Drawing cartoons is pretty easy, really. All the cartoonists have to do is observe life and draw a picture of it. For example, this cartoon?
It really happened.
So did this (pretty much):
And this:
Most cartoons, just like most jokes, have an element of truth in them. The trick is to describe the scene and punchline in a few squiggles and words. In the case of military cartoonists, there is another challenge – to poke fun of an established institution without getting smashed. Many of my cartoons are almost direct quotes – but the faces, uniforms and settings have been changed to protect the one being made fun of (often senior officers), and to protect the innocent (me).
And it works! The only exception is when the joke is about the cartoonist himself, in which case everyone already knows who it is about.
(That actually happened too.)
[updated Aug 19]
1 Comment
OH, yeah! I can relate to all, more or less: Lost in the Pentagon and at SERE training; many cross-country eating experiences; I knew better; and yesssss, I’m dealing with a waist (care giver says it’s because I’m getting older) … so I guess developing a larger waist size beats the options!
Mike