Drawing on local talent: MG cartoonists discuss their art

0

By Sharon Sheridan 

Cartoonists are funny folks. They specialize in caricatures and talking animals and absurd pictorial encounters, hoping to coax a chuckle or outright guffaw from their readers. And all the while, they’re commenting on the serious stuff of life, politics and society. 

Cartoonists Fred Caracci, left, and Paul Laud discuss their craft. Sharon Sheridan photo

“It provides me a voice, a voice to touch other people in a different way,” Paul Laud told the audience at MG Cartooning 101: Doodling With a Message at the Morristown EcoCenter on May 13. Laud joined fellow Morristown Green cartoonists Fred Caracci and Matt Keown in discussing their craft as well as participating with audience members in some fast-action drawing on a few suggested themes. 

After introducing the cartoonists, MG Editor Kevin Coughlin provided a brief history of cartooning, from cave drawings to a local hero – “maybe the granddaddy of all political cartoonists, Thomas Nast” – to Peanuts’ Charles Schulz and Doonesbury’s Garry Trudeau. 

“Why do you do it?” he asked the panelists. 

“I have no idea,” countered Caracci, creator of the Horse’s Tomato strip. 

“It’s an escape,” he said. “You just get lost in it, and it’s fun.” 

Matt Keown, creator of the Joe Mahoney cartoon character. Sharon Sheridan photo

Keown admitted a different motivation: “I never liked the idea of working for a living.” But, he added, “It’s not that lucrative.” 

“I discovered at a young age that my drawings could make people laugh, and that was rewarding,” said Keown, who originated the character Joe Mahoney. 

Coughlin displayed various examples of the artists’ work, including “Joe.” 

“Joe is kind of like the anti-hero,” Keown said. “He’s nerdy.” 

Laud, author of the book “Laugh Out Laud,” discussed the origin of some of his political cartoons featuring Governor Chris Christie, including one poking fun at his trip to Disney World. Turns out, those cartoons haven’t escaped the governor’s notice. Laud read an e-mail he received from his wife, who ended up sitting with Christie’s wife at the Morristown Club. Mary Pat Christie ended the conversation, “Oh, by the way, we had a really lovely time in Disney World.” 

Paul Laud puts the finishing touches on an Osama Bin Lauden-inspired cartoon. Sharon Sheridan photo

Reflecting on the role of a cartoonist, Laud quoted Groucho Marx’s comment to the Saturday Evening Post when asked what he did for a living: “My job is to hold up a mirror to the high and the mighty and to show that, once you strip off all of the titles … we’re all down deep pretty much the same.” 

“Folks [who] like to draw cartoons and poke fun at human foibles can kind of resonate with that,” he said. 

Success, however, is not the determinant. 

“It’s simple,” Caracci said. “I’m a cartoonist, whether the world recognizes it or not.” 

Not that success doesn’t matter. 

“Hopefully,” Caracci added, “a syndicate will recognize it and take me on.” 

Ken Wilkie explains his cartoon. Sharon Sheridan photo

Today’s newspaper comics are less “edgy” than the humor in other media, Keown commented. 

Caracci agreed. “It all seems too safe.” 

But Laud said he believes readers “still want to think,” pointing out that newspapers aren’t the only outlet for cartoonists. 

“There’s been a great democratization of publishing, thanks to the Internet,” Laud said. 

While “newspapers may well be a dinosaur,” he said, “The Internet allows a mass distribution.” 

But the cartoonists drew the line at pushing humor too far, discussing the example of the publication of cartoons depicting Mohammed, which led to violent protests by some Muslims because their religion forbids creating images of the prophet. 

“My mother always told me to know your audience,” Keown said. “If you have a group of people out there that are going to kill you … I would say that’s a good issue to back off [of]. You don’t need to be that edgy.” 

Laud noted, “The depiction of Mohammed is forbidden in the Koran. It is horribly offensive to the Muslim world. … There’s no need to go that far.” 

While publishing such cartoons is protected by the First Amendment, he said, “I don’t see the point. If you’re really good at your craft, you can find other ways to send your message.” 

Audience members then had a chance to send their own messages. Following a discussion of potential cartoon ideas – the top contenders being the death of al-Qaida leader Osama Bin Laden, outlandish hats at the recent royal wedding and the May 21 doomsday predictions – both the panelists and some of those attending took markers in hand and drew cartoons, which they then presented to the gathering. 

To truly succeed in cartooning, Caracci concluded, “I think you do have to be inspired. You have to have the ability … to be able to express that. You can teach technique, but you can’t teach talent. You either have it or you don’t.” 

Dominique Tornabe and Ron Reed, center, chat with cartoonist Fred Caracci at the EcoCenter. Sharon Sheridan photo

Morristown Green and Sustainable Morristown sponsored the cartooning program at the proposed EcoCenter at 55 Bank Street. 

The center will host two more opportunities for audience participation: MG Wordplay: Fun With Words, featuring poetry, oratory, monologues, improv and hip hop, at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, May 17; and the MG Kids Art Show, featuring artwork from the Morristown area’s young artists, a participatory art project with Jody Marcus of the Community Children’s Museum in Dover and “green” cooking demonstrations with Chef Melody of the Main Event. Both programs are free. Art show entries in all media – labeled with the artist’s name and age or grade – may be dropped off at St. Peter’s Episcopal Church, 70 Maple Ave., through Friday, May 20. 

READ MORE ABOUT THE MORRISTOWN ECOCENTER

LEAVE A REPLY