Veronica Lodge | |
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Archie Comics character | |
First appearance | Pep Comics #26 (April 1942) |
Created by | Bob Montana, John L. Goldwater |
Voiced by |
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Portrayed by | |
School | Riverdale High School |
In-universe information | |
Significant others |
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Relatives | Hiram Lodge (father) Hermione Lodge (mother) Leroy (cousin) Marcy (cousin) Harper (cousin) Alice (cousin) Harper (cousin) Zoey (aunt) Hermosa Lodge (half-sister) |
Home | Riverdale |
Veronica Cecilia Lodge is one of the main characters in the Archie Comics franchise, and is the keyboardist and one of the three vocalists of rock band The Archies.
She is from New York but currently resides in the town of Riverdale, with her parents Hiram Lodge and Hermione Lodge. She is portrayed by Camila Mendes in Riverdale and Suhana Khan in The Archies .
Veronica Lodge is the only child of Hiram Lodge, the richest man in Riverdale, and his wife Hermione Lodge. She is called both by her name "Veronica" and her nicknames "Ronnie" and "Ron". Bob Montana knew the real-life Lodge family, because he had once painted a mural for them. Montana combined that name with actress Veronica Lake to create the character of Veronica Lodge. Her character was added in Pep Comics 38, just months after Archie Andrews, Betty Cooper, and Jughead Jones debuted, and just a few months before Reggie Mantle debuted.
Veronica is a beautiful young woman with raven hair, favoring expensive, up-to-the-minute fashion. In some comics, Mr. Lodge claimed that he moved his family to Riverdale in order to avoid Veronica becoming spoiled, like many of the children he knew and grew up with. His plan did not succeed as well as he had hoped, as Veronica is often depicted on spending sprees, in which she maxes out her credit cards. In one story she buys out every shoe store in Riverdale to prevent any other girl from buying a pair of shoes that she herself wanted.[ volume & issue needed ] (Ironically, Veronica is often depicted going barefoot, both at home and away.) At times, Veronica's vain and conceited attitude infuriates her father to the point that he has to somehow "teach her a lesson" and Veronica is forced to get a job of some kind or loses access to Archie.
In the earliest Archie Comics, there were a few different 'Veronica origin' stories. In her debut story, in Pep #26, April 1942, Veronica was referred to as a 'sub-debutante', daughter of 'Money Bags' Lodge of Beacon Hill, who had just come to live in Riverdale. In Pep #31, September 1942, Veronica was revealed to have lived in Boston before coming to Riverdale. Her father Burton K. Lodge was introduced as a 'big shot Boston politician'.[ volume & issue needed ]
In Archie Comics #1 (Winter 1942), another version of Veronica's emigration to Riverdale is depicted. In this story, Veronica was referred to as 'the elusive sub-deb' and 'that girl from New York'. Archie had never met this 'society dame', but kept daydreaming about her, and wrote letters to her he never sent. Archie wrote to her asking her to a dance in Riverdale, and the letter got sent accidentally; he really wanted to ask Betty Cooper, and was only daydreaming. Even after he realized he had sent the letter, he did not think she would really come. Veronica accepted the invitation, thinking that a dance would be fun. At the time she apparently lived in New York with her mother, and she begged Mrs. Lodge to let her go to the Riverdale dance. Archie struggled trying to keep his dates with both girls, thus beginning their love triangle.
Veronica was ranked 87th in the Comics Buyer's Guide's "100 Sexiest Women in Comics" list created by Brent Frankenhoff. [1]
Veronica enjoys a very posh lifestyle, as her family are among the richest people in the world. She nevertheless chooses to hang out with her less affluent friends, including the boy she is in love with, Archie Andrews, whom she nicknames "Archiekins." Her level of interest in him varies, however. Mr. Lodge often has nightmares that Veronica and Archie will marry. In 2009, Archie Comics published the Archie Marries Veronica to explore this possible future, marrying Veronica to Archie in one universe and to Reggie in another.
