Cartoonists in the News

Cartoonist Pierre “Peb” Bellocq Honors 

The New York Racing Association, Inc. (NYRA) and the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame will highlight the career and accomplishments of the renowned cartoonist Pierre “Peb” Bellocq during a ceremony at Belmont Park on Saturday, July 9 as part of the Stars and Stripes Racing Festival.

In 2020, Bellocq was selected to be a member of the National Museum of Racing’s Joe Hirsch Media Roll of Honor. Due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and 2021, NYRA and the Racing Museum have yet to hold a public event to commemorate this honor.

NYRA and the National Museum of Racing will honor Peb’s contributions in a variety of ways including a race named in his honor followed by a winner’s circle ceremony featuring Bellocq alongside family and friends.

The New York Racing Association shares details of the celebration.

 

Seth Appointed a Chevalier of the Order of Arts and Letters

Upon discovering he was to be appointed a Chevalier of the Order of Arts and Letters by the French minister of culture, Canadian cartoonist Seth reacted: “Why me, of all people?”


George Sprott (1894 - 1975) © Seth

Yes, it’s real and highly prestigious. But, even if “chevalier” can translate as “knight,” the single-named cartoonist — whose name is Gregory Gallant when more prosaic occasions demand — won’t be styling himself Sir Seth anytime soon. He is delighted with the whole affair, which accords neatly with other aspects of his life and interests; he enjoyed the Queen’s jubilee celebrations, for example, for the ceremony and tradition and, of course, the imagery.

The Toronto Star is with the newly knighted cartoonist.

 

Kid Cartoonist Competition

Primary school children across the city were challenged to come up with an illustrated story with a health and safety message.

As well as seeing his creation printed in the Tele, Kenneth won £1,000 from MVV Environment for his school, a comic subscription and a goodie bag of other prizes.

 

Evening Telegraph editor Dave Lord said: “When this contest was launched we knew there would be some really high quality entries.

“Any time local children are asked to show us how creative they can be they rise to the challenge, but I was absolutely blown away by the standard of the work being produced.

Entries were judged by a panel including representatives from DC Thomson, Dundee City Council and Developing the Young Workforce.

The Dundee Courier and Evening Telegraph reports.

 

Late Night Comedy Writer … And New Yorker Cartoonist

Years ago, Emmy-nominated writer, comic, cartoonist and self-described “hyphen-hunting-multi-hyphenate” Asher Perlman knew The New Yorker magazine as a respected source for in-depth stories, fiction and humor … Typically drawn in black and white with a brief caption, cartoons are one of The New Yorker’s most beloved facets.


© Condé Nast

Perlman, whose “day job” is as a staff writer on The Late Show With Stephen Colbert, explained that many of his early submissions felt predictable, which is likely why they were turned down. But he kept drawing and writing and used his skills as a comic and writer to improve.

“The best piece of advice was draw the cartoon you want in The New Yorker, not what you think The New Yorker wants you to draw,” Perlman said during an interview on CNET’s I’m So Obsessed podcast. “And that feels like good advice for any kind of creative pursuit.”

CNET profiles cartoonist Asher Perlman.

 

The North Atlantic Cod Moratorium of the 1990s

For most of the 1990s, the cod moratorium was the topic of the day, and that included the Telegram’s opinion pages.

During that period, cartoonist Kevin Tobin created hundreds of political cartoons – many of which are still poignant today. We hope they will offer you a chuckle or offer a memory of the times.


© St. John's Telegram/Kevin Tobin

Here is a selection of some of the cartoons that ran between 1992 and 1997 on the pages of the Telegram.

The St. John’s Telegram offers up some Kevin Tobin cartoons.

 

Woke is Cancelled


© Keith Knight

Keith Knight reacts.

 

The History of the “Bechdel-Wallace Test”

By now, you’ve probably heard of the “Bechdel Test,” which has now been renamed to the Bechdel-Wallace Test. Whether you’ve read one of our articles about whether or not a piece of media passes it, or you had to look it up after it got referenced in Rick and Morty, Alison Bechdel’s accidental creation is now seemingly everywhere.


© Alison Bechdel

But who is Bechdel, and how did this test come to be? There’s quite a history behind her, which, as a longtime fan, I’m excited to share with all of you. Here’s everything you need to know about the cartoonist legend Alison Bechdel, and the origins of her eponymous test.

With a Fun Home Broadway musical and Fire Island/Bechdel Test in the news
The Mary Sue thought now is a fine time to look back on The Bechdel-Wallace Test.

 

Guest Cartoonist is a New Yorker Cartoonist

The weekly cartoon in the Harvard Press is probably for many readers one of the paper’s highlights … Cartoonist Hakan Sahin has become an institution. So it was a surprise a few weeks ago when a distinctly different kind of cartoon stood in for his. Suzy Becker has filled in for the month while Sahin has been abroad, and this week marks her final, for now, Press appearance. I heard that Becker’s work has appeared in The New Yorker, and I admit it was partly this prestigious distinction that prompted me to find out more about her.


© Suzy Becker

Less than a minute on “The World of Suzy” had me laughing. And I quickly learned how much more there is to admire about Becker than her New Yorker connection. But Becker doesn’t start with a list of accomplishments—like writing an international bestseller, “All I Need to Know I Learned From My Cat,” at the age of 28 or helping to found one of the first charter schools in Massachusetts, Parker Charter Essential School in Devens, where she taught arts and humanities before leaving to do full-time writing and illustrating. Instead, she starts with a list of the three things most important to her: friends and family; making people laugh; making a difference.

Harvard Press profiles cartoonist Suzy Becker.

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