This is to be a complete bibliography of Gus Arriola. If there are any books missing or corrections to be made, please contact me at jimguida@sbcglobal.net. Thank you.
GORDO
Published 1950 (?) by Doubleday & Company, Inc., Garden City, New York. Dedicated “To My Sister Herminia” with a forward by Senor Dog. Hardback (though I believe a soft cover was also published) and priced at $2.50. As you can see from the dust jacket, the cover art in no way resembles the actual characters.
However, the inside art is true to its source material.
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A GORDO COLLECTION
These eight books were published by Nitty Gritty Productions in Concord, California in 1972. Each book is 6′ 1/4″ x 4′ 1/4″ and each page is a beautifully colored single panel. The stories appear to be reprints of Sunday strips. There is no price printed on the books. These books have appeared for sale on eBay.
The inside cover and back of each book is identical, save for the book title.
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GORDO’S CRITTERS
CelestialArts, Berkeley, California, 1989. 192 pages. Dedicated “To Carlin – our joy and inspiration” with a forward by Herb Caen. (Carlin is Gus Arriola’s son and Herb Caen is a much beloved columnist, lastly of the San Francisco Chronicle.) Priced at $17.95, this book is a collection of color Sunday strips. Fortunately, it is still readily (though not cheaply) available at Amazon.com, Half.com, and elsewhere.
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GORDO’S CAT
Oak Tree Publications, Inc., San Diego, California, 1981. 128 pages. Dedicated “To Mary Frances Sevier, for reasons beyond count” with a forward by Charles Schulz. Mary Frances is, of course, Gus’ wife and if I have to tell you who Charles Schulz is… Priced at $6.95, this book reprints many Sunday strips, but not in color. It is available at Amazon.com, Half.com and elsewhere.
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GORDO REDUX
An unpublished book. It is too bad that this book never saw print, as it is a terrific collection of strips, totaling 179 pages. You can view a complete copy of this book elsewhere on this website
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GORDO – A FAMILY MUSICAL IN TWO ACTS
Here is something you have never seen before – an original play, written by Gus Arriola and T.E. Bethancourt with Lyrics by Tom Bethancourt. You can read the entire play elsewhere on this website.
My photocopy is hand-dated 5/11/81. The story is about GORDO LOPEZ being pursued by ARTEMISA GONZALES, a very wealthy widow with a keen business acumen who “has only one blind spot: her love for GORDO” and includes the complete cast of GORDO characters. The lyrics are included in the play as an integral part of the story but, alas, no musical notes to go by. The handwritten note at the top of the cover read “For my dear friends, Gus & Mary Frances – It was a labor of love! Tomas”
See also GORDO COMIC BOOKS AND GORDO BOOKS NOT BY GUS ARRIOLA