Veronica's best friend (and sometimes arch-rival) is Betty Cooper, and the two enjoy countless activities and interests. However, they are also at constant competition for Archie's affections. Veronica is often jealous of Betty, and will go to any length to steal anything that is important or a triumph for Betty, even if she (Veronica) did not want it in the first place. If Betty has a date with a new boy, Veronica will let her have Archie for a brief time, so that she can steal the date. If Betty is praised for some achievement, Veronica will do anything to ruin it for her. In one story, she gave Betty a candy bar containing nuts (to which Betty is allergic), so that Veronica could steal her modeling job. Veronica is often seen scheming to get Archie from Betty whenever she spots the two dating. Occasionally, she is victorious. But usually, Betty manages to successfully take revenge on her. Also, Archie occasionally has stood up to Veronica and stuck with Betty.
Her other friends include Ethel Muggs, Midge Klump and Nancy Woods, and they all enjoy having slumber parties and shopping at the mall together. [ citation needed ]
Periodically, she can be cocky and snobbish, constantly looking down on those less fortunate than herself, or sees herself as the rules of common society don't apply to her simply because she is wealthy, which causes her friends to be upset with her. During those times, she derisively refers to the public at large as "the common horde." At other times, when she can be snobbish, her father will punish her with having her credit cards confiscated.[ citation needed ]
Living in a house full of servants, Veronica often thinks that they are only there to serve her, and she doesn't see them as people. She will often yell at her maids to bring her something and "to be quick about it." At one point, her mother forced her to do all her own chores and fetch her own snacks, throughout the entire summer.[ citation needed ]
Even though they're great friends in the TV series, her relationship with Jughead Jones is less friendly in the comics. They constantly argue and are critical of each other's lifestyles. She cannot stand his laid-back attitude and witticisms, and he considers her an uncaring snob and enjoys arousing her temper. Jughead enjoys flouting her. However, Jughead and Veronica usually manage to stand being around each other for Archie's sake.[ citation needed ]
Veronica, being the only child of her wealthy parents, is outrageously spoiled and indulged by her family. Her father, Mr. Lodge, loves her dearly, and even though he frequently loses his temper with her snobbishness, frivolity, spendthrift nature, and choice of boyfriends, he can never refuse when Veronica asks him for something. Mr. Lodge does not consider most of the local boys worthy of his only daughter.[ citation needed ]
Veronica's cousin, Leroy, in Elementary School, has a mean-spirited, juvenile delinquent-like personality. When Leroy visits, he antagonizes Archie even more than Reggie does. Veronica has a young female cousin named Marcy, aged 14, who enjoys science fiction and other things that Veronica finds "geeky." So Veronica considers her annoying. Most of the time, however, Marcy is helpful to Veronica, who discovers that her cousin is not so geeky after all.[ citation needed ]
Veronica also has an older (teenage) cousin Alice, who lives on the "West Coast", who is so attractive that Veronica doesn't trust Alice to be alone with Archie. [2]
Self-absorbed, insensitive, shallow, and easily succumbing to jealousy, the fashion-conscious Lodge stars the Archie spin-offs Betty and Veronica Magazine and Betty and Veronica Spectacular, as well as her own series, Veronica. Her foibles are commonly featured in stories. When upset, she has an extremely bad temper, which it is unwise to arouse. She is an impulsive shopper who cannot go long without buying clothes.[ citation needed ]
For example, she bought out every shoe store in Riverdale so she could have all the shoes which amounted to 200 pairs and so she could be totally exclusive and nobody else could have any shoes. This act of unbridled selfishness angers her father who grounds her indefinitely, orders her to return the shoes and cancels a party she wanted to throw, and she has a nightmare where she remade Riverdale in her own image, calling it Veronicaville. At first the idea of running the town her way, and basically being the queen was fun, but when Betty wore the same outfit she did, she naturally got upset and banished everyone out of town. When they leave for a new town to live in, and finally losing her father, when he leaves for greener pastures and she is left alone, she wakes up and finally wises up. She gives Betty the 200 pairs of shoes and throws the party she scheduled as a birthday party for her. (This was in a story called "The Me-ning of life").[ citation needed ]
