Gotham City in Batman: The Animated Series

 

Cartoons from "The Popular Book of Cartoons" (1946)

 

Here are some gag cartoons from The Popular Book of Cartoons, published  and copyright 1946 by Popular Library, Inc. Some of these cartoons date back to 1935 and originally appeared in College Humor magazine. 

 

Syd Hoff is alternately credited as Sydney Hoff on the cover and Sidney Hoff in the interior.

 

 

Jack Sale

Jefferson Machamer

Joe Sacco On the War in Gaza

Joe Sacco writes and cartoons about the war on Gaza at The Comics Journal site this month. Joe is a nonfiction cartoonist, specializing in true stories from war zones. His series titled "Palestine," about his experiences in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip from December 1991 to January 1992, will be reprinted by Fantagraphics this year due to demand.

 

"When cartoonist Joe Sacco first published Palestine a little more than 30 years ago, most people were indifferent. The nonfiction graphic novel was part comic book, part memoir of his journeys through the West Bank and Gaza Strip, and nothing like it had ever really been published before.

"Today, the acclaimed graphic novel is considered a trailblazing work, and as the war in Gaza continues to rage, the book is experiencing a resurgence. Demand is so high that the book is out of stock, prompting its publisher to take the rare step of ordering a rapid reprinting.

"Gary Groth, president and co-founder of Fantagraphics, said the newfound interest in Palestine began after the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas militants that killed more than 1,200 people in Israel. The attack unleashed an Israeli bombardment of Gaza that has so far killed more than 24,000 Palestinians, according to health officials in Gaza.

"'You don't have momentous events like this occur that are relevant to most books,' he said. 'The subject matter, unfortunately, appears to be timeless.'"  -- NPR

PETS -- INCLUDING WOMEN Edited by Charles Preston

 

Here are some cartoon from PETS -- INCLUDING WOMEN Edited by the Wall Street Journal's "Pepper ... and Salt" cartoon editor Charles Preston. The cover is by Leo Garel.

This is copyright 1956 by Charles Preston. This is a Permabook edition published in January 1957.

Above: Mort Temes contributes the above. The self-satisfied expression on the wiener dog is simultaneously funny and, well, speaking personally, just makes me feel a little bit queasy about that darn dog's boundary issues.

Bernard Wiseman, just by drawing a few lines on the grounds, suggest a wide city sidewalk -- probably on the Upper East Side.

David Pascal with a gag that's maybe not as fresh as it was 51 years ago, but I love watching the guy pantomime his interest and then zealous glee at riding the coattails of the performing dog.

Gallagher's cartoons are so animated, they deserve to be animated.

Pascal with another, very clever one. Those are darn big fish!

I enjoy Irwin Caplan's sharp, controlled line and his sense of environment. The dog's happy expression as he destroys what looks like a very nice table is great counterpoint.

Another Wiseman cartoon with a subtle juxtaposition style gag. The one line in the background suggests the sidewalk. That's all there is to the background. And that's all you need.

One of the great before he was one of the greats: Gahan Wilson, in an early cartoon, gives us an uppity actor dog. I always thought there was a touch of Silverstein in Wilson's older works.

I like Bill Harrison's foliage in the above cartoon. But those tracks don't look like women's shoes.

Jerry Marcus with his breezy inking gives us the moment before chaos erupts.

There are a lot of details in this Gallagher single panel cartoon. A table with the doggy treats on the left, a planter in the background. They all have nothing to do with the gag (which made me laugh out loud), but they enhance the whole experience of looking at the cartoon. An experience which, according to my research, is about 3 to 5 seconds long.

Above is Lee Lorenz, back before he was the The New Yorker's Cartoon Editor; back before he had found his brush & wash style. A bittersweet little story in 4 panels.

Eric Ericson gives us a very well dressed couple and their solution to kitty's clawing. They obviously have a large disposable income!

And finally, another Gahan Wilson cartoon to conclude today's visit with PETS -- INCLUDING WOMEN.

 

-- Edited from a March 12, 2008 blog entry.