Ed Fischer – RIP

Comments ⁷

1. Paul Berge

   So sad to read this, although it sounds like he had a good life.

   I’ve always regretted that I blew a chance to meet him at the Rochester Post Bulletin. That was the year he started there ; I got word in the middle of college finals and graduation that he was interested in talking with me. But with school and parents and packing up and having to go home for my sister’s wedding (I was the organist), it never happened.

   RIP, Ed Fischer

2. John Rose

   I am sorry to read this. I always enjoyed his editorial cartoons.

3. Jeff Koterba

   Ed was my first mentor and took me under his wing when I was still in high school and while he was still the editorial cartoonist for the Omaha World-Herald.

   Not long after, I got my start drawing cartoons as part of his “Fischer Nut Company,” making editorial cartoons not for newspapers, but for a weekly TV news program about Omaha on a public media station, KYNE-TV based at University of Nebraska at Omaha.

   After he left the World-Herald in 1981, there would be an eight-year gap until I would eventually land the job, becoming the fifth cartoonist in the paper’s history. To say that it was an honor to fill his shoes—or perhaps I should say his ink bottles—is an understatement.

   Ed was kind and encouraging, laugh-out loud funny, with drawings that were warm and inviting, with an undercurrent of humanity.

   Thank you, Ed, for everything. I never would have launched my cartooning career if not for you.

4. jailerjoe

   Saddened to hear of another humble, tooner giant’s passing. While growing up in the 80’s, I was a fan of Ed’s work which appeared frequently in the local Blue Earth paper. His simple, creative technique was as much an influence as Schulz to me…copying both. Ed’s cartoons reflected a balanced ideology in an intellectually expressive and honest way. His unique soft-touch approach blending commentary and gag is a rarity which will be greatly missed. Rest in Peace, Ed and sincere condolences to the Fischer family.

5. Paul Fell

   When I started drawing editorial cartoons for a number of Nebraska newspapers, I already had known Ed. He was my sponsor for membership in the AAEC back in 1979. During my time as editorial cartoonist at the Lincoln Journal, Ed had already returned to his native Minnesota, but I kept track of his cartooning career. Ed was one of the really good guys in the business. Later, when we started the North Central chapter of the NCS, Ed was a regular member, and since we usually met yearly in Sioux Falls, SD, Ed was part of the group of Minnesota cartoonists who would always be at our weekend gatherings. The Ed left us, he took a lot of Midwest cartooning history with him.

6. Dwight Boyum

   I worked with Ed for 23 years at the Rochester Post Bulletin, often having the privilege of seeing his cartoons before he showed them to the editorial page editor.

   Ed’s gift for satirizing the news with his art and gentle wit was unique to his Minnesota upbringing. His departure leaves a void that I’m not sure will ever be filled.

   The final song at Ed’s funeral was a recording of Groucho Marx and Margaret Dumont singing “Hello, I Must Be Going.” Thanks, Ed, for one last laugh.

7. Dave Carpenter

   I was sadden to read about Ed’s passing. I first became familiar with Ed in 1975 after reading an article about him in Cartoonists Profiles magazine. A few years later I had the pleasure of meeting and getting to know Ed at our North Central Chapter cartoonists meetings.

   I enjoyed Ed’s sense of humor and loved his unique drawing style. I considered Ed one of the giants in our business and will certainly miss him, he was a great guy.

   Rest in peace, Ed.

   Dave Carpenter