Happy Fourth of July!

We’re looking to Scooby and Mystery Inc. for another holiday and what better ambassadors than the two chow hounds themselves to celebrate a day known for outdoor cooking and bright lights.

The gang just has to solve a mystery to earn their supper first.

However you observe, have a safe one.

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Both Scooby-Doo and Batman have a long history together and with Four Color Holidays.

It’s no secret I’m a huge fan of both. Combine ‘em and it’s like peanut butter and jelly. Like chocolate and peanut butter. Like bacon and peanut butter toast sandwiches.

Don’t judge.

As they have a history with me, they have a history with each other. A history that dates back to the early 1970s and The New Scooby-Doo Movies.

Hanna-Barbera paired the two in what may have been a demo outing seeing as the animation studio would debut The Super Friends less than a year later.

Their first outing, The Dynamic Scooby-Doo Affair, aired as the second episode of the series in 1972. They would team again the 15th episode, The Caped Crusader Caper.

Each episode featured Scooby, Mystery Inc., Batman and Robin. Their common foil, Joker and Penguin.

Batman: Brave the the Bold would pay homage to the team up nearly 40 years later with Bat-Mite Presents: Batman’s Strangest Cases! The episode aired April 1, 2011.

They would reunite in the direct-to-DVD Scooby-Doo! & Batman: The Brave and the Bold in 2018.

That was followed by What a Night for a Knight during the first season of Scooby-Doo and Guess Who? the following year.

And, that was just in animation.

Mystery Inc. would join the DCU(?) in November of 2013 with Scooby-Doo! Team-Up. The series ran 50 issues with Batman and Robin appearing in the first three.

The remainder of the run would feature various characters from DC and Warner Bros. including Ace the Bathound and Harley Quinn.

Most recently – and ongoing – are The Batman & Scooby-Doo Mysteries published in 12-issue cycles.

All this to celebrate National Take Your Dog to Work Day.

Much to Scooby’s chagrin, “What rog?” we’ve used him as our, ahem, spokesperson. But, it’s all for a good cause.

Each year, the Friday after Father’s Day, employees across the country are urged to celebrate with their canine and workplace friends. There is an ulterior motive however.

National Take Your Dog to Work Day is to be used as an inspiration to adopt these four-legged besties from shelters and human societies.

The day began in the United Kingdom in 1996 and was adopted in the United States by the Pet Sitters International in 1999.

What better way to commemorate and cement a relationship with a furry friend than bonding with some Scooby Snacks and reruns of the mutt of the hour.

Unless you’re me and have two incredibly handsome and fuzzy cats who spend more time on my lap than they do on their feet.

Even with the emergence of National Black Cat Day and Cuddly Kitten Day and any others we may have covered, there can never be enough days to honor our feline friends.

Case in point, Hug Your Cat Day.

Today is another chance to show your fuzzy companion how much they mean to us. These low-maintenance roommates can provide stress relief, improve cardiovascular health and sleep quality. Cats have been found to increase self-esteem and relationship skills.

That’s not including how adorable they are.

Currently dogs are the more prevalent pet, but cats are close behind, so it should come as no surprise “man’s best friend” may have some concerns and animosity toward these nocturnal neighbors.

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Even our pal Scooby has hard feelings for the fairer, four-legged Felis Catus. Enough so, he and the gang find their monthly mystery in Scooby-Doo (1997) 150 almost more than they can handle in The Black Katz.

This lucky clowder has inherited a fortune from their deceased matriarch allowing them to live out their nine lives in comfort. Yet, the fiction of a black cats bad luck prejudices the public’s opinion who want them gone.

Mystery Inc. soon discover it was a matter of theft and superstition that caused the town’s animosity toward the glaring.

So, take the time today to show your loved one how much they mean to you.

Scott Peterson pens a trifecta of terror tales for the 2008 Halloween issue of Scooby-Doo.

Horror host the Crypt-Reaper opens the book with The Terror of Transylvania. Mystery Inc. find themselves in a spooky castle seeking help for the ailing Mystery Machine. Their vampiric host isn’t what he appears to be and the gang is treated to an impromptu concert.

Mad Science has the gang caught between rioting villagers and a good doctor attempting to create artificial life. All is well that ends well when the two parties come to an understanding.

Finally, Fred, Daphne, Velma, Shaggy and Scooby are strapped to a table as they live the Pit and the Pendulum story with their version, The Perilous Pendulum. Scooby saves the day at the last minute.

