Reuben

A Confederacy of Cartoonists

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D. D. Degg June 14, 2018 1 minute 0 comments

Many groups hold conferences in hotels or convention centers, but one year the NCS took over Elvis Presley’s mansion, Graceland, for their event. We were watching “the King” on a big screen dancing with a Vegas showgirl in a sparkly bikini when a voice called out from behind me, “Hey!! That’s my wife!!!”

A Murder of Crows.
A Barrel of Monkeys.
A Tuxedo of Penguins.
A Reuben of Cartoonists?

Whatever you call it when a group of cartoonists get together, it’s not quite normal.

…one of the cartoonists stood up. “As many of you are aware, he began soberly, “this year we lost our dear friend and long-standing member, Roy. In his memory, we will observe a moment of… complaining.” The room erupted: “The air conditioning in this hotel sucks!” called out one voice. “Your room is better than mine!” complained another. Pandemonium descended as, for a full minute, Roy was administered a cartoonist’s version of last rites.

David Apatoff is one of them, and he regales Saturday Evening Post readers with tales of  What Happens When You Put Hundreds of Cartoonists in One Room?