All the cartoonists on Facebook are mentioning this, or linking to the obit in the LA Times:

Paul Conrad, whose fiercely confrontational editorial cartoons made him one of the leading political provocateurs of the second half of the 20th century and who helped push the Los Angeles Times to national prominence, has died. He was 86.

“When it comes to editorial cartooning, I am unabashedly biased: Paul Conrad was simply the best ever,” Times Editor Russ Stanton said Saturday.

He was great, that’s for sure. He won an amazing 3 Pulitzers. He was an exceptionally wonderful cartoonist, and I can’t imagine why the liberal loving Times let him go – he never got a venue as good as that again. Of course, Russ Stanton wasn’t editor when Paul Conrad was the cartoonist there, and none have been hired under your watch, Russ. So your experience is like, nil. (Side note: The LA Times is 4th biggest in circulation, but has fewer editorial cartoons than at least the 100 biggest papers in the country!)

Conrad was on Gocomics with me in Editorial cartoons – quite impressive and inspirational to me. I don’t look at the other cartoons all that much, but when I was doing my LA Times cartoons roundups here a few weeks ago he had one that caught my eye:

paul conrad cartoon of Obama as Nixon

I just checked, and Conrad is no longer on Gocomics – I don’t know whether they dropped it when he died, or whether Tribune dropped them, but I believe this is the last cartoon they used of his, so I’m glad I saved it.

Love the inky messiness. I know that’s Nixon’s famous victory? gesture, but I don’t know why Obama is doing it. Maybe it  hooked up to a news item a while ago.

I met Conrad a few times, as we were both in the Impolitic gallery in Santa Monica, CA. I wasn’t doing political cartoons at the time, but of course I knew his work – one of the few editorial cartoonists I ever read, with his bold, yet minimal drawings and wry humor. He was sort of egotistical and not very friendly at the parties; so, not a people person, at least at parties. He always had a crowd around him, however.

Paul Conrad via LA Times via Huntington Library ITVS

Paul at work. He kept drawing even during the parties (which were pretty damn great).

Your work was stand-out, Paul. Good job.

More cartoons:

1. Is the LA Times trashy?
2. Ted Rall scolds Time Magazine for their Top 10 cartoons.

I don’t want to assume anything, but I’m betting readers of this blog don’t always watch Dancing with the Stars every season!

TV is my crack – at least certain shows, but this summer, only three are on my list. :( But DWTS starts up soon, so here goes!

Sorry, no Sarah cartoon today, but I found this on Facebook – the best dancing dog video I’ve ever seen. Look at his tail wagging the whole time! It brought tears to my eyes!

And Television Without Pity is my favorite place to play. So, anyway, lots of guessing about who the pros and who the stars will be each season, and last week it was rumored that Bristol Palin will be one of the “stars”!

Now, we all know she isn’t a star. At all. I think it’s terrible she wasn’t using birth control, and I do believe in abortion, which I know disappoints some conservative readers, but there you go. She’s just a kid.

But how fun would it be to see lovely Sarah each week in the audience, however long Bristol can be voted to stay in?! Ooh, I just found that I made a joke about Sarah and Obama on Dancing with the Stars back in 2008. How prescient am I?!

From a commenter at TWOP:

Bristol Palin would be a dealkiller for me. The message would be: get knocked up as a teenager and have a fundie lunatic for a mother and you too can be on Dancing with the Stars. Apparently ABC wants to give Sarah Palin free publicity because you know that every show will include at least 5 shots of her sitting in the front row.

No thanks.

—————-

I have nothing against Bristol, it’s better than if we end up with some Jersey Shore moron. And Sarah tends to stick to FOX News since they gave her that fat contract, so we may not see her as much as you think.

———————

I thought it was tough to watch Heather Mills, I thought it was tough to watch Tom Delay. Kate Gosselin almost did me in. I’m sure Bristol is a nice person but…maybe I should take this season off.

I liked Heather Mills and Tom Delay, and even Kate! So this might be a good season for me!

Other stars rumored to be on the show, according to Daily Kos:

A friend at ABC Entertainment informs me that Bernadine Dohrn, professor and former Weather Underground militant, is among contestants soon to be announced for “Dancing with the Stars.”

