I have to be honest. I don’t understand the fad over “Keep Calm and Carry On.” I see the phrase all over the place, and I know that it comes from an unused World War II British morale building poster (as I’ve had to write about it at work), and I know that it’s also widely parodied (for instance, I’ve seen a Doctor Who t-shirt that reproduces the poster but reads “Keep Calm and Don’t Blink”). Maybe it’s the stiff-upper-lip-Britishness of the poster’s message that has made it so popular in these times.
Maybe.
A package arrived in the mail today of a “Keep Calm” parody t-shirt. This one features Charlie Brown and the gang in place of the crown that graces the top of the message.
Available through the Snoopy Store, it was a cute design. And while I could pass it up, I said, “Oh, what the hey,” and placed an order a few weeks ago.
I’m probably more likely to wear this Charlie Brown t-shirt than the Etrigan the Demon t-shirt I have. Really, why did I buy that?
(Speaking of Charlie Brown and Etrigan the Demon, there is a piece of jam artwork that Charles Schulz and Jack Kirby did of Linus, Snoopy, and Etrigan the Demon. Really cool, that.)
I still want a red shirt with the zig-zag Charlie Brown stripe, though. Yes, we normally think of Charlie Brown as wearing a yellow shirt with the stripe, but in the comics he also wore a red stripe.
Keep calm, Charlie Brown, and carry on!