin's mom and dad."[1] However, Watterson sometimes uses them to explore situations adults can relate to, such as the desire to enjoy leisure time as opposed to the need to work, or bad customer service and frustrations when grocery shopping. Also, occasionally Watterson takes the time to flesh out the two parental characters. One example is a storyline in which the family returns from a camping trip to find their house broken into. For several strips, Calvin and Hobbes fade into the background as Mom and Dad reflect on the impact of the event. Early on in the strip, Watterson says, they were criticized by readers for being overly sarcastic and insufficiently patient, especially Calvin's father, who has several times reminded his wife that he really wanted a dog instead of a son.
Calvin's parents drive a purple hatchback similar to an early 1980s Honda Civic or VW Golf. This may be because Bill Watterson drove a Civic himself. The car is the setting of family trips, and is occasionally the victim of Calvin's mischief, such as the long story where he accidentally pushes the car into a ditch (and there are at least one or two other similar incidents referenced.)
The parents occasionally invite guests over to their house, and Calvin usually ends up messing up the visit.
Not surprisingly due to the stress Calvin has placed on them, it is hinted that Calvin's parents considered some sort of tubal ligation, vasectomy or other sterilization operation, if they had not already done so, presumably to avoid having further children--although it is not clear if they were actually looking to reverse such a process. (It is not stated directly, but the context is clear because Calvin says that he wishes he had a little brother he could beat up, and in the next panel Calvin's dad is interrupted in a meeting with a client and says to Calvin's mother, "Look, honey, can we talk about that operation some other time?" On the other hand, it could be read as the fact that Calvin only wants a sibling so that he has someone to beat up, that this is the catalyst for the mother to push for the dad's vasectomy.
Calvin's father
Calvin's father is a patent attorney who is portrayed to the reader as an upstanding middle-class father, despite how his son may see him. An outdoorsman, he enjoys bike rides and camping trips, and insists that these activities, like Calvin's chores, "build character." When Calvin asks him questions, he often makes up outlandish answers, such as:
- Calvin: "Dad, what makes wind?"
- Dad: "Trees sneezing."
- Calvin: "Really?"
- Dad: "No, but the truth is more complicated."
- Calvin (later, to Hobbes): "The trees are really sneezing today."
or
- Calvin: "Dad, how does a light bulb work?"
- Dad: "Magic."
- Calvin: "Didn't you say that's how the vacuum cleaner works?"
- Dad: "Right. They're both magic."
- Calvin: "You just don't know how they work, I'll bet."
- Dad: "Fine. Don't believe your own father, who's been around a lot longer than you."
- Calvin:(Turns on a lamp) "Look mom, magic!"
- Mom: "That's not magic!"
These repeated vague and outright false answers may be social commentary on the distortion of reality that pervades much of Calvin and Hobbes. It is intriguing to note that to be a patent attorney traditionally requires a natural science or engineering bachelor's degree preceding the usual Juris Doctor needed to practice any other branch of law; therefore, Calvin's father should have the actual scientific knowledge needed to answer the questions Calvin asks. His refusal and nonsensical responses indicate the adult world's unwillingness to share the knowledge or deliberate distortion of reality. There is a huge possibility that Calvin's father may be unwilling to share knowledge because he believes that Calvin is too young to understand exactly how such things work. This is a totally misguided assumption, as Calvin has shown signs of intelligence more than once, though often shows signs of refusing to actually learn things.
Indeed, Calvin's father's willingness to provide outrageous explanations may reflect Calvin's reluctance to take the more difficult road of learning how things really work. As illustrated in his acceptance of the "sneezing trees" theory of wind, as seen above.
The dad also tells Calvin about how two points on a disc travel different speeds (bigger revolution, same amount). Calvin is spooked. (Actually the two points aren't traveling at the same "speed". Both points have the same angular velocity but different linear velocities.)
Of course, these bits of nonsensical fatherly "wisdom" may also signify that Calvin's father, like Calvin himself, has an imaginative streak that occasionally bursts free of his straightlaced paternal façade (thus implying that Calvin's mother's occasional accusations that Calvin must have inherited his outlandish behavior from Dad's side of the family may, in fact, be correct).
This playful streak of his allows him to occasionally find moments of solace with Calvin, and it is implied that Calvin's Dad may have been like Calvin in his youth, such as in the strip in which Calvin's Dad shows a surprising understanding of Calvin's impatience, and has subsequently matured and developed a more pensive character. This lends a pleasant optimism to the strip, as it is possible that Calvin's obvious intelligence may someday be understood by society and put to good use, and he will become a well-rounded character like his dad. This, of course would mortify Calvin if he were to read it, as he himself, in his youthful jubilance, describes his traditionalist father as "the most boring Dad in the world."
