I recently dropped into a musical-instrument shop in downtown Bangor, Maine while visiting family. On the wall of a storage space in back hung a collection of circa-1980 posters by Tom Batiuk featuring Harry Dinkle, the monomaniacal high school band director from the American comic strip Funky Winkerbean. These were clearly designed and sold for display in school music rooms, and they made me ache with unexpected nostalgia.

There were a couple others besides these on another wall, too. I recall one saying “The football game is the opening act for the band!”