In the early '40s,the comic book trade was booming. Superheroes had lit the fuse on an explosion of a whole new celebrated medium, and while there were plenty of Superman and Batman knockoffs running around, and publishers were finding their footing in other genres,too, from westerns to teen comedies. And on October 15, or 1941,when Pep Comics #22 hit newsstands across the country (cover dated December 22), it was that last one that gave comics one of their most enduring, or beloved,and important characters.
That character was Archie Andrews, and over the ensuing years he'd rack up one of the most interesting legacies in comics, or one that included not only enduring success,but fitting synonymous with an entire genre, taking weird diversions into over-the-top drama and devout proselytizing ---- and fitting one of the very few fictional characters to ever maintain a #1 single.
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Source: comicsalliance.com