THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, April 21, 1995 TAG: 9504210494
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY KERRY DOUGHERTY, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 83 lines
Farley is dead.
The shaggy comic-strip dog, loyal pet of the fictional Patterson family, officially expires in the funny pages today. He dies a hero's death after rescuing 4-year-old April from an icy river.
For faithful readers of ``For Better or For Worse,'' this is no laughing matter.
Farley's demise is part of a grim trend of graphic realism in the comic strips.
Horrified comics fans have seen a number of unpleasant things happen lately: Curtis' mother is recovering from a mugging and miscarriage, Aaron Hill was just mowed down by a drunken driver, and some marble hustlers even intruded into the pristine world of Charlie Brown.
United Press Syndicate, which distributes ``For Better or For Worse,'' has been swamped with calls all week from people begging creator Lynn Johnston to change her mind and let Farley live.
But Johnston, known for her poignant portrayals of real life, was determined to let the Pattersons deal with the loss of a pet.
``My strip is a real story about a real family - although they're fictional - in real time,'' she explained in a telephone interview from her home in Canada.
``My sister-in-law who is a veterinarian has been telling me for a long time that Farley had to die soon or be the oldest living Old English Sheepdog in the world . . . he's almost 15, and Sheepdogs only live to about 12.
``She had one request, though, that when Farley died, he go out in a blaze of glory - in a real cliffhanger,'' Johnston said, laughing. ``I think I gave him a great send-off.
``I have an intense relationship with these characters,'' Johnston said, quietly. ``I've been saying goodbye to Farley for a long time.''
Farley's death is a loss that is very real for many families.
``When I started reading this latest episode I got so upset I started crying,'' said Sharon Fenton of Virginia Beach. ``I wasn't sure Farley was going to die, but it was just so sad.''
Fenton said it made her doubly emotional because she has been dealing with the loss of her own dog, Ralph, for the past year and a half.
``I can't explain how bad I felt when Ralph died,'' she said of her golden retriever, who died in December 1993. ``He was such a good friend. A noble animal. My buddy.
``Losing him was exactly like losing a member of the family.''
Fenton adopted Ralph from the Norfolk SPCA in 1981. The next year she began dating Mike, whom she would eventually marry.
Ralph was such a big part of her life, that Sharon Fenton said if Ralph and Mike hadn't hit it off, there would have been no nuptials.
``It was clearly a case of love me, love my dog,'' she said, laughing.
When Ralph was about 12 he became paralyzed. On the advice of her veterinarian, Fenton had him put to sleep.
The family grieved for months.
``It was just horrible losing Ralph,'' said Mike Fenton. ``He was such a special dog. It's really taken us this long till we felt like getting another one.''
Last week the Fentons got a new dog. Another golden retriever puppy, Sandy.
Dr. Nancy Sutton, a licensed clinical psychologist who works with the Virginia Beach SPCA to counsel people mourning the loss of a pet, says the Fentons handled their loss in a healthy way.
They mourned their friend and waited until they were ready to get another dog.
``So often the hardest part is that the people feel such grief, but they're afraid to talk to anyone about it because they feel silly grieving for a pet,'' Sutton said.
``And worse, a lot of people don't understand how much people love their animals.
``They say things like `Just get another dog,' but that's not the solution,'' said Sutton. ``You can never replace your pet, but there comes a time when you're ready to love another one.''
For fans of Farley, there's always Edgar, the young Sheepdog who joined the family in December. ILLUSTRATION: Color photos
by CNB