TDC @ 20: Meeting Your Heroes
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In the last 20 years, I’ve been fortunate to meet and talk to the giants in the field. Here are four of my more memorable ones.
Richard Thompson
In 2007, I was in Washington D.C. for a business trip. Prior to the trip, I had reached out to Mike Rhode and he had offered to round up a some D.C. based cartoonists for a dinner. We arranged to meet at the Off the Record bar, a famous D.C. watering hole with an impressive collection of political caricatures hanging on their walls. That night I met Nick Galifianakis, Richard Thompson, and Matt Wuerker for the first time.
But it was there that I was introduced to Richard’s work. I quickly became a fan and immediately bought his Richards Poor Almanac compilation (a book that should be on every cartoonist’s shelf). I would like to think Richard and I were tight friends, but he was friendly and welcoming to everyone. He often participated in the comments on this site, and when we’d see each other at conventions we caught up on our lives. I was crushed when I learned he had been diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease and shocked at how quickly it took him. He would have been 68 years old today. Happy birthday, Richard. We miss you.
That Seinfeld-esque Moment
I won’t mention this cartoonist’s name for reasons that will be soon be obvious. I was attending a convention and during a panel session I saw a cartoonist I had always wanted to meet. I decided that after the panel was over, I would introduce myself. As soon as the session ended, the cartoonist quickly left the room. I followed him out into the hallway expecting to strike up a conversation there. I entered the hallway just in time to see him duck into the men’s room. Now, hanging outside the bathroom for him to emerge seemed like a bad first impression, so I decided to use the facilities myself. Whilst taking care of business, I noted the cartoonist leave the bathroom without washing his hands. Needless to say, I immediately suspended my intent to meet him which likely would have involved shaking his hand. We did strike up a conversation later in the convention. I don’t recall if we shook hands.
A quick related aside to my Seinfeldesque story above. A similar scene was depicted on “Seinfeld” (S5 E15) where Jerry is in his girlfriend’s family restaurant restroom and the father comes out of a stall, boasts how he’s going to prepare a special dish just for Jerry and his daughter, then leaves without washing his hands. If you are not familiar with the episode, you can watch the clip on Youtube. At some point I was talking with Tom Gammill, cartoonist and writer for SNL, “Seinfeld”, and “The Simpsons”, and he told me that Seinfeld episode was based on a true story that happened to him. He pitched the story to Jerry, who loved it, and it got into the show.
Matt Groening
While attending the Festival of Cartoon Art at Ohio State University in 2010, I was sitting in the back of the theater during one of the lectures when a late comer took a seat next to me. It was none other than Matt Groening, creator of “Life in Hell” and “The Simpsons”. Luckily, I was carrying my sketchbook where I collected sketches from artists I looked up to. As the lecture ended and announcements were being made, I leaned over and made my ask. He said, “On one condition. When this is done, I’m going to be surrounded by people who will want a sketch. Your job is to tell them ‘no’.” I easily agreed and Matt drew out Bart Simpson (below).
Sure enough, when the house lights came up, Matt was surrounded by individuals with open sketchbooks asking for his autograph or sketch. I looked at Matt and he gave me a “do your job” look, so I turned back to the crowd and put on my best bouncer impression and announced “Mr. Groening will not be signing or doing any more sketches.” The crowd politely broke up and I turned to Matt who just nodded approvingly and went on his way.
Dick Locher
If there was any cartoonist that could be the cartoon they drew, Dick Locher could absolutely pass as “Dick Tracy”. He certainly had the handsome chisel features. He was an assistant to “Dick Tracy” creator Chester Gould and then took over the strip in 1983. I first met Dick in 1997 at the Association of American Editorial Cartoonists convention. I was a runner-up to the Locher Award, an award named after his late son John. I spoke with him at later conventions, but it was the 2010 AAEC convention in Portland that I remember most vividly. It was at that convention that it was publicly disclosed that Dick had Parkinson’s Disease. After the award ceremony, I pulled Dick and Mary (his wife) aside for a quick interview. At 81 years old, he was sharp, quick witted. I felt like the interview was an insight into his personality—polished, funny, bullishly optimistic, and very humble for a man who had such an accomplished career.
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