XPost: sci.lang, alt.usage.english
On Sun, 9 Feb 2025 9:27:34 +0000, David Entwistle wrote:
On Sat, 8 Feb 2025 19:39:30 +0000, HenHanna wrote:
I supose in the UK, when they talk about Zippy,
the don't think of ZIppy the Pinhead (at all)
Yes, there's almost constant chatter about Zippy, George and Bungle. ;o)
I'm quite old and may not be representative of a UK resident, but I'd
never heard of Zippy the Pinhead. I suspect that would be common.
Best wishes,
______________________________________ re: Zippy the Pinhead
The humor of Zippy the Pinhead, created by Bill Griffith in
the early 1970s, likely appealed to Lisp hackers of that era due to its surreal, non-sequitur style and philosophical undertones.
Zippy's character is known for his "enthusiasm for
philosophical non sequiturs" and "verbal free association," which aligns
well with the abstract thinking often associated with Lisp programming.
_____________[Zippy] comic strip is characterized by:
1. Random artifacts and pop culture references
2. Literary nonsense
3. Absence of straightforward gags or continuous narrative
4. Intricate artwork reminiscent of 1970s underground comix
These elements would have resonated with the counterculture and
intellectual circles of the 1970s, including Lisp hackers who were at
the forefront of artificial intelligence research and symbolic
computing.
Griffith compares creating the strip to jazz improvisation,
"weaving elements together" and "playing with language". This
creative process mirrors the flexible and expressive nature of Lisp programming, where code and data share the same structure.
While there's no direct evidence linking Zippy to Lisp hackers specifically, the strip's cult following and appeal to those who
appreciate abstract thinking and unconventional humor suggest it would
have found an audience among the computing avant-garde of the 1970s.
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