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Spoiler:  the emcee Crypt-Reaper is revealed to be Shaggy filming a Halloween home movie.

Halloween has roots in the festival of Samhain, a Celtic ritual in ancient Britain and Ireland. It was believed the souls of the dead would return home during the Samhain festival. Bonfires were lit to scare away evil spirts. Masks and disguises were worn so as not to be recognized by ghosts.

When the Romans conquered the Celts in the first century, other festivals were added including Feralia commemorating the passing of the dead.

Pope Boniface IV moved All Saints’ Day from May 13 to Nov. 1 in an attempt to usurp what was perceived as a pagan holiday. The evening before became known as a holy, or hallowed, evening becoming Halloween.

It was not until the middle of the 19^th century Halloween took hold in America. By the following century, the festival become a major holiday.

The average American spends in excess of $100 on Halloween every year. As many as 148 million participate in one form or another. It is second only to Christmas.

St. Patrick’s Day is really hit or miss for us. We try each year to cover the major holidays while spotlighting the minor and sometimes just silly. Yet, the wee-folk sometime get overlooked.

Yeah, that was bad.

Anyway, the Emerald Isle will not go forgotten in 2022. Thanks to those meddlin’ kids and Scooby-Doo from Mystery Inc. in issue 130.

While the cover may be a field of shamrocks, the interior is barren as Four Color Holidays is most years when it comes to St. Paddy’s. Still, considering the drought of material for the holiday, we’ll take a misleading cover.

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Scooby-Doo issue 130 begins south of the border with Chupacabra-Cadabra. Keith Champagne and Scott Neely celebrate Shaggy’s birthday with an all-inclusive vacation at an undisclosed location somewhere below the great state of Texas.

El Roberto’s Grande Fiesta Del Magico is the first item on the itinerary. However, when the dreaded El Chupacabra kidnaps Francesca, the show’s assistant, the game is afoot.

One-by-one the major players disappear until only Scooby and Shaggy remain. By story’s end, they find they’re part of an elaborate plan to throw the birthday boy a surprise party.

Worse Than a Curse – parenthetically titled Woise Than a Coise – is a jab at the curse of the Bambino and sports gambling. Terrance Griep and Karen Matchette serve up a less-than-memorable tale of the boys of summer.

Velma’s Monsters of the World showcases the Rokuro-Kubi. This Kaiju doesn’t trample cities, but is more of a mischief maker.

Surreal Cereal Spook is the closest the book comes to St. Patrick’s Day.

Instead of a lyrical leprechaun spouting his breakfast fare is magically delicious, a Scottish spook tries to scare the Mystery gang. This one just happens to be a ghost made of the fake marshmallow crap they stuff in cereal boxes.

Sibling rivalry is abolished with a spray of milk and the tale closes the book with a laugh.

May this St. Patrick’s Day find you with green in your pocket and a little spring in your step.

It’s another holiday mystery for the Scooby and the gang in Nutcracker Not-So-Sweet.

Agnes DeMillions needs help to save the Geoffrey Ballet Company’s rendition of A Christmas Carol. The ghost of the Nutcracker is threatening one of the stars of the show, Rudolfo Kaspenov.

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Matters come to a head opening night when the Nutcracker ghost strikes in front of packed auditorium. Some trickery and trusty trap by Fred bring the villain to justice while Daphne dances in a dream come true.

The Nutcracker and the Mouse was written by E.T.A. Hoffmann in 1816. The Prussian author’s tale is a whimsical, and fictional, account off Marie Stahlbaum’s favorite toy, a nutcracker. It comes to life to defeat the evil mouse king then takes the girl to a magical kingdom.

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, Russian composer, and Marius Petipa and Lev Ivanov, choreographers, translated the story into a ballet based on Alexandre Dumas’s adaptation.

A Christmas Carol is a novella by Charles Dickens. It was originally published in 1843. Though released December 19, all copies were sold out by Christmas Eve. Maybe the greatest legacy of the story is the use of the term Merry Christmas. Having been vocalized as early as 1534, Dicken’s usage cemented it in Victorian vernacular. It has been continued ever since.

The second feature, Mascot Madness, take the gang back to school to foil a ghost dead set on keeping tradition alive.

