Wednesday's Random Notes

Monday 6.26.06

Evolution of Wednesday's cartoon

When I file my cartoons each day they shoot straight over to my buddy Bruce, who proofreads and cobbles the Enquirer's editorial page together. When I checked to make sure he'd received the image, he gave me exactly the comment I was hoping for.

"I thought you were going with the standard 'Will the last one to leave...' line, then I saw the word 'shoot'." Bruce gave me a little wince to show me the caption had landed just where I had hoped -- in the gut.

Cartoonists live for moments like that.

But I have to confess, I was closer to taking the cliche route than I'd like to admit. All morning I had fiddled with ways to depict the "turn out the lights" phrase without taking it to the next level.

Thursday 6.22.06

Wednesday 6.21.06

Does This Cartoon Need a Caption?

A wordless cartoon is a rare gem.

They're hard to pull off, particularly in editorial cartooning, because so often we must help the reader understand the news item to which we're referring and further the message beyond what the drawing is able to convey. On those occasions when the drawing alone can carry the full weight of the message, I delight in sitting back and watching the power of the image do its magic.

One such cartoon I was proud of recently showed the torch of the Statue of Liberty just visible over a barb-wired border wall. I'm satisfied that my point came across clearly on that one.

So as I inked this cartoon about Ben Roethlisberger's helmetless crash, I kept wondering if the point was coming across clearly enough without the addition of a thought bubble or a caption. ("Guess I won't be needing this helmet." Duh.) Leaving it without some hit-you-over-the-head caption can be perilous, but on the other hand I hate to dumb down a cartoon needlessly.

What do you think? Does it need a caption?

Did You Understand This Cartoon?

This Borgman Cartoon Went Too Far
This is the first time in my life that I have been offended enough to respond to one of Jim Borgman's cartoons printed on June 11. At a time in this world when we are being hailed as the "Great Satan," he has chosen to portray our people as such. What are you thinking, Jim? How do you think our sons and daughters would appreciate your take on their valor to remove a murdering thug from power? To be displayed as bloodthirsty demons? I understand your intent, although I feel you should've taken a step back before submittal.

-Lee Gilbertson
Madison Place
(Letter to the Editor, 6/14/06)

This cartoon was a great example of the Rohrschach test that cartoons can sometimes be. When I drew the cartoon for last Sunday's paper, it didn't occur to me that the devils might be interpreted by readers as symbols of the "Great Satan", as symbols of America, our military, or its people.

My intention was simply to show al-Zarqawi in hell with the devils gloating over the good news that they'd finally gotten their hands on him. (Frankly, I consider it a lame cartoon -- Luckovich did a great one, showing devils contemplating their daily work schedule, beheading al-Zarqawi over and over each day. Check it out on the creators.com website.)

I tried to look at my cartoon through this reader's eyes and found his/her case holds water. By using the president's "Mission Accomplished" line, the devils could easily be seen as stand-ins for America. In short, I left the scene open to misinterpretation -- never a good thing.

For the record, on this occasion, I was simply being literal. As Freud might have said, sometimes a devil is just a devil.

I'd love to hear your thoughts. How might I have done this one better?

Monday 6.12.06

Friday 6.9.06

Borgmanpalooza

Faithful bloggers, forgive my wandering attention these days. I hope you checked out the multitude of features on yesterday's www.enquirer.com website celebrating my 30th anniversary here at the paper. They constitute one humongous blog entry, in a way, and illustrate the fact that I work with some great talents. If you didn't see Glenn Hartong's video/podcast, check it out. A new frontier!

I'm spending way too much time answering emails and accepting over-generous accolades. Looking forward to resuming my hobbit-hole routines in the next days.

Thanks, everyone, for welcoming me into your morning each day for these three decades.

Borgmanpalooza

Faithful bloggers, forgive my wandering attention these days. I hope you checked out the multitude of features on yesterday's www.enquirer.com website celebrating my 30th anniversary here at the paper. They constitute one humongous blog entry, in a way, and illustrate the fact that I work with some great talents. If you didn't see Glenn Hartong's video/podcast, check it out. A new frontier!

I'm spending way too mush time answering emails and accepting over-generous accolades. Looking forward to resuming my hobbit-hole routines in the next days.

Thanks, everyone, for welcoming me into your morning each day for these three decades.

A Week Apart

I've been spending a lot of time trapped in graduation/awards/recognition day ceremonies this week, (with more ahead next week) and haven't been able to tend BorgBlog much lately. Doodling the backs of heads gives me something to do with my hands between clapping for the scholarship winners and the commencement speakers. I have sketchbooks filled with the backs of people's heads, dating all the way back to schoolbus rides on field trips in the sixth grade. It's a wonder I ever learned to draw faces.

Last weekend cartoonists gathered in Chicago for the National Cartoonists Society's annual Reuben Award weekend. I was awarded the Best Editorial Cartoonist division award -- truly a thrill because the juries are made up of cartoonists, not editors, and the awards tend to reflect a real appreciation for the nuances of the art and its practitioners. Ralph Steadman was the guest of honor, receiving the Milton Caniff Lifetime Achievement Award. He was every bit as gonzo as anyone could have hoped. Fellow Cincinnatian and buddy C.F.Payne won a division award in Magazine Illustration, too, so it was a good night for this little burg. I have to think Chris's name will rise to the list of Reuben nominees some year soon. His work makes me want to break my knuckles and become a zookeeper. (Zits was a finalist in the Comic Strip division -- that award went to 9 Chickweed Lane by Brooke McEldowney.)

The Enquirer has given me a short break from my daily work in order to particpate in the creation of a special section that will mark my 30th anniversary here at the Enquirer this coming Tuesday. It's shaping up as a very fun section with some old unearthed cartoons and accompanying stories, caricatures and interviews with the caricatured, a big Q&A and my redrawing of the winning cartoon idea submitted by readers in a Discover Your Inner Cartoonist contest.

As a special experiment, our very talented photographer Glenn Hartong videotaped me executing the drawing through a series of stop-action shots over my shoulder and has edited together a sort of short film and interview which you'll find on our enquirer.com web site next week. (Watching me draw is like watching a turtle sink in molasses. We're about to see how good Glenn really is!)

All in all, a very different week. Thanks for your patience as I caught my breath before launching into the next 30 years.