Along with Dohrn, the newly added contestants include:

Chris Kattan, comic actor
Nastia Liukin, Olympic Gold Medal gymnast
Ron Gettelfinger, former union president

They join the “stars” announced earlier:

Bristol Palin
David Hasselhoff
Brandy, R&B singer
Audrina Partridge of “The Hills”
Mike “The Situation” Sorrentino

Politico reports it, too. But I don’t believe the rest of this list at all. ABC keeps the cast under tight wraps, and always lists fake ones each year! The leaks this year are coming mostly from Twitter – actors and dancers cannot keep their mouths shut. (Who didn’t know that?)

Other rumors:

I’m not sure how credible Star magazine is, but according to them, Audrina, Jennifer Grey and Florence Henderson are signed up for this season.

Michael Bolton & Kym
Rick Fox & Edyta
Mike “The Situation” & Cheryl
Kurt Warner & Cheslie
David Hasselhoff & Karina
Troy Aikmen (or whatever male star) & Lacey

Bristol Palin & Mark
Brandy & Maks (just don’t give my girl Alec lol)
Margret Cho & Louis
Florence Henderson & Derek (one can hope right lol)
Jennifer Grey & Tony
Audrina Patridge & Alec

There will be a Press Conference! tonight on Bachelor Pad about the cast, so stay tuned!

More cartoons:

1. Dancing With the Stars leeches off of The Bachelor. Thanks, ABC.
2. Debating candidates for Dancing with the Stars cartoon.

Uh-oh. Will that get me in trouble with the Feds?  How about if it’s at a fair hosted by a Catholic church, is that better? Pennsylvania does it again!

The LA Times had a little item on this that had me laughing so hard I had to investigate further. (Why do I even bother to search latimes.com for the article? Man, their website STILL sucks for search.)

From Lehigh Times:

A game called “Alien Attack” at the Our Lady of Mount Carmel Big Time celebration in Roseto encouraged players to shoot darts at the head and heart of an image of a suited black man holding a health care bill and wearing a presidential seal.

obama carnival fair game from lehigh times

Irvin L. Good Jr., president of Hellertown-based Goodtime Amusements, said it wasn’t supposed to be Obama.

“We’re not interpreting it as Obama. The name of the game is ‘Alien Leader.’ If you’re offended, that’s fine, we duly note that.”

Don’t you love it?!

Our Lady pastor the Rev. Jim Prior said:

“We’re used to this kind of bigotry and prejudice, and we abhor it but it’s the way of the world,” Prior said. “Even the Divine Father himself is vilified in today’s culture.”

Oh, my gah, this priest is comparing Obama to God!! And WAY to change the subject, Rev. Prior!

The Morning Call had more. The Secret Service is investigating now, and Good changed his tune:

“I guess we made an error in judgment, and we apologize for that,” said Good, who has had the game for about six weeks. “I voted for the man. It wasn’t meant to be him. If they took it that way, we apologize.”

Players paid $1 per shot, or $5 for six shots, to fire foam darts at targets on his head and heart. Those who hit their mark won a stuffed animal.

The White House issued a statement Wednesday through spokeswoman Moira Mack saying it disapproves of using the president’s name and likeness for commercial purposes. The longstanding policy precedes Obama.

Federal law prohibits anyone from knowingly displaying any print or likeness of the presidential seal. Violators can face a fine and up to six months in prison. The U.S attorney’s office in Philadelphia declined to comment on the matter.

I agree that making fun of the Presidential office in any way dilutes the importance of the office, and of our country. Even if it’s Obama. What retards. (I’m not Jennifer Aniston, so I can say it.)

But I still laughed at everyone’s incredible obliviousness.

More cartoons:

1. Obama won Nobel Peace Prize in spite of himself.
2. Barack Obama has a dream, too.

Cool creamy ice cream and money for your summer vacation.

My editor at CalWatchdog, Steven Greenhut, like many journalists in many states now, is really interested in pension reform, and what pensions are doing to the rest of the state as they grow more humongous. I haven’t read his new book yet, Plunder: How Public Employee Unions are Raiding Treasuries, Controlling Our Lives and Bankrupting the Nation (I prefer serial killer novels for the summer), but he’s been on the radio and tv talking about it, so it must be great!

are police pensions so high they make you scream?

