American Cartoonist Quotes

For it oft happens that a notion, when it is cloathed with words, seems tedious and operose and hard to be conceived, which yet being striped of that garniture, the ideas shrink into a narrow compass, and are viewed almost by one glance of thought.

David Berman (musician)

Beautiful view. Is there one for the enlisted men?

In choosing my materials I wanted to keep an organic feel to the book. Some might consider this an art book, but I was really just trying to give it some life. Having seen what is being printed by majors these days with poor quality paper, I wanted to provide the reader with a book that carries more value near the same price and that can last for generations. Nothing would be more inspiring to me than to know my books are treasured like an heirloom.

Lorin Morgan-Richards

The idea for any cartoon (my experience, anyway) is rarely spontaneous. Good ideas usually evolve out of pretty lame ones, and vice versa.

I grew to resent the way my father treated his furniture like children, and his children like furniture.

Th' thing I like about general practitioners is that you don't have t' let 'em know a week ahead when you're goin' t' be sick.

I've found it's better to talk to the machine and hang up if I get the person.

Cathy Guisewite

Methods of locomotion have improved greatly in recent years, but places to go remain about the same.

Good ideas have no value because the world already has too many of them. The market rewards execution, not ideas.

Some is more equal than others, as is well known. It ain't that your majority is outnumbered, you're just out-surrounded.

Men may control the free world, but women control the boobs.

Editorial cartoonists are idealists, of another world. Political, social and moral injustices are perceived as monstrosities [requiring the cartoonist to] sweep aside all the complexities and go to the basic issue; to take suspicions, coincidences and past events and record them larger than life.

You may think you're not pretty enough for me, but I bet I'm pretty enough for the both of us.

Cartoons are windows into the human condition. It's about life.

Though statisticians in our time have never kept the score, Man wants a great deal here below and Woman even more.

The running shoe... could be called the Swiss Army knife of footwear... What appeal is there to a shoe whose only selling point is comfort?

Audiences want to support artists. Which is pretty much how it's always been except during the last 100 years where it's turned into this really vicious, cutthroat, nasty business with all these blood-thirsty, parasitic middle-men. But historically, artists were relatively poor and supported directly by their audiences. There's a great book called The Gift by Lewis Hyde. You know, art is a gift and it turns out the audience is happy to give back.

We have plenty of grass, and as we all know, dope will get you through times of no money better than money will get you through times of no dope.

Gilbert Shelton

I had more flow as a designer. I could just drop down into the zone and stay there for hours. With cartooning, I'm constantly coming up for air, procrastinating, looking for reasons not to be doing it. I spend all day granting myself special dispensation, with 'creative process' as my cover story. Carpenters and deli countermen can't do that, so I think they may feel better about themselves at the end of the day.

Call me a gimp, call me a cripple, call me paralyzed for life, but just don't call me something that I'm not. I'm not differently abled. I can't walk. But I also hate it when people say 'wheelchair-bound.' People who can walk are not car-bound.

John Callahan (cartoonist)

Charlie Brown, Snoopy, Linus, Lucy... How can I ever forget them...

Charles M. Schulz

Homer: You know Mr. Burns, you're the richest guy I know.
Mr. Burns: Oh yes, but I'd trade it all for a little more.

Most of us are animal lovers. We insist that we love all animals equally - the hamster, the weasel, and the zebra - but if pressed, we will admit to being either a cat person or a dog person.

Nicole Hollander

Always watch the hands. The hands will tell you everything you need to know.

It was missing a piece. And it was not happy. So it set off in search of its missing piece. And as it rolled it sang this song - "Oh I'm lookin' for my missin' piece I'm lookin' for my missin' piece Hi-dee-ho, here I go, Lookin' for my missin' piece.

Shel Silverstein