Action Figure!: The Adventures of Doonesbury's Uncle Duke

Hilarious. Uncle Duke based on Hunter S Thompson, bumbles through life in a hallucinary haze serving his opportunistic self-interests first, usually egged on by the corrupt players who run the USA machine. Uncle Duke sees locations as diverse as China, Haiti, Panama, Kuwait, Hollywood, Iran,Washington, New York. And a job description that includes US Ambassador to China, Governor of American Samoa, football coach, tour guide, bar owner, movie producer, CEO of a highly dodgy medical schoo based in the Bahamas, Ship's captain for Donald Trump, zombie.....amongst others. A good example as an oilman and Uncle Duke are having a conversation, Oilman: "What's your going rate for committing an unspeakably depraved but highly patriotic act?" Duke: "$100,000 + 10%" Oilman: "I respect you too much to haggle." Duke: " But I don't work with Albanians and children and pets are extra."

I am in absolute disbelief that no review has ever been given for this masterpiece. I read this book once a week in college. My friends and I could quote it as well as any cult movie of the nineties. "Fetch my dart gun, boy" and other phrases in this book became second nature to us. I cannot possibly recommend any book more strongly than Action Figure and I am in absolute disbelief that is has never been reviewed before. Buy this book...now...and that's my final offer.

Doonesbury is a good comic strip though I am not a fan of Trudeau's political views. That aside, I find Uncle Duke to be the funniest character in the strip. This book is broken down by time periods starting in the 70's when Doonesbury first started. Then the book strictly follows the various Uncle Duke storylines (in time order) all the way through the Persian Gulf War. The book also came with an Uncle Duke action figure which stands proudly on a display shelf in my house.