Yeah, I had to read up about it to understand the nuances. Or to understand anything, really.  It’s actually very simple: unions (mostly) arranged for moderate to low wages in certain industries, by including benefits on the back end, like retirement pensions, that laborers could feel reassured with.

This makes sense. Until you think about pyramid schemes. I’ve known for a while that the police can retire super young, like 40, and still get a livable pension, while even starting a different career. Since they work so hard, in dangerous situations, it seems fair. But somehow the pensions start to multiply, and with interest rates less than 1%, where will all this new money come from? The city, county and state. Oh.

It becomes more annoying when it’s state workers, who live in cubicles or offices and aren’t in danger at all, unless they jump out a window. I went to a seminar just a couple years ago at the LA Press Club when a smart entrepreneur said that all of us laid off journalists should go get state jobs, with little experience, with wonderful benefits, which you got no matter your age when you started. He teaches courses in Sacramento and other cities, and has a book out on this, too. He made it seem very enticing!

I’m into unions, really – have been in a real Hollywood one, and the NWU, which is sort of a quasi-union. And people should have a comfortable retirement. But I have no idea how to solve this problem, except have people in charge who are economists and realists.

This article by Steve on police and crime isn’t exactly about pensions, but gave me a beginning idea for the cartoon. But the ice screams truck was all mine.

Caption: Policeman: Yes, little girl, I promise to keep you safe. And my hefty pension, too! Ice screams truck for flavor.

More cartoons:

1. The FBI is renting beach umbrellas and sunglasses.
2. Bill Clinton and the blue dress.

Perhaps it’s insensitive of me to bring up Bill Clinton and the infamous blue dress RIGHT when everyone is all gaga over Chelsea’s expensive wedding and her expensive dress. I’m sure someone will tell me, if I am.  But I’m curious about a couple of things at that wedding. Really, how come Obama was not invited? Also, the news reports made a big deal that Bill Clinton was there. Why wouldn’t he be at his only daughter’s wedding?? Confusing.

bill clinton cartoon with the blue dress

Anyway, if you are a loyal reader, you know that sex affairs interest me, but condemnation does not. Mistresses, gay sex in bathrooms, oral sex in the White House, Tiger Woods (who was shanghaied), all mildly interesting, but I don’t care. What happens behind closed doors is probably lovely and very fun. Also, private.

I do think  Clinton’s charm and strength did get the 2 women journalists released from the strange man in Korea. Yet I still went for the joke. What are you gonna do. At least I didn’t mention the stain. (oops.)

Also, my liberal friends thought being a Friend of Bill was a big deal here in Hollywood, so I put a FOB button on his suit.

And since I do agree Bill was much more responsible for his affair than Monica – but she was there, wasn’t she? – I got in touch with Monica Lewinsky’s agent a couple years later to ask if Monica would like to write a blurb for my Love Me or Go To Hell Book! Monica was designing purses at the time, and her agent said she loved the book, but was too busy. Right.

Anyway, best wishes for the newlywed Chelsea Clinton and whoever the guy is. Your wedding present is in the mail.

Cartoon caption for blind Google: I’m former President Bill Clinton. Today I got Kim Jon Il to release the two hostage journalists. I did good. So, can we please let bygones be bygones now? And MOVE ON? The blue dress speaks: okay!

And oh yeah, USA Today finally used one of my cartoons in their roundup. About time!

More cartoons:

1. Barack Obama has a dream, too.
2. Men like to talk about sex.

There’s a good reason I draw a lot of beach cartoons in the summer…because it makes me feel good. I did this in June at the height of the oil spill disaster, as a “what if” it happened in California…

a make believe oil spill in california cartoon

Surfers are pretty passionate here. I don’t think oil would stop them.

And the politics around Meg Whitman vs Steve Poizner were kind of hysterical! They really were screaming on tv and calling each other a LIBERAL, as if that was the worst epithet they could think of! Okay, I agree. (You will recall that both of them are filthy rich, so there were lotsa ads. More cartoons on Whitman and Poizner here.)

