Tim Hartman has been the “new” Pittsburgh Post-Gazette editorial cartoonist for over four months now, replacing the Post-Gazette’s previous staff cartoonist Steve Kelley. Don’t know if Tim is staff or freelancer.
So let’s go to someone who does, Tim obligingly responded to The Daily Cartoonist’s query:
I am freelance at the Post Gazette. However, the arrangement I have with the paper is that my ‘toons will run every Thursday, Friday and Sunday. I have been a self-syndicated cartoonist in PA for 40 years and my ‘toons appear in papers all over the State. I am also an actor, and have had a 40 year career in Theatre, film and commercial work, including 2 Broadway shows. I also perform assembly programs for schools. What I do is like stand-up comedy storytelling for children. I know it sounds like a lot, but when you’re in the Arts in Pittsburgh, and want to make a living, I’ve found that having my hands in all sorts of ‘Arts’ is helpful.
Tim announced the change on January 7, 2023 on his Facebook page:
Well, it’s official. For those of you that didn’t like Steve Kelly as the Editorial Cartoonist for the Pittsburgh Post Gazette, I am now the official cartoonist for the paper. I will still be syndicated to newspapers across PA, but my signature will have the Post Gazette name attached to each cartoon.
I don’t know if it is by editorial fiat or because he is a lifelong area resident but Tim draws a lot more local issues than Steve did, though Tim does go national too. (It would seem Tim was engaged for just such a purpose.)
Steve Kelley‘s last cartoon in the Post-Gazette (via newspapers.com) was the December 15, 2022 issue though he was adding the PP-G slug to his cartoons until December 31, 2022. For a few cartoons in January 2023 the slug read “Block News Alliance” (see below), but since January 11, 2023 only Creators Syndicate is credited.
Steve signed on as the Post-Gazette’s editorial cartoonist in 2018.
Steve continues political cartooning as well as working on his and Jeff Parker’s Dustin comic strip.
Going through the Post-Gazette archives at newspapers.com shows Tim Hartman’s first cartoon in the paper on October 29, 2022 (I didn’t go farther back than October ’22). In November he made occasional appearances as Steve remained the main cartoonist. In December of 2022 the roles reversed with Tim getting more appearances to Steve’s few.
hat tip to Drawing Fire. America’s Political Cartoonists Facebook whose notice sent me on the research bender