Miskatonic University Press

Archie hippies get better library facilities

archie libraries

In “Mustang Sally,” Archie and the gang are appalled when they hear that “due to the high need for student parking, the Riverdale High athletic field will have to be torn down to build a new parking lot.” This is a ludicrous premise, especially in the United States, where high school football is apparently very popular.

Sally, a student who I think only ever appears in this story, tells them about her parents:

Two panels from Mustang Sally.
Two panels from Mustang Sally.

“There was a big protest going down about student rights, and my parents helped organize a protest … which resulted in students getting a longer lunch hour and better library facilities!” This seems like a great example of how things happen in Archie comics: a 1960s student protest leads to more time for lunch and a better library.

The gang all dress up in hippie-type clothes and stage a big protest on the field. Sally says the new shopping center should be relocated and a student parking lot built there instead. The authorities are impressed and, presumably, the field is saved.

“Mustang Sally” was written by Hal Lifson, pencilled by Gene Colan, inked by Rudy Lapick and lettered by Bill Yoshida. It first appeared in Life with Archie 279 (July 1990), but I read it in World of Archie (Jumbo Comics) Double Digest 81 (October 2018). It is copyright Archie Comic Publications.