However, Ms. Ebay has suddenly become a lot more liberal herself, pandering to the Hispanic news sources and saying she’s in favor of illegal immigration now. Maybe I won’t even bother to vote this time.

My newest cartoon on Meg Whitman is up on CalWatchdog right now.

Caption: If we get a disastrous oil spill, is California prepared to clean up…wildlife? (pelican), clean up surfers? (surfer with surfboard), clean up political campaigns? (campaign signs: you liberal! you’re a liar! you’re a scuzzball- hate you.

More cartoons:

1. Meg Whitman and Steve Poizner are rich and Republican!
2. Political oil, immigration, Facebook cartoons for the LA Times for May 2, 2010.

Last week someone emailed me complaining that I “explained” my cartoons. Let’s call him “Chris.”

Well, my main issue is that not only do I often not understand them, it’s that you often admit in the commentary below your cartoons that you have grave doubts that your audience will understand them. I think there was one in which you said you didn’t even get it yourself. Other times, you go to great lengths to explain the cartoon and why you think it’s funny. Chris

ESL cartoon English as a Second Language

Another man wrote me to complain about the cartoon above. (We’ll call him Anthony, since his name is Anthony.)

I saw this cartoon and decided immediately that you are out of touch with reality.  For you information, even school districts in Kentucky, (not known as a bastion of education reform) require all students in high school to take Spanish as a second language. It’s obvious from your cartoon your are a RACIST AND BIGOT!

Spanish is spoken by thirty four million Americans in the U.S. and that number is growing. Only right wing, Bible thumping school districts, like those in Texas, would not teach the fastest growing second language in the U.S.!

A little education for you, since it’s apparent you failed your ESL!

Spanish was the language spoken by the first permanent European settlers in North America. It was brought to the territory of what is the contemporary U.S. in 1513 by Ponce de León. In 1565, the Spaniards, by way of Juan Ponce de Leon, founded St. Augustine, Florida, the oldest, continuously occupied European settlement in the continental U.S. …

Your Glenn Beck, Rush Limbaugh mentality is apparent!

Chris, meet Anthony.

Actually, I don’t normally explain my cartoons – I write about why I did them, and talk about the news. But in this case, I guess I do have to explain it, since you say you often don’t get them, Chris, and for sure Anthony didn’t get a word of this. And Anthony, I don’t normally respond to rude and rac-ist name-calling, but since you say you’re an author (The Third Cell)….maybe you will understand words better than cartoons.

According to this LA Times article:

California schools educate 1.6 million English learners, a quarter of all students; they comprise the largest concentration of English learners in the nation.

Nearly 60% of English language learners in California’s high schools have failed to become proficient in the language despite more than six years of a U.S. education, according to a study released Thursday.

The article goes on to say this threatens the economic future of California!

But they develop major deficits in reading and writing, fail to achieve the academic English needed for educational success and disproportionately drop out of high school, according to the study by Californians Together, a statewide coalition of 22 parent, professional and civil-rights organization who support English-learners.

The flaws in California’s English-language programs have placed hundreds of thousands of children in academic jeopardy, dashing their dreams for college and imperiling the state’s economic future. The off-spring of immigrants make up 55% of Los Angeles County’s child population.

This is on top of many failures for ESL – they’ve come up with the same fail for decades. As my cartoon points out, hopeful libs and Dems still believe what their hearts tell them – just try harder!

The cartoon says: ESL has failed. The man makes a little joke about making Spanish the second language – which it already is, of course. The woman says Ola. (A combination of Hola and Ole.)

I think a good education always includes learning a second language, Anthony; I myself took several years of French and Latin (I was considering being a lawyer) and even a tiny bit of Greek! So why can’t foreigners (in California,  they are usually here ILLEGALLY) learn English in 6 or even 12 years, huh?

Don’t assume you know who I listen to on the radio or watch on TV, either. And don’t call me the r-acist word – as Tammy Bruce would say, that’s just being a lazy writer. And the fact that you call me that because I do a cartoon about the Spanish language….is an example of how whites get targeted unfairly ALL the time! Also, retarded.

Caption for search engine: THE LIBERALS FIX EDUCATION. This study says ESL has failed again. No problemo. We still have some money left. Let’s try Spanish as a Second language! Ola!

