Best Cartoons of the Year 1964 Part 2

Above: the dust jacket to BEST CARTOONS OF THE YEAR 1964. I thought that I did not have the dust jacket, but it turns out I have 2 copies of this hardcover gag cartoon collection -- one with the cover, one without.

Part one is here. The book is copyright 1964 by the series' long time editor Lawrence Lariar.


I don't know why Ton Smits isn't better known in the States. He was, after all, a New Yorker cartoonist. He even has a museum in his native Netherlands. Smits draws in that minimalist UPA kinda cartoon style, and he's a great comic writer.

Reamer Keller is one of my favorites. I like his loosey goosey line -- but this one looks so loose that it looks like a rough. Regardless, Parade published it and he chose it as an example of one of his best of the year. The BEST CARTOONS books purported to allow the cartoonists themselves to pick their own cartoons for publication.


I love Don Orehek's work. He's a master cartoonist. Above is an early one. Look at how happy the hubby is, counting the money. Nice touch: the heart on the hurdy gurdy.

With postage in the states at 55 cents per letter, this represents a considerable sum of money. Jack Markow wrote a number of how to cartoon books.



Gallagher is right on the money. I've seen this with strollers -- so full of merchandise that the kid has to hoof it instead of riding in his usual style!
Tom Smits once again. All you need to see is her eyes to get the gag.



Al Kaufman gives a great line to the nurse. Look at her feet: one coming up for a step, the other posed down. A good touch for showing a bit of motion. The disheveled pear shaped fellow with the tousled hair wordlessly expresses his surprise.



The goofy goings on of bank robbers as portrayed by Bob Weber. I never knew that the Master Detective magazine had cartoons!


Nowadays, one of those names does not belong. But as of 1964, as we all know, Nixon (pre-presidency, pre-Watergate) had narrowly lost to JFK. I like that flutey, loopy feather in the hat.

Phallic symbols arise in Joe Farris' space age cartoon. Lovely brush work, eh?


Orlando Busino's cartoon reminds me of the almost weekly uproar about cartoons that continues on and on. Folks, they're just pictures!

Easy end-of-page link to part one here.

-- This has been an edited version of a June 3, 2008 blog entry.