She is often addicted to gossip, which tends to aggravate Betty. Though commonly a cheerleader, her athletic abilities vary from superior to nonexistent, and she lacks domestic talents and many other skills that Betty has mastered. In fact, her cooking skills are so notoriously poor that the other characters literally fear for their lives when she tries to prepare a meal. Several stories portray Veronica as an expert at billiards, the reason being that her family owns a pool table, and she has been playing since she was a child.[ citation needed ]
At various times, she will take a common situation (for example being named the Most Popular Student in the Riverdale High School Yearbook) and make it into a full-blown situation aimed at increasing her already inflated ego.[ citation needed ]
Her best school subject is economics, and it is implied that she will eventually take over her father's business. She also has worked as a fashion model. By 1968, Betty and Veronica join Archie's band, The Archies. Betty plays the tambourine, Veronica plays the organ, and both sing accompaniment. In the 2000s, Veronica appeared a few times as Powerteen – a comic book character created by Chuck Clayton. She also enjoys traveling to exotic places, which was the basis for Veronica's Passport .[ volume & issue needed ]
Besides being in The Archies, Veronica also appeared alongside indirect namesakes The Veronicas (Australian twins Lisa and Jess Origliasso) on the Veronica #167 cover and in the feature story, What's in a Name?, which includes the duo performing in Riverdale and explaining to Veronica how she was an influence on their name. (The issue had been enabled after Archie Comics and Warner Music Group had settled their legal battle over the duo's name by agreeing to a cross-promotion deal).
Elizabeth "Betty" Cooper is one of the main characters appearing in American comic books published by Archie Comics. She is the lead guitarist, percussionist and one of the three singers of The Archies. The character was created by Bob Montana and John L. Goldwater, and first appeared in Pep Comics #22, on the first page of the first Archie story, serving as a love interest to Archie Andrews.
Reginald "Reggie" Mantle is a fictional teenager in stories published by Archie Comics; he is introduced by writer-artist Bob Montana and John L. Goldwater in Jackpot Comics #5. He also appears in CW's Riverdale. He is the frenemy of Archie Andrews, as well as the bassist of The Archies. The live-action version of Reggie is portrayed by Ross Butler and Charles Melton in Riverdale and Vedang Raina in The Archies.
Archibald "Archie" Andrews, created in 1941 by publisher John L. Goldwater and artist Bob Montana in collaboration with writer Vic Bloom, is the main character in the Archie Comics franchise, including the long-running Archie Andrews radio series, a syndicated comic strip, The Archie Show, Archie's Weird Mysteries, and Riverdale. With the creation of Archie Andrews, publisher John Goldwater hoped to appeal to fans of the Andy Hardy films starring Mickey Rooney. Archie Andrews is the rhythm guitarist and one of the three singers of the fictional band The Archies. He is portrayed by KJ Apa on Riverdale and Agastya Nanda in The Archies. For his physical appearance, he has red hair, freckles on his cheeks, and light-colored skin. In Archie's Weird Mysteries, he appears to be of Scottish-American descent, as shown in the episode "The Day the Earth Moved", when his father wanted to keep with their family tradition and wear a kilt while ringing the bell of Riverdale.
Forsythe Pendleton "Jughead" Jones III is one of the fictional characters created by Bob Montana and John L. Goldwater in Archie Comics who first appeared in the first Archie story, from Pep Comics #22. He is the drummer of the Archies and is a son of Forsythe Pendleton Jones II; in one of the early Archie newspaper comic strips, he is identified as John Jugworth Jones III. He has a white sheepdog named Hot Dog and a younger sister, Forsythia "Jellybean" Jones.
Hiram P. Lodge is a fictional character in the Archie Comics series. He is a father to the series' protagonist, Veronica Lodge and a husband to her mother, Hermione Lodge.