I’m told this cartoon got lots of excitement and comments over here. And if you want to read my California cartoons before they’re in Slate, go to Calwatchdog.

More cartoons:

1. Mickey Mouse as human sacrifice for California budget?
2. Banks timed failures to hide behind the election. Right?

Will BP PLC do anything they promised? We’ll see. I wish they’d save the money they spend on their TV ads, and spend it by helping clean up their mess, but that ship has already sailed. Losers.

Nothing funny about this environmental and financial disaster, but cartoonists have a way of pointing their pens in a way that the newspapers and sources have only begun to do the last month or so. News sites were so neutral before, it was disgusting! That’s not reporting, that’s siding with the enemy! I think cartoonists are more honest.

daryl cagle oil spill at the dance cartoon, at cagle.com

I was really impressed by Daryl Cagle’s cartoon of Obama dancing with the devil BP (who looks rather like a Smurf. And is that a Snidely Whiplash mustache on Obama?) I’ve seen dancing steps before, but not in oil!

Side note: I wonder if Daryl is a fan of Dancing with the Stars…:)

I found a few clever cartoons on who bears the ultimate responsibility for this tragedy, but I chose this one by Mike Scott because it’s not just a game – there is horror in those faces. Halliburton is obviously Frankenstein! Does Mike have a special issue with them?! I like the quiet colors and the hand-lettered red title at the top. Different. From Cagle.

And we go from horror to a beheading! What is a good collection of cartoons without some morbid chuckles? I really laughed at this.

And in case you haven’t guessed, now you know for sure that I’m not selecting these particular oil cartoons for my LA Times editorial  roundup. (That comes next time.) This cartoon would not be proper for the Times, I assure you! But it’s just right for us here in the bleachers. From Gocomics.

dana summers little dead mermaid cartoon

Dana Summer’s cartoon of the little Mermaid drowned in oil made me laugh! So much more amusing than dead pelicans, which are WAY overdone, guys, and also very sad. And who doesn’t like a joke at Disney’s expense? I like Dana, who also does a comic strip, which I forget the name of, but this cartoon is another that wouldn’t be right for the LA Times. More of Dana at gocomics.com.

j.d. crowe cartoon of oily lawyers from cagle.com

I love these flying lawyers! It took me a minute to understand what was going on here, but this is a wonderful piece of art by J. D. Crowe, as the lawyers morph into birds of prey. I like the subtlety of  these mid greys; it would have been natural to paint the lawyers in dark suits, to have them stand out in the water, but this is far more effective. And I like the way there’s no punctuation in the captions, as if the men are thinking, not speaking. From Cagle cartoons. PS, I like lawyers, in case I’m involved in any lawsuits right now…

mike luckovich cartoon on the price of oil in the gas station

I picked this cartoon by Mike Luckovich to illustrate oil in the eyes of the consumer. I like this – Mike is an excellent cartoonist – but to my way of thinking, this is only half done! He should have added the loss of life – both man and animals. And this would have been much much better in color. Why do so many cartoonists hold back from color? Because it takes a lot more time, and that’s not just photoshop, that’s decisions and contemplation. Big guys like him don’t need color for the newspapers, but most artists do, if they’re to use the power of visuals online.

stuart carlson cartoon on uncle sam getting strangled at the pump on the 4th of July.

I’m not one for a lot of  old symbols in my cartoons, but this cartoon by Stuart Carlson of Uncle Sam is such great design that I couldn’t resist it. Here’s the power of color, people! From Gocomics.

tom toles cartoon of the oil spill as a monopoly game

I don’t think I’ve included Tom Toles in any of my roundups before. He’s the cartoonist for the Washington Post, and I think he’s won a Pulitzer, but I think he’s too stylistic (or too cool?) for my taste. And every single time, I think the PS he adds in the bottom right corner detracts from the cartoon itself. Unfortunately, this has that, too, but I enjoyed the little monopoly player pieces, like the thimble, the iron, the dog, the ship, and the captions attached! Nice, Tom! From Gocomics.