Calvin's Dad may also have been a party animal in college. In one strip, Calvin is looking through his father's college yearbook and finds a picture of him standing next to a keg, wearing a “Party Naked” T-shirt. In another strip, when Calvin asked his dad what the "ol’ college try" meant, his father responded that it was "when you gather your friends, grab some cheap beer, order a pizza, and forget about tomorrow."
Calvin's father in multiple instances refers to his original idea of "No kids, just a dachshund." And "When you become a father, you get a book about it." There is also a time when he says to Calvin after asking where kids come from he says, "You go to Sears and buy a kit, follow the directions and make one." "I'M FROM SEARS?" replies Calvin. "No. You're from Kmart a blue light special. Almost as good, and a lot cheaper."
Watterson occasionally uses Calvin's Dad to comment on various aspects of adulthood. He seems to be frustrated with the constant rat race and struggle to get ahead, and seems more than a little ambivalent about America's consumer culture, once commenting that pitching all the various junk mail he received might make him a “terrorist” for not “buying distractions from a simple life.” He seems happiest when he is simply riding his bike or sitting in the backyard watching the sunset, and enjoying peace and quiet. Ironically, sometimes he needs to go to the office to get some peace and quiet away from Calvin.
The character is a satire of Watterson's own father,[1] who is also a patent attorney, and often told his family that unpleasant things "built character." The actual caricature bears a striking resemblance to Watterson himself, minus his facial hair (see image). Watterson has said that he identifies more with this character than with Calvin. Watterson has said in the tenth anniversary book that Calvin seems to be confused how his dad stays dad, and thinks that he is elected dad every four years, like the President of the United States. There have been several strips that show Calvin saying that his popularity is slipping, his charts have lowered, and in one strip, Calvin fantasizes what the papers will look like when his dad is defeated in a landslide victory. However, his dad doesn't really seem to care.
Calvin's dad implies (even though he loves Calvin lots) that in one strip, he might have found a bologna loaf in a hospital bassinet after an unnecessary acceptance of a Father's Day card at 5:00 in the morning. Plus after Calvin plays classical music on an LP late at night, Calvin's mom states that either he is playing classical music or she is still dreaming, Calvin's dad responds:
"First thing tomorrow morning, I'll call the orphanage"
After Calvin's mom fell ill, Calvin's dad explained that he was a great cook when he had an apartment after college. Calvin implies that Calvin's mom told him he ate frozen waffles and canned soup three meals a day. Calvin's dad tells him that he never met Calvin's mom then. Calvin's dad also said that he is unaware of having a baby. Calvin tells Hobbes that Calvin's mom would look like a hippopautamus with a gland problem. Calvin's dad has been blamed on by Calvin's mom that it was his chromosome that gave birth to Calvin. Calvin's dad (in one strip only) has a thought in his head saying "I just live here.."
Calvin's mother
Calvin's mother is a stay-at-home parent who is frequently exasperated by Calvin's antics. Prior to Calvin's birth, she worked a stressful job filled with aggravation, which Calvin's father claims is the reason she was better prepared to stay at home and raise Calvin. Whether he was jesting or not is debatable. On the rare occasions when she is not reacting to Calvin's misbehavior, she seems to enjoy quiet activities, such as gardening and reading The "Daily Disciplinarian." She is frequently the one forced to curb Calvin's destructive tendencies; in one Sunday strip, she allows Calvin to smoke a cigarette in order to teach him how unpleasant smoking can be. She also usually seems sympathetic towards her son's relationship with Hobbes, and a few times has found herself speaking to Hobbes as well (although she refers to one instance as "talking to a stuffed animal" and in another remarked "You can tell I'm upset when I start talking to YOU."). She even called out to Hobbes once the same way Calvin did when she was looking for him, perhaps implying that, like her husband, Calvin's mother also has her own moments of playful imagination, despite being a generally strait-laced adult.
Watterson has said he regrets the fact that the strip mostly shows her impatient side, but he also tries to show other aspects of her personality by what she is doing when Calvin comes in. She seems to enjoy gardening and reading, and also keeping a clean house, as she is occasionally found refinishing furniture or painting the walls. She also seems to have an active social life, writing letters and leaving phone messages for friends, even inviting friends over for tea on occasion. Needless to say, Calvin tends to interfere with all these things.