Scooby-Doo and the gang have been a part of the four-color world since 1970, a year after they were unveiled on Saturday morning television. The original series would last 30 issues, published by Gold Key Comics.

March of Comics would feature the gang in four issues beginning in 1971 in issue 356. They would appear once a year until issue 391 in 1974.

Charlton Comics picked up the license from Gold Key in 1975 with an 11-issue run with Scooby-Doo…Where Are You! Marvel Comics would publish nine issues entitled Scooby-Doo from 1977 to 1979. With the animated Saturday morning feature Scooby’s Laff-A-Lympics, they would showcase the Great Dane in 13 issues of Laff-A-Lympics from 1978 to 1979.

Harvey Comics tackled the franchise next with a few issues reprinting stories originally run during the Charlton years. The exception would be Hanna-Barbera Presents All New Comics in 1993, a one-shot.

Archie Comics added Scooby to its stable of characters from 1995 to 1997.

DC is currently Scooby’s wrangler having taken possession of the license in 1997. The titular Scooby-Doo is currently the longest-running comic featuring the gang.

Cartoon Network Presents ran 24 issues with a Scooby and Scrappy-Doo story in each book.

Scooby-Doo! Team-Up lasted 50 issues before it was shut down, 2013 to 2019.

Scooby Apocalypse ran 36 issues, 2016 to 2019.

The most recent incarnation is The Batman & Scooby-Doo Mysteries debuting this year.

Scooby and the gang must solve a mystery before they can enjoy Thanksgiving dinner in Turkey Terror at 2000 Ft.

It’s another land-grab scheme as Mystery Inc. try to save Uncle Arthur’s farm. Spoiler alert: they do and its neighbor Henry who is wearing the fake feathers – this time.

He isn’t the only one as Shaggy must wear one of his own before the holiday meal is served.

Greed is the motive for a disgruntled technician in Shoot the Moon.

The gang head to the moon for a little relaxation only to stumble across another bad guy in a rubber mask. The faux werewolf is revealed to be Mr. McCroskey who has been pilfering items to sell as collectibles.

Sushi Me? Sushi You! is a precursor to Scooby-Doo! And the Samurai Sword, the 13^th installment in the direct-to-video animated features. It was released in 2009.

Scooby-Doo 114 was cover dated January 2007, though released in November 2006, beating the direct-to-video movie to the public.

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Merry Christmas and déjà vu from Jeff and me at Four Color Holiday Comics.

If your memory stretches back long enough, you may remember this cover and review from last Dec. 25. This issue, cover dated February, 2009, is the same book, issue 115, published in 2007. The exception being the cover is now red rather than white.

Inside are the same two stories and Yeti tutorial: “It’s a Wonderful Fright” and Santa’s Evil Elves.”

Hope the holiday was as entertaining and enjoyable as this issue. Keep coming back for more in 2020. There are still a lotta four-color holiday stories to be re-told.

Chanukah and Christmas are given equal billing with “Fright One Candle” and “It’s a Wonderful Fright.”

The “ghost” of Antiochus, emperor of the Syrian Greeks, attempts to spoil Chanukah by stealing the oil and candles from the synagogue. Velma’s sharp eyes notice a clue that leads to recovery of the missing items. The deception is not a hate crime, but a lesson to teach the children of the Jewish holiday.

Chanukah celebrates the Maccabees’ victory over the invading Syrian army and the miracle of the menorah burning for eight days.

“It’s a Wonderful Fright” was originally published in Scooby-Doo 115. Shaggy reprises George Bailey’s fictional life in the Phillip Van Doren Stern short story. Shaggy bumps his head and dreams away Mystery Inc. Every cliché comes to life during the dream sequence along with a series of poltergeists from the past.

No holiday story, just a colorful Christmas cover for this indicia-dated February 2008 issue.

Included are three stories. “Family Monster” is the first. Velma drags the gang to Germany for the reading of a will at Castle Von Dinkley. The kids help a Frankenstein monster clone keep his home. Script by Greg Thompson and pencils by Jaime Garcia Corral.

“Football Fiend” follows with the gang foiling plans to sabotage a new stadium. Robbie Nely and Dan Davis do the honors.

The “Freeloading Ghost” finds himself homeless with plans to avenge his eviction. Scooby-Doo shows some unaccustomed bravado when the specter over-steps his bounds. All courtesy of Darryl Taylor Kravitz and Karen Matchette.