A caricature of Modern-day existence in the United States, as told through the loose interpretation of Viking-age Scandinavian living, "Hagar the Horrible" first appeared in Sunday newspapers on February 4, 1973, and in daily newspapers on February 5, 1973. The Dik Browne-created comic strip became an immediate popular success.

Dik Browne's sons pet named him Hagar the Terrible. For the purposes of alliteration, Browne adapted the name to Hagar the Horrible. When Dik Browne perished in 1988, his sons changed the strip's name to "Dik Browne's Hagar the Horrible" in tribute to their father's legacy.

Bristly, overweight and scruffy, Hagar the Horrible possesses a red beard. He sports a big round nose, a flea-infested bearskin, and a horned helmet. Hagar spends much of his time raiding England. On occasion, he will invade France.

According to the animator Terrence J. Sacks, these contrary qualities endeared Hagar to strip readers. These same attributes made Hagar seem like a caveman, or an Opera-Viking. Henpecked, where his wife Helga was concerned, Hagar also possessed an occasionally exposed "soft underbelly".

The comic strip "Hagar the Horrible" is set in the Middle Ages. This was a period of population decline, counter-urbanism, invasions, the collapse of centralized authorities, and mass migrations. Hagar resides in an unnamed coastal Norwegian village. His lineage in Norway was revealed in the July 18, 1984 strip when Hamlet, his son, asked him if he could tell people they were Norweigian?

Hagar's prompt response was a bodacious, "It might sound like bragging."

The layout for "Hagar the Horrible" follows the standard gag-a-day daily format. On Sundays, the strip contains extended colored sequences. Known as anachronism, the chronological inconsistency in arrangement, and the juxtaposition of people, objects, events, and language terms of different time periods, are infrequently sprinkled in "Hagar the Horrible," but are not deliberate mainstays of the strip.

The majority of "Hagar the Horrible's" humor focuses on his interactions with his longship crew, particularly Fastitous Eduardo, as Lucky Eddie was originally named. These events occur during looting raids, in castle sackings, or on voyages. Other bits of humor center around Hagar's collaborations with other Vikings in the local tavern, or his family who are not stereotypical Vikings.

Balbar the Barbarian was the original name of Hagar. This nomenclature was suggested by Dik Browne's co-creator of "Hi And Lois," Mort Walker of "Beetle Bailey" fame.

In 1989, Hanna-Barbera created a 30-minute Special called Hagar the Horrible: Hagar Knows Best.

Hager appeared in the 2014 "Wizard of Id" comic strip when the two characters encountered each other at sea.

Hagar made a cameo appearance at "Blondie's" 75th birthday party in 2005.

Hagar has an overbearing, nagging and jealous wife named Helga. He has an intelligent and sensitive son named Hamlet, and a domestically-challenged daughter named Honi. Helga's pet duck Kvack, who sounds German, a clever and loyal dog named Snert, and other such characters recur in the "Hagar the Horrible" comic strip.

Reportedly the real-life inspiration for the intellectual Private Plato in the "Beetle Bailey" comic strip, Dik Browne based his "Hagar the Horrible" character on his family, including his own red beard he transposed onto Hagar.

One of Hagar's largest personal problems is he only bathes once a year, whether he needs it or not, on July 14th. National rejoicing and celebrations occur when Hagar bathes.

In the 1970s, "Hagar the Horrible" had its own brand of sponsored soda called Sunday Funnies Cola. "Hagar the Horrible" comic strips were printed on the sides of each can.

In England, during the 1980s, Hagar was used to advertise Skol Lager beer brewed in Alloa, Scotland. Hagar featured on billboards and popular television commercials for the lager.

From 1989 to 1991 Mug Root Beer used Hagar to market their soft drink. Uniquely, those television ads used colored versions of the Skol Lager ads redubbed to refer to root beer instead of beer.

In the 1990s, Hagar was used in print ads by the IBM RISC system 16000 desktop workstation.

Broadcasted on CBS TV on May 15, 1980, the Fantastic Funnies became Hagar's first animated television appearance.

Hagar appeared on the May 8, 1983 NBC TV's Mothers Day Sunday Funnies Television Special.

The 1989 animated television Special entitled Hagar the Horrible: Hagar Knows Best, that CBS TV aired, used the first plotline of the "Hagar the Horrible" comic strip of 1973. This was when the comic originally began.

There are currently 67 mass-market paperbacks printed featuring "Hagar the Horrible."

Florida's Universal Studios theme park features a "Hagar the Horrible" attraction at its Islands of Adventure location. The attraction can be observed on top of Toon Extra in Toon Lagoon.

Next Time: Dennis the Menace's Hank Ketchum