Although Calvin's behavior drives his mother crazy (Calvin once quipped "another day, another gray hair for Mom!"), she still loves him very much. When Calvin was lost on a trip to the zoo, she became sick with worry, and was thrilled when his dad brought him back. In one strip, she is shown chasing Calvin shortly before bedtime, tickling him whenever she catches him, but in the end, Calvin explains to his father, "Her plan backfired, Dad. Now I'm all wound-up, and Mom's the one who has to be put to bed." She has also stepped in when his father goes too far with his own private jokes, going so far as to say "I know somebody who's going to get a lot of coal in his stocking, buster." She frequently scolds her husband for his sarcasm in dealing with their son. Finally, she is sometimes able to calm Calvin down when he is in a bad mood, offering peanut-butter crackers, comic books and other treats to cheer him up. At one point, Calvin became ill and his mother tended to him from the start, beginning in the early morning when Calvin throws up. Though she is almost always shown criticizing Calvin's behavior, it is revealed that she may have been problematic when she was a child as well. In one strip, she tells Calvin, "Someday I hope you have a kid that puts you through what I've gone through," to which Calvin replies, "Yeah, Grandma says that's what she used to tell you".
She, like Calvin's father, may have been a party animal in her college days. In one strip Calvin looks through a college yearbook and pictures and asks his father who the “bimbo” in the picture is, to which he responds “that ‘BIMBO’ is your mother!” (she then yells "WHO'S a bimbo?" and Calvin replies gleefully that her hairstyle was quite funky.) This also implies that the two were either friends or just went to the same college and/or clubs.
Also portrayed in the comic strips, Calvin dislikes his mother's cooking. Once, she tricks him into believing that she was cooking monkey heads to convince him to eat his food (Calvin is immediately interested), but her plan backfires when her husband picks up the "greenish stuff" with his fork and complains about what she had cooked ("I thought these were stuffed peppers!" he said). In another strip, Calvin's mom is shown cooking an octopus with bad poisonous objects such as weed killer, paint, gasoline, and a shrunken head, to name a few; to which, after she says:
“Calvin, I spent over an hour fixing this! At least try it!”
Calvin replies "I saw what went in it! I'm not touching it!"
Which is not to say she is a bad cook, Calvin's imagination often helps reinforce his finicky tastes. Aside from the earlier example, Calvin's Dad has never shown dissatisfaction with his wife's cooking. In one strip, Calvin's mom is shown at Vons carefully selecting ingredients. She then starts cooking, looking in a recipe book in front of a stove upon which several pots & pans are simmering. When she finally presents the meal to Calvin, he declares "Ewww, What is this? It looks like compost !" The last panel shows a pouting Calvin sitting in the dark in front of his untouched plate, ironically intoning "Mom doesn't appreciate me." In one strip, Calvin's mom is shown digging dirt with a bulldozer for making dinner, then later on as she piles some up on Calvin's plate he exclaims "Ack! Not so much! Not so much! I hate this stuff!" to which his mom replies "Pipe down and eat!"
Another strip has Calvin and his mom enjoying hamburgers:
Calvin: "Is hamburger meat made out of people from Hamburg?" Mom (disgusted): "Of course not, it's ground beef!" Calvin: "I'm eating a cow?" Mom: "Yes!" Calvin: "I don't think I can finish this!"
She has used Calvin's love for hamburgers as an advantage in one instance; after Calvin takes a single lick of food and flails about on the floor pretending to die, she put him back in his chair and explains to him, lightly frustrated, "Stop it, Calvin. This is hamburger casserole. There's not a thing in there that you don't like." Calvin, awestruck that the meal is hamburger, takes a bite and explains in detail that it's not so bad and that he's suppressing the "gag reflex". His mother, understanding the underlying meaning, patiently replies, "Good. I'm glad this is such a hit."
Moving green glops are considered instances in some strips; after Calvin's mom served him oatmeal, Calvin then thrashes around the house chasing after the glop of oatmeal. After Calvin's mom is exasperated by the entire mess in the kitchen, she shouts to Calvin's dad "It's all your fault we didn't have a sweet little girl! Your stupid chromosome, not MINE!" The final panel shows a confused Dad going back to reading his book, a thought bubble above him reads "I just live here"
Although she loves him very much, Calvin's mother has sometimes made references in some strips that she wanted a daughter instead of a son; verbally, but mostly emotionally. She has even blamed her husband for giving her the chromosome that gave birth to Calvin(see above), in a angry fit of rage. Calvin himself has even theorized that she thinks of this; after she turned down Calvin's offer of helping around the house with unnecessary carpentry, he stated: "Mom wanted a girl. I just know it."
