CSotD: Sunday Classic: Fred Pegram
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A small on-line contretemps last week reminded me of this classic 1930s Fred Pegram cartoon from Punch. Pegram was an illustrator in the first third of the 20th century who did some cartooning but apparently paid most of his bills with book illustrations and advertising work. His style was not breakthrough but it was excellent, and that's not a bad thing at all.
It's also the perfect style for this classic squelch, which is much more devastating for having been rendered in such exquisite detail. The choice of speaker is also perfect – you can see that the punch line is being delivered, not in the same drawling sneer as the first line, but with a veneer of total innocence that belies the barb.
Just as revenge is a dish best served cold, sarcasm is best played with a subtle hand and a straight face. Classic British understatement is a sharp and deadly tool.
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