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Inside the mind (and eye) of the cartoonist Editorial cartoonists What makes them tick?
Free Lance-Star cartoonist Clay Jones speaks with three nationally renowned editorial cartoonists: Matt Davies, Joel Pett and Scott Stantis
Date published: 9/23/2007
JONES: Today we are having a panel with three of the best cartoonists in the United States. With us are Scott Stantis of The Birmingham News, Joel Pett of the Lexington Herald-Leader, and Matt Davies from The Journal News.
First question: How do you think cartoonists are representing the craft, and journalism?
PETT: Well, you know, for the last three years I have been writing this weekly piece for the L.A. Times that forced me to do something that I didn't used to do, which is look at everything. It has actually been interesting. You get kind of a dopish view of it if you only see what appears nationally, in the Sunday New York Times or Newsweek or USA Today. In fact, there is a lot of really good work being done out there.
Of course, that makes me completely annoyed because, you know, I look at it and I think, "Why didn't I think of that?" So it is a dreadful exercise in humiliation to look at the whole body of work and realize what a meager contribution I made to it.
STANTIS: I agree with Joel, who is a lot closer to it than I am. Sampling on a regular basis, I think the quality is far better than it was when I entered the field 25 years ago. So I think in terms of quality of work, that has never been better.
DAVIES: I agree with these guys. The Internet has given us the ability to look at other people's work in greater depth. When you look at the body of work, it is remarkable how the stuff is really good. In the past, it was much easier to comment on other people's work based on weekly roundups that are trying to take us [editorial cartoonists] to the lowest common denominator. They try to make us out to be like we are the clowns, we're the funny guys.
Of course, we don't see ourselves that way. We see ourselves as much more important. We see ourselves as witty.
| Joel Pett is a Pulitzer Prize-winning cartoonist for the Lexington (Ky.) Herald-Leader. |
| Matt Davies is a Pulitzer Prize-winning cartoonist for The Journal News in White Plains, N.Y. |
| Scott Stantis is a cartoonist for The Birmingham (Ala.) News.
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Date published: 9/23/2007
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