Calvin's dad (in one strip only) agrees with Calvin's idea to not eat a plate of food.
Dad: Good idea. It's a plate of toxic waste that'll turn you into a mutant if you eat it."
(Calvin devours plate)
Mom: There's got to be some better way to make him eat!"
Calvin: Ah. I can feel it working!"
Also, Calvin loves dessert more than supper, he once referred to himself as a 'dessertarian' after declaring "Vegetarian?? Yecchh! I'm not a vegetarian!" when Mom presents a vegetarian meal to him
Other relatives
Calvin has a maternal grandmother and grandfather. A grandfather who smokes is mentioned, but it is unclear whether he is maternal or paternal. None appear in the strip, and are rarely mentioned. Calvin's maternal grandmother is mentioned after Calvin misbehaved in the doctor's office, when his mother tells Calvin "Someday I hope you have a child who puts you through what I have gone through.", to which Calvin replies "Grandma says that is what she used to tell you." This implies that Calvin's mother could also have been unruly at times when she was a little girl; as well as the fact adults can sometimes forget they were children once and may have made life hard for their parents. Another reference was made to Calvin's maternal grandfather when Calvin is describing him to Hobbes, echoing Bill Waterson's complaint that comic strips are too small and now look like Xeroxed talking heads. When Hobbes tells Calvin that his grandfather takes comic strips seriously; Calvin says as a result, his mother is looking into nursing homes for him, implying that this grandfather is maternal.
Uncle Max Calvin's Uncle Max has appeared in a strip in 1989, visiting the family. Uncle Max is Calvin's father's "big brother." Like typical brothers, they often joked on each other. When Calvin implies that Max was in jail (as an idea of why he hasn't really met Max), his mother is outraged, while his father seems to agree with Calvin, saying with Max, that wasn't a bad guess. He seems to be a lot smarter and up to date than Mom and Dad, and is more in tune to Calvin's interests. He seems to have a good relationship with children and does not take Calvin's Jokes so literally (which is the main reason why Calvin and Hobbes like him.)
Max is not married and does not appear very wealthy either (since he does not give Calvin a present). He seems like he has a very attentive job which may explain why he left so early. He does not think Mom and Dad do enough to raise and control him, and imagines they tie him up all the time and released him just for his visiting. Watterson had said Uncle Max was intended to be an expansionist character and include him in further strips such as where the family would go to Max's home to pay him a visit. He never appeared again after the week he was featured in the strips, because Bill felt in the end that Max was not a great idea. A substantial reason for this was that it was strange for Max to be unable to refer to the parents with proper names, as Watterson never gave them any.[2] This may also explain why none of Calvin's relatives appear in the strip.
Susie Derkins
Susie Derkins, the only character with both a first and last name, is a classmate of Calvin who lives in his neighborhood. Named for the pet beagle of Watterson's wife's family,[1] she first appeared early in the strip as a new student in Calvin's class. In contrast to Calvin, she is polite and diligent in her studies, and her imagination usually seems mild-mannered and civilized, consisting of games such as playing "house" or having tea parties with her stuffed animals. Her parents have spoken in the strip several times but never appeared in the panels.
During the strip's first years, Susie was seen wearing a dress or skirt and was drawn with a large round elliptical head, much like Charlie Brown's. Her appearance slowly changed over the years as Watterson's art evolved.
Susie and Calvin's relationship is a constant source of tension; she is frequently the victim of Calvin's derision and plots, and is also often willing to retaliate when provoked. Most commonly, Susie will be the target of Calvin's water balloons or snowballs, and he often goes to great lengths to disgust or annoy Susie. Calvin founded his and Hobbes' secret club, G.R.O.S.S. (Get Rid Of Slimy GirlS) as a general anti-girl organization, but in practice the club is almost invariably dedicated to pestering Susie specifically. Susie is equally crafty, often turning Calvin's plans into ignominious defeats.
Watterson admits that Calvin and Susie have a bit of a nascent crush on each other, and that Susie is inspired by the type of women he himself finds attractive. This love/hate relationship is most obvious earlier in the strip's evolution, particularly a Valentine's Day strip in which Susie seems to appreciate a rather juvenile gift Calvin gives her, and he rejoices inwardly when she acknowledges his effort (albeit by throwing a snowball at him). Watterson, in retrospect, decided this was a bit heavy-handed, and resolved to simply let the two characters bounce off each other in future, to the point of practically removing any romantic subtext. Having said that, Hobbes has shown frequent appreciation for Susie's feminine wiles. As Hobbes is often considered to be the non-dominant side of Calvin's personality, it is possible that Calvin (or Watterson) simply chose to display Calvin's attraction to Susie by proxy instead of in person.
