The blog of Richard Thompson, caricaturist, creator of "Cul de Sac," and winner of the 2011 Reuben Award for Outstanding Cartoonist of the Year.

Wednesday, January 9, 2013

100 Years of NIxon

This originally ran in 2011. I'm putting it up because today's Nixon's 100th birthday, and because I'm lazy.
Richard Nixon was the cartoonists' president, so here are ten drawings of him. Most of these are roughs I did for a New Yorker story that ran the year he died.
 He had so many caricaturable parts and tics and postures that any president since has been a let down, almost. The arms in the air victory pose is a good place to start, so here are several of them.
 This was a rough for a children's history book and it illustrated an ingenious rhyme by Carol Diