Good morning Jim. Hope today isn’t too odd not having to go into the office and work through another editorial cartoon. You can turn off the wonks and talking heads and enjoy the small, simple pleasure of the feeling the Strathmore paper as you brush away the eraser bits or watching ink flow over pencil markings.
I’m sad, in a way, that there will be no more Borgman editorial cartoons with plump common folks wrestling with stuff they should have to worry about but I understand the need to simplify. If you need help putting The Daily Cartoonist as your start-up page instead of some hard news site, let me know. I look forward to many more years of Zits.
Best of luck on the post-Enquirer transition,
Alan
I’ll miss Jim’s editorial cartoons too. As a Cincinnati area resident, I’ve had the pleasure of following his career for many years. What beautifully rendered work!
But what’s always impressed me the most is that he not only made you think and laugh, but also when the subject matter warranted, had that rare ability to touch your heart.
All the best to Jim.
Jim is also one of those “how the hell did he do that?” guys. Ya know, you read his work and laugh. Then you go back and study the art, wondering why you even bother drawing in the first place.
Twenty-odd years ago I was a senior at Xavier University, studying fine art by day, and drawing a comic strip for the school paper at night. A friend of a friend introduced me to Jim, who then invited me down to his office. He looked over my cartoons, we chatted about the business, and he even let me take a peek at a sales packet that the Enquirer had received, for the new strip by Bill Watterson. It was my first encounter with a professional cartoonist, and it made a huge impression.
I’ve contacted him twice since – once for his thoughts on a strip I was submitting to syndicates, and once for advice on coloring cartoons – and he’s been as helpful as if we were old friends, whether he’d forgotten me from 20 years ago or not. He’s not only immensely talented – equally adept at commenting on a local heat wave or a presidential election – but he also has great respect for his profession and its audience. I wish him all the best.