Often portrayed in some strips, she is repulsed by whatever Calvin packs in his lunch. In one instance, Calvin asks would she like to know what he has packed, Susie says she doesn't want to hear what he has so Calvin, who is lightly enraged explains that he has packed a peanut butter sandwich soon Susie is immediately relieved and then Calvin gleefully tells Susie "It's my dessert that's gross. Look, a thermos full of phlegm!"
She also likes sandwiches as much as Calvin does. Her one-time favorite lunch is a swiss cheese and ketchup sandwich while explaining that she doesn't want to hear what Calvin's lunch is, Calvin says he bought a cafeteria lunch which he looks down at and says "It appears to be cigar butts in a gallstone sauce" Susie, completely repulsed, replies "THAT'S BEANY WEENIES!" which is a combination of beans and weiners. Calvin, his tongue hanging out, says "Really? Oh, gross."
Mr. Bun
Mr. Bun is Susie's stuffed rabbit, which frequents her "tea parties" as a "guest."
Unlike Hobbes, Mr. Bun is not depicted as possessing an "alternate reality," and was once described by Hobbes as being 'comatose.' However, considering Hobbes' own dual nature, it may simply be that Calvin and Hobbes do not participate in whatever "reality" Susie constructs for Mr. Bun. It is certainly true that Susie does not perceive Hobbes the same way Calvin does: in one week-long series of strips, A large dog steals Hobbes and Calvin dashes around in a panic; Susie rescues the motionless stuffed animal and serves him tea alongside an equally motionless Mr. Bun. Hobbes only "comes to life" when Calvin finds him at the tea party. Interestingly, after Calvin and Hobbes leave, Susie finds that all the cookies are gone.
Calvin, Susie and school bully Moe are the only children to appear with any frequency in Calvin and Hobbes, implying that Mr. Bun may well be Susie's only friend. This is evidenced in one strip where Susie invites Calvin to tea. Calvin, true to form, loudly refuses. Susie tries to pretend that Calvin's rejection was not worth worrying over, offering to refill Mr. Bun's teacup while commenting on the rudeness of "Mr. Calvin." The final panel shows a dejected Susie, head in hands, with her final word on the situation: "Poop." Eventually, however, Calvin, supposedly at the advice of Hobbes, arrives at the party, to Susie's delight, defensively explaining "We don't attend parties; we just crash 'em!"
Miss Wormwood
Miss Wormwood is Calvin's world-weary teacher, named after the junior devil in C. S. Lewis' The Screwtape Letters.[1] She perpetually wears polka-dotted dresses, and is another character who serves as a foil to Calvin's mischief. Calvin, when in his Spaceman Spiff persona, sees Miss Wormwood as a slimy, often dictatorial alien.
Miss Wormwood is first shown as a short, squat character with a disproportionately small body, but evolves over time into a more anatomically correct figure.
Although there is a definite progression of time in the Calvin and Hobbes universe, mainly exhibited by the changing seasons, Calvin and Susie return to Miss Wormwood's first-grade class every fall.
Miss Wormwood is rarely sympathetic to the trouble Calvin has in school, and comes across as a rather strict, sour character. She is quick to send Calvin to the principal's office at the first sign of trouble. She is also a heavy smoker—"Rumor has it she's up to two packs a day, unfiltered," according to Calvin, who apparently takes joy in being the reason why—mixes different stress-related medications, drinks Maalox straight from the bottle, and is waiting for retirement (one strip has her chanting in her head, "Five years until retirement, five years until retirement, five years until retirement..."). Regarding the difficulties of reining in rambunctious students, she once commented that "it's not enough that we have to be disciplinarians. Now we need to be psychologists." After Calvin once declared that school was a big waste of time, she tried catching him while he yelled into the hallway, "Help! It's the Thought Police!"
