Carolita Johnson’s cartoon is set in a psychiatrist’s office, where the patient is being levitated above the couch by a magician. The magician is passing a hoop over the patient to show that there are no invisible strings. The psychiatrist is speaking. I first tried to reconcile the disparate elements—magic and psychiatry—by referring to a…
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Anatomy of a Cartoon
Anatomy of a Cartoon: The One and Only Roz Chast
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“Levitating Patient” Caption Contest Commentary with Lawrence Wood
Anatomy of a Cartoon: Vaccination
Cartoon critics Phil Witte and Rex Hesner look behind the gags to debate what makes a cartoon tick. This week our intrepid critics take a look at covid vaccines. They’re coming, they’re coming! No, not redcoats or Russians—vaccines, and not a moment too soon. Many Americans have already rolled up their sleeves to do their…
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“Fish Room” Caption Contest Commentary with Lawrence Wood
This contest, featuring a cartoon by Ernio Hernandez, may be the most challenging yet. I stared at the drawing for an hour, trying to figure out what was going on. There are two fish; that much I know. Though they appear to be on the outside of a fish tank—more on that in a bit—they…
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How to Avoid Death by Powerpoint
While “Death by PowerPoint” is, as far as I know, apocryphal, as a metaphor, it must have more than a grain of truth in it, or this cartoon wouldn’t still be funny. BUY THIS CARTOON I say still because the cartoon was done by Alex Gregory back in 2003 when PowerPoint had already been in…
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Anatomy of a Cartoon: Frankenstein
Cartoon critics Phil Witte and Rex Hesner look behind the gags to debate what makes a cartoon tick. This week our intrepid critics take a look at Frankenstein cartoons. Few figures of fiction are stamped in the minds of generations as the monster in Mary Shelley’s novel of 1818, Frankenstein. Of course, the modern-day image…
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“Viral Hitman” Caption Contest Commentary with Lawrence Wood
Benjamin Schwartz’s doctor is conducting a back-alley transaction. While checking to make sure there are no witnesses, he hands a picture of the coronavirus to a hitman. The doctor is speaking. I first made several references to former President Trump’s ridiculous comments about Covid-19 (e.g., “It’s going to disappear. One day, it’s like a miracle,…
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