parents consider Barry to be the more trustworthy of the two, while Curtis usually sees him as a brat. Their relationship is portrayed as friendly sibling rivalry. He also performs better in school, which makes Curtis jealous. Greg Wilkins - Curtis's father. Works at the DMV and hates his job. He and Curtis are regularly at odds over their tastes in music (Curtis likes rap and hip-hop, and Greg can't stand it, preferring Motown), among other things (see below). Diane Wilkins - Curtis's mother. A housewife, she tends to get irritated by Curtis's antics, but is always supportive of him when he has a problem. Originally sporting an afro, Diane has received two different hairstyle makeovers over the years. Diane and Greg met when they were featured dancers on Soul Train. Mrs. Nelson - A middle-aged, overweight teacher. Since Curtis is the class joker, she doesn't get along very well with him. He does however do well when he makes an effort and when he thanks her for giving him a good grade, she tells him he earned it. She also tells his mother good things about him at the parent-teacher conferences. In 2020, Mrs. Nelson tested positive for COVID-19 but recovered. Michelle Grant - A girl whom Curtis likes, even though she is two years older. Her father is rich. Considered self-centered (and egotistical) by most of the other characters, she only likes Curtis as a friend and discourages his attempts to date her (though she did finally agree to do so in a June–July 2007 series). She is an excellent singer and hopes to become a famous star, currently starring in energy drink commercials. In the October 10, 2007 strip, it is revealed that Michelle has a mother who has been admitted to rehab for treatment due to her problems with drug addiction. Chutney Devoe - A girl who likes Curtis. Curtis only sees her as a friend, while he chases after Michelle. He does sometimes appear jealous of her other male friends, though. Gunk - Curtis's cross-eyed Caucasian best friend. A native of the fictional Flyspeck Island, Gunk (an initialism for Gladimus Umfred Nostradamus Klaustauvicke) often gives some bizarre item to Curtis, with disastrous results (most often a chameleon). One of his quirks is his refusal to fight anybody, but he also is cat-like in his moves to avoid his nemesis's punches, because as he says afterwards,