Calvin often fails tests and usually writes ridiculous answers. In one strip, Miss Wormwood is shown handing a marked test to Calvin, angrily declaring "Calvin, your test was an absolute disgrace! It's obvious you haven't read any of the material!" She concludes "Our first president was NOT Chef Boy-Ar-Dee, and you ought to be ashamed to have turned in such prepostorous answers!" To which Calvin remarks "I just don't test well." In another strip, after stating that he couldn't reveal where Plymouth Rock was, lest it "compromise our agents in the field", Calvin cheerfully says to the audience, "I understand my tests are popular reading in the teacher's lounge." One incident where he believes that he understands addition is a bad one. Believing that the numbers were planets, he crashed them together (6+5) and of course, 6 being larger, survives. Usually, he asks Susie for answers, and while getting a lot of wrong answers, still does it anyway. Although while he was in a spaceman spiff mood, Susie asks him,"Whats the capital of Poland?" and he says, "Krakow Krakow!" Susie writes down the answer while Calvin says, "Two direct Hits!"
She is not just exasperated by Calvin failing tests, she often sends Calvin to the principal's office after quipping, commenting and asking questions. Calvin once referred to Ms. Wormwood as 'touchy' after asking a question if he should "strip himself down, smear himself in paste and set fire to an effigy he has made of Miss Wormwood.
Calvin has once stated "It's really gross how she drinks Maalox straight from the bottle" after protesting a "C" grade.
Moe
Moe is the prototypical bully character, "a six-year-old who shaves" who is always shoving Calvin against walls or onto the ground, demanding his lunch money and calling him "Twinky," or occasionally "Twinkie." Moe is the only regular character who speaks in an unusual font: his (frequently monosyllabic) dialogue is shown in crude, lower-case letters (probably the most intellectual word Moe has ever used is "spatula"). Watterson describes Moe as "every jerk I've ever known."[1]
While Rosalyn is frequently a match for Calvin's plans, and serves as, perhaps, his "match" on a more strategic and psychological front, Moe seems to be the only character capable of frustrating Calvin to the point of absolute resignation, and operates merely through brute force and physical coercion. Calvin's rare attempts to retaliate have mainly consisted of mocking Moe with words the bully can't understand:
- Moe: Gimme a quarter, Twinky.
- Calvin: Your simian countenance suggests a heritage unusually rich in species diversity.
- Moe: What?
- Calvin: Here you go. (flips a quarter to him; to audience) That was worth 25 cents.
or another incident
- Calvin: I want to ask you, Moe, are your mal-adjusted antisocial tendencies the product of your berserk pituatairy gland?
- Moe: What?
- Calvin: Isn't he great? Give him a hand!
or another incident where Moe asks him for a quarter, and while Calvin befuddles him, Calvin says,"His train of thought is still boarding at the station."
Another incident involves taking Hobbes to school to "scare" Moe.
His mother is once shown calling the school to notify them on Moe's bullying, although it only made Moe return 25 cents to Calvin because some person had squealed on him and "it'll be a dark day if [he] ever [found] out who!" Another time in the strip, Hobbes is brought to school and Calvin successfully psyches Moe out by daring him to touch Hobbes (Calvin thinks Hobbes is scaring him; Moe thinks that the dare is some sort of trap).
It could be noted that Moe is the only minor character in the strip who hurts Calvin without being provoked.
Moe has formed The "Let Calvin Live Through Recess Fund" in one strip, when he expects 25 cents to be donated.
Rosalyn
Rosalyn is a high school student and Calvin's official babysitter whenever Calvin's parents need a night out. She is the only babysitter able to tolerate Calvin's antics, which she uses to demand raises and advances from Calvin's desperate parents. She is also, according to Watterson, the only person Calvin truly fears—certainly she is his equal in cunning, and doesn't hesitate to play as dirty as he does. Originally created as a nameless, one-shot character with no plans to appear again, Watterson decided he wanted to retain her unique ability to intimidate Calvin, which, ultimately, led to many more appearances.
Rosalyn's idea of effective babysitting is a 6:30 bedtime for Calvin, and she has little patience for his attempts to rebel against her. Calvin will often freak out whenever he hears that Rosalyn is going to be babysitting him, in one instance screaming in protest non-stop for an entire strip. In the final Rosalyn story, however, the traditional war is averted by a game of Calvinball, in which Rosalyn proves to be a formidable player, and once again trumps Calvin with a clever move in the last panel. This display of extensive imagination showed her to be not entirely lost to the dull world of adulthood, and this trait allows her to sympathize with Calvin's needs and ultimately control him much better than his mother ever could, such as in the same storyline as above, in which she allows him to stay up half an hour past his bedtime, and plays Calvinball with him, two actions which Calvin's mom would be sure to avoid (ironically, on returning home, Calvin's parents refuse to believe that she was able to play a game with him, and assume she is making a joke). Occasionally, Calvin manages to gain the upper hand by tricking Rosalyn into devious situations, such as locking her out of the house.