If you’re counting, this would be the 9th and 10th cartoons, but I’m way too modest (or too savvy?!) to include my own cartoons in the 8 best BP oil cartoons. Here’s a peek, if you want to look.

turtles being burned alive by BP oil

BP meets their match: Dr. Phil

And as always, many thanks to Cagle Cartoons and Uclick for allowing me to reproduce these cartoons. Go find your favorite cartoonists there, and you can comment, as well!

For search engines, who can’t read cartoons…yet. Captions: Obama and BP: I’m getting tired of this dance. Not my fault.   It’s the little mermaid! (covered in oil on the shore.)    Look at all those oily birds. So tragic. Those are lawyers. (lawyers turning into pelicans on the beach)   Oil prices: I miss when it cost $2…The gulf of Mexico, Our national security, the world’s climate.   Fingerpointing: bird, Obama, BP, Mineral Management Service, Halliburton. I want my head back – Tony Hayward. Uncle Sam: I’m looking forward to a true Independence Day, strangled in oil pumps. Current Oil Spill Strategies: Top Hat to collect oil, old shoe to walk on oily beaches, battleship to drag oil booms around, wheelbarrow for excuses, flatiron to iron out wrinkles in story, dog to wag tail at executives, thinble to distribute damage payments, race car to leave scene, legal strategy get out of jail free card.

PS. Have bugs? You’ll want to check out my insect cartoon.

More cartoons:

1. June political cartoons on Obama, Helen Thomas, soccer and oil spill.
2. Political oil, immigration, Facebook cartoons for the LA Times for May 2, 2010.

Yay, sparklers! They’re illegal in California, or at least LA. Does that mean I don’t have any? Want to take a guess?

2nd amendment cartoon on the 4th of July

They’re not legal in Philadelphia, either, but they have them in the Amish counties! Yup, Dwight Schrute territory. Right next to the special quilt fabrics and needles.

The writing on the corner is a soupcon of Outsider Art. What crazy people and others do – lots of word and writing to get the idea across.

That little boy looks so happy.

More on gun control to come, of course.

Cartoon caption: Amendment 2a: The right to bear sparklers. Happy 4th to our troops.

More cartoons:

1. My first Sarah Palin cartoon, gun included.
2. Tofu for Thanksgiving cartoon, not necessarily vegan.

It’s a beautiful new week for cartoons! This roundup for the LA Times is for cartoons published the second week of June, 2010.

Since I’m editor here, I shan’t go into my personal  stuff – like my car accident, dealing with 2 insurance companies, aftereffects of the accident, a new problem in the car, which wouldn’t start, and now is in the shop for a possible VERY expensive bill, which may or may not be connected to the accident, my dentist as a result of the accident, and the fact that malware infected my computer for 4 days, and completely disabled my internet connection as well as my Task Manager, which I finally eradicated through an antivirus program with the regrettable name of SuperAntiSpyware Free Edition. But it worked. Most of the others wouldn’t.

All is calm today, anyway, so I hurried to the new cartoons to see what had happened this week while I was missing! (I explain how and why I do this roundup over here.)

hagen cartoon on nuclear disarmament from gocomics.com

This cartoon by Hagen from gocomics.com,  made me laugh out loud! Mr. Hagen, from Norway,  might not be interested in partisanship, but this is EXACTLY how I view Democrats 99% of the time! Tossing off a loud reproof in the general direction of a problem and not doing a thing about it.  The chasm separating the Dems from taking action is astounding.

I love Obama’s little squat here as he tries to speak a little louder, to get his point across. The man on the other side is holding a nuclear weapon. Who is that guy? Is it just Iran? I don’t know, and so I declare right this moment that I won’t do a cartoon on nuclear bombs until I figure out who this important person is. 

ted rall cartoon on miranda rights from gocomics.com

Ted Rall and I don’t have a relationship, not really, but I would say we have a strained respect. Ted comes from the world of the Alties – alternative cartoons – and I don’t know if he’s ever recovered emotionally from that. I only read a couple of alternative comics, and now that they’re not in the LA Weekly, I never see them. I didn’t read Ted. But now that I do political cartoons,  of course I see him in Gocomics.com, and, in fact, he’s the most popular cartoonist in the editorial section. (Uclick only shows comics from 10 men there, so of course the SAME 10 people are there every day, every year. Convenient!)