Waldo Weatherbee is a fictional character in the Archie Comics universe. Mr. Weatherbee is the principal of Riverdale High School, where Archie Andrews is a student. To Riverdale students and (most) staff, he is commonly called Mr. Weatherbee, due to his authority position. Sometimes Archie and his friends playfully call him The Bee. Mr. Weatherbee is a heavyset, no-nonsense man who dresses in fairly old-fashioned clothes, including wearing pince-nez eyeglasses perched on the tip of a vermiform nose and a tiny wisp of a toupee that perpetually flies off whenever he is upset or startled. Principal Weatherbee is portrayed by Peter James Bryant in Riverdale.
The Archies are an American fictional rock band featured in media produced by, and related to, Archie Comics. They are best remembered for their appearance in the animated TV series The Archie Show. In the context of the series, the band was founded by guitarist/vocalist Archie Andrews, drummer Jughead Jones, bassist Reggie Mantle, percussionist/vocalist Betty Cooper and keyboardist/vocalist Veronica Lodge.
Ethel Muggs is a fictional character frequently featured in Archie Comics. She is a student of Riverdale High School, sometimes known to her schoolmates by the nickname Big Ethel, though this nickname has largely fallen out of use since the 1980s.
Cheryl Marjorie Blossom is a fictional character of the Archie Comics universe. She is a wealthy and powerful teenage girl, the privileged daughter of a businessman. She is portrayed by Madelaine Petsch in Riverdale and Diya Gupta in The Archies.
Midge Klump is a fictional character appearing in Archie Comics. She frequently appears as the girlfriend of Moose Mason and the unrequited crush of Reggie Mantle. The live-action version of Midge was portrayed by Emilija Baranac in the television take on Archie Comics produced by The CW, Riverdale.
"Love Showdown" is a four-part comic book story arc, first published in 1994, featuring the characters from Archie Comics. Publicized as a possible resolution to the decades-long love triangle between Archie Andrews and his longtime sweethearts Betty Cooper and Veronica Lodge, Love Showdown received more publicity than any other event in Archie Comics history. The story, written by Bill Golliher and Dan Parent, was originally published in Archie #429, Betty #19, Betty and Veronica #82, and Veronica #39.
Archie's Weird Mysteries is an animated television series based on the characters by Archie Comics. The series premise revolves around a Riverdale High physics lab gone awry, making the town of Riverdale a "magnet" for B movie-style monsters. All the main characters solve strange mysteries in a format similar to both Scooby-Doo and The X-Files.
Little Archie is a comic book published by Archie Comics from 1956 to 1983, lasting 180 issues. Little Archie #1 is considered to be "scarce" by the Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide. Among the artists and writers who drew the series were Bob Bolling and Dexter Taylor
This is a list of various alternate universes featuring characters from Archie Comics. Most Archie stories take place within a setting that is gradually updated over the years, and events in one stories are not commonly referenced in others, but those stories remain largely in continuity with each other. However, there have been several series of stories that take place outside of this continuity, featuring alternate versions of the characters in different settings.
Life with Archie is a comic book published by Archie comics from 1958 to 1991. It featured Archie Andrews in adventure stories that were more dramatic than the standard Archie tales. In 2010, it was revived as a magazine-sized comic devoted to stories that grew out of Archie Marries Veronica/Archie Marries Betty. Archie's character was killed in the second to last issue, Life with Archie #36.
The following is a list of reference to Archie Comics in popular culture.
The following is a list of members of the families of Archie's Gang appearing in Archie Comics. Primarily featured are the parents of Archie Andrews, Betty Cooper, Veronica Lodge and Jughead Jones.
Jughead: The Hunger is an ongoing comic book series published by Archie Horror and Archie's Madhouse, imprints of Archie Comics, beginning in 2017. The story, which takes place outside of the main Archie Comics continuity, focuses on Jughead Jones and his family's dark legacy to explain the sinister origin of his hunger. The one-shot "pilot" was created by writer Frank Tieri and artist Michael Walsh.