In nearly all the "Rosalyn stories", Roz is shown demanding advance payment and raises in wage from Calvin's parents, supposedly because she needs the extra money to pay for college or for the hard work she puts into to control Calvin. (For exactly the same reason, she briefly appears as Calvin's swimming instructor.) They are reluctant to pay such exorbitant rates, but even more unwilling to have a dinner without "real pauses in the conversation." Therefore, they always gave Roz her raise.
In at least four stories, Rosalyn telephones her boyfriend, Charlie, to cancel prearranged meetings which she cannot fulfill. (Charlie remains as an unseen character.) Calvin sometimes breaks in and urges Charlie to stop courting Rosalyn, asserting that Rosalyn is either sadistic or insane, or both.
In some stories Calvin has gotten an upper hand, for example in one story Calvin took Rosalyn's science notes. One of the good examples of Rosalyn tricking Calvin was by not responding to his demands.
Calvin once locks Rosalyn out of the house so he and Hobbes can watch TV and eat cookies, later after Rosalyn finally enters the house (Calvin's parents followed her) Calvin's mom explains that it was also dangerous to lock Rosalyn out of the house and then she says that if there was a fire or if Calvin suffers an injury, Rosalyn wouldn't have been able to help him. She concludes "You go apologize to Rosalyn now." at bedtime Calvin tells Hobbes how bad he felt. Hobbes then declares "And having eaten a whole package of Oreos doesn't help." Calvin replies "You said it!"
Other characters
- Aliens: Calvin encounters many extraterrestrial life-forms in the course of the strip, usually during adventures as his alter-ego, Spaceman Spiff. Most of these aliens are non-humanoid, bizarre monsters, but they frequently turn out to be merely Calvin's imaginative perception of Susie, his parents and teachers. Initially, many of the aliens spoke in garbled, somewhat onomatopoetic language, with lines like "Ugga muk bluh Spiff." Later, some aliens' speech balloons contained geometric symbols with unclear phonetic values, or had an unusual computer-like font. In the strip's final year, Watterson drew two stories involving recurring alien characters, Galaxoid and Nebular, to whom Calvin sold the Earth for 50 alien leaves to use for his science project, which he failed because no one believed they were alien tree leaves. They returned in the final two weeks of strips, angry at Calvin because he failed to tell them about the changing seasons. After complaining that they were ripped off and threatening to destroy the Earth, Hobbes eventually gave them his and Calvin's Christmas stockings to keep warm.
- Doctor: Calvin occasionally visits his pediatrician, who appears to be a mild-mannered physician with a friendly demeanor. Calvin, however, frequently sees him as a vicious, sadistic interrogator, sometimes visualizing him as an alien or overreacting to his playful diagnoses. At one point he frustrates the good doctor so much that he warns Calvin to not force him to "recant the Hippocratic Oath".
- Principal Spittle: Calvin's school principal is Mr. Spittle. He usually makes his appearance when Calvin has gone too far in testing Miss Wormwood's limits. He is portrayed as the same stale, academic type of character as Miss Wormwood. Mr. Spittle rarely speaks in the strip; typically, he is seen in the last frame looking over his desk as Calvin tries to explain his latest mishap.
- Classmates: The reader sees various classmates of Calvin, but other than Susie and Moe they are almost entirely anonymous. Calvin seems only vaguely aware of them, but when he does pay attention to them they are always simply an audience, seeing Calvin as the misbehaving minority who makes things difficult for the conforming majority. Some one-time appearances are Tommy Chesnutt (who was supposedly eaten by Hobbes), Russy White, Filthy Rich, Blake, Ronald, Jessica, Flow, Claire, Clarance and Candace. There are thirty students in the class.
- Mr. Lockjaw: Mr. Lockjaw is the gym teacher and coach of the baseball team at Calvin's school. He is a squat, burly man with little patience for people like Calvin who lack a competitive spirit. When Calvin leaves the team, Lockjaw calls him a "quitter," and this emotional trauma leads to the reader's first encounter with Calvinball.
- Scouts: Early in the strip, Watterson shows Calvin participating with other children in Cub Scout activities in the woods. Watterson thought at the time that scouting might offer some potential for interesting adventures, but eventually abandoned the idea, considering it uncharacteristic of Calvin to join an organization, and viewing it as a distraction from Calvin's intentionally personal world (much as Calvin himself did).