I do think he’s super smart and educated, and  does some clever cartoons. However, he has the same (only?) flaw as I do: sometimes he tries to make too many points at the same time, kind of jumping around, and not everyone gets convoluted cartoons!. (I’ve seen Ted a few times lately in the LA Times, and even though I live here, I’ve only understood one cartoon out of 4.)

This is an interesting cartoon on Miranda rights, and indeed, our privacy rights. I didn’t know about this Supreme Court ruling, but it’s fascinating: now the police can question you for hours, until you confess. For stupid people,  this will get them in jail faster. And it might give us more interesting true murder books.  But this looks like a dumb ruling,  so I don’t know what the police will actually do as they apply it.

This subtext between the police and the suspect reminds me of a film noir, (which LA Times readers always dig, proving that once again they know art in a way no other city does). What will happen here next?!

MIKE KEEFE Helen Thomas cartoon from CagleCartoons.com

I also see from these intrepid and hard-working cartoonists that Helen Thomas may have spoken thoughtlessly.  I had to look up what the White House Press Corps is – just the reporters who apparently write down every golden word in all the conferences.  I didn’t know it was an elite group. Anyway, she said some mean things, and now she’s gone. I saw several cartoons bashing her, but I liked this one by Mike Keefe, from Caglecartoons.com, because he brought humor to the situation by introducing her as a lightning rod in talk radio!

I love talk radio!! I’ve been kind of busy lately, so haven’t had that much time to listen, but I haven’t heard anyone even mention her. Still, good way to cover the whole nasty situation, while not skewering a much older, former respected journalist. Also like the bounce movement, and the suggestion that from the White House, to talk radio, is a world away! Good, Mike.

NATE BEELER soccer and Israel cartoon from caglecartoons.com

I also noticed a hella lot of cartoons from the guys about some sporting event going on last week. For all I know, it could still be going on. It looks like a big soccer game. I picked Nate Beeler’s cartoon from Caglecartoons.com because it’s a two-fer: a sporting match plus an international cartoon about Israel! As far as I know, Israel wasn’t actually dissed at the games, but that’s not my arena.

As an artist, I was impressed with the limited number of colors here, while also showing different uniforms, and legs going all which way. Nice, Nate!

I have a couple of runner up cartoons. Obviously, the oil spill is the big big story, and I plan a nice roundup of the best BP oil cartoons later this week, but I also wanted to include one here, just because it’s such an important story.

hajo oil spill cartoon from gocomics.com

Nice oil spill cartoon from Hajo, of the Netherlands and gocomics.com, with Obama as the oil victim instead of the pelicans. The oil looks particularly viscous and disgusting here, which is as it should be.

PATRICK CHAPPATTE from politicalcartoons.com

An alternate soccer games cartoon. This is a beautiful cartoon by Patrick Chappatte from political cartoons.com about the soccer games. I didn’t know the games were in Africa until I saw this, and what an exquisite way to make the point!

BILL SCHORR voting poll cartoon from politicalcartoons.com UNCONVINCED

Voting is over, but this cartoon by Bill Schorr still made me laugh! He titled it: Unconvinced. Wishy-washy would work as well. This is really a New Yorker type cartoon, so it’s not right for the LA Times. On the other hand, Joel Pett continues to pick serious, not funny or creative cartoons for the print edition of the LA Times, so you’ll have to decide: laugh or cry?

Many thanks to the talented creative cartoonists who make our life better, and allow us to look at the news in a new way, and to gocomics.com and politicalcartoons.com who feel the same wonder towards cartoonists, even though I think they could pay a teensy bit more to us in their appreciation.

My own recent cartoons:

facebook cartoon in prison

Hey, you have to do something with all that free time.

adult entertainment in california cartoon

Porn (pron?) in Van Nuys? Say it ain’t so.

red oil spill cartoon

What’s red all over?

As always, if you are a cartoonist and would like to submit one new cartoon a week, please do. And if anyone has a different opinion on these cartoons, fire away. All cartoons here are copyrighted by the respective cartoonists, and cannot be used without permission.

More cartoons:

1. Political oil, immigration, Facebook cartoons for the LA Times for May 2, 2010.
2. The beach, the surf, and California’s political campaign. Aah.