Archie proposes to Veronica, not Betty, in comic book's 600th issue

BY Ethan Sacks
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER
Wednesday, August 19th 2009

Archie Andrews proposes to Veronica Lodge, not Betty Cooper, in the 600th issue of the long-running 'Archie' comic book.
The date that Archie fans have been dreading for weeks is here.

In Archie Comics No. 600, out Wednesday, the red-headed golden boy of comics is ditching his sweet gal pal Betty to marry her rival, the scheming Veronica.

"There are a huge number of Betty fans that are very upset that Archie chose Veronica over her," says Michael Uslan, who wrote the six-issue story line.

"But look at our day and age: This scenario has already happened in real life. Brad Pitt picked Angelina [Jolie] over Jennifer [Aniston]."

The wedding announcement so polarized fans that one Virginia comic store owner even sold his rare copy of Archie Comics No. 1 for $38,837 in protest.

"I'm a true Betty fan," David Luebke told the Richmond Times-Dispatch.

Not everyone is mourning: Many comic stores around the country are even celebrating Wednesday by offering customers slices of wedding cake.

"I am a bit surprised he didn't pick Betty," said Michael Eshom, founder of Archie Fan Forums. "But it's bringing a lot of attention to the comic, and I'm happy about that."
Since his debut in 1941, Archie and the gang at Riverdale High School have remained a refreshing, vanilla-flavored antidote to the superheroes that run roughshod over the rest of the medium.

Since the wedding story line is set five years in the future, there's plenty of wiggle room for Archie to get out of it, said Olive Panter, an employee at Manhattan's Forbidden Planet comic store.

"I don't think it will happen, because the entire Archie Universe would crumble [if he actually marries Veronica]," she said. "And I think Archie is too wholesome to get divorced."

Archie's back, and Veronica's got him

Tuesday, August 25, 2009
By CHARLES HACK
JOURNAL STAFF WRITER

Archie has gotten hitched.

That's the big development in "Archie," the 600th edition, written by Hollywood producer Michael Uslan, a Jersey City native raised in Bayonne.

Executive producer of the Batman movies, including the blockbuster "The Dark Knight," Uslan gets in a plug for his hometown Bayonne in the 600th edition, in stores now.

In one strip, Archie's buddies are talking about their plans after graduation, when one of the gang, Midge, announces she's moving to Bayonne to open up nail salon.

Uslan, 58, said he wanted to fulfill a boyhood dream when he approached publishers about writing the six-part series, starting with the landmark issue 600.

The publishers "freaked," he said, when he suggested Archie should get married, but came around to the idea. The plot twist has created a stir around the world.

Many fans are bummed Archie has tied the knot with Veronica, the exotic rich girl, instead of Betty, the girl next door.

"Nobody had any idea it would have this kind of worldwide impact," Uslan said.

And the marriage is just the first surprise. Fans should expect "twist and turns" in every edition and a big shock in the last book in the series, Uslan said.

Born in Jersey City, Uslan lived on Avenue B near 40th Street in Bayonne and attended pre-school at Jewish Community School on Kennedy Boulevard. He later graduated from Ocean Township High School.

Uslan splits his time between his New Jersey home - he declined to say exactly where he lives - and Los Angeles, when he makes movies. He really "never left" Bayonne, he said, adding he's a regular at Judicke's Bakery and buys hotdogs at Petridis on Broadway.

Growing up, he visited stores like Victor Comics to add to his comic book collection, which once numbered 55,000. He donated all but 10,000 to the rare books collection at Lilly Library at Indiana University.

"I could tell you every store (in Bayonne) that sells comics because that is where I went whenever I was in town," Uslan said.

His upcoming movie projects include the Warner Bros. movie "Shazam!" about comic book hero Captain Marvel, and the Sony Pictures remake of "The Shadow," to be directed by Sam Raimi.