- Mrs. Carroll: Mrs. Carroll is Calvin's next door neighbor who is referred to once in a strip. Calvin was apparently running naked through her yard when she calls Calvin's parents. It also seems that his Dad had removed Calvin from her birdbath earlier on in the strip.
- Fred: Fred is a teacher who is referred to once in a Calvin and Hobbes strip. He is in the Teacher's Lounge after Calvin runs out.
- Charlie: Also called Chuck or Chaz by Calvin. Charlie is Rosalyn's boyfriend. Rosalyn usually has to postpone a date to watch Calvin, so he usually calls the house and often Calvin picks up, trying to convince Charlie that Rosalyn is a "sadistic kid hater." He is also mentioned in one strip as Calvin's barber, although he is never shown in any strip.
- Pete: Pete is shown once in a strip where Calvin goes to the barber, namely, Pete himself. He is one of the few one-time-appearing minor characters with a name whom Watterson actually drew into the strip.
- Tommy Chestnut: A student at Calvin's school who is mentioned when Calvin's Mom asks if Calvin is bullied at school for bringing Hobbes. Calvin replies: "Hobbes ate him!" Apparently he hadn't bathed beforehand, as Hobbes remarked.
- Calvin's Grandfather: He is mentioned during a scene where Calvin smokes a cigarette. Before he does this, Calvin's Mom says: "Sure Calvin. I think your Grandfather left some here." It has also been revealed that Calvin's grandfather takes the newspaper comic strips pretty seriously.
- Calvin's Grandmother: She is mentioned after Calvin's second appointment at the Doctor's office. Mom: "Someday I hope you have a kid that puts you through what I've gone through." Calvin: "Yeah, Grandma says that's what she used to tell you." She is also mentioned when Calvin's mom is typing on a typewriter. Mom: "Who wrote 'Help I'm a bug' on my letter to Grandma?" In another strip, Calvin is writing a thank-you note to Grandma for sending him a box of crayons as a gift. Hobbes comments on the quickness of the note, and Calvin says "Yeah, I always write her a thank-you note right away...Ever since she sent me that empty box with the sarcastic note saying she was just checking to see if the postal service was still working."
- Amy: She is mentioned after Calvin's Mom had called eight people in hopes of getting a babysitter for Calvin. Mom: "You remember Amy? She just laughed when I called her."
- Susie's mom: She is shown from the waist down in a foiled attempt to pester Susie, and is also seen having a brief dialogue during Susie's first experience with Calvin's alter-ego, "Stupendous Man".
- Gym Teacher: An unnamed male gym instructor appears in an early "Spaceman Spiff" adventure. Some readers have speculated him to be one and the same as Mr. Lockjaw. However, he is taller and burlier, with a full head of white or blond hair, and with a smaller nose. However, given how other characters have evolved, he could be the same.
- Substitute Teachers: Occasionally, Calvin's class will have a substitute teacher. However, the only one named was a man named Mr. Kneecapper, about whom Calvin told Susie a story that he killed a student. Once, when Calvin learns that Miss Wormwood is sick and they have a substitute teacher, he asks, "Can I hire a substitute student?" On another occasion, Calvin says that Miss Wormwood is really from a hostile alien race planning to conquer earth. He says that she is putting subliminal messages in their textbooks to make it so that when their generation controls the earth, and the aliens invade, the human race will be helpless. He also states the real reason she is unavailable is because she is going to give her report to her superiors. He ends the strip by remarking "Fortunately, I'm too smart for them. I never do the assignments". In one set of strips, a woman is substituting; she looks through some notes Calvin's teacher left and inquires which child Calvin is. Later, Hobbes asks Calvin what he thought of her, Calvin replies he is unsure as "she went home after lunch." Calvin once tells the story like "Some kid was talking in class so Mr. Kneecapper took him out in the hall and there was strange lumps in the cafeteria meatloaf that afternoon" Susie is repulsed while Calvin says to the audience "Wait till she sees what's on today's lunch menu" which is about Mr. Kneecapper (see the top)
There are many other characters who are not addressed above, mainly because they have no specific names. For example, when Calvin's parents took him to the zoo, Calvin was lost as he followed another lady with the same skirt as his mother's.
- Candace: She is a student who is only shown in one strip after Calvin enters the classroom dressed as Stupendous Man. When she asks Susie does he live on her street, she replies "I hardly even know him, Candace!"
- Susie's dad': It's true that Susie's dad is an unseen character who Susie asks after Calvin tricks her into catching chicken pox. Susie,in realization that Calvin is tricking her, asks "Any chance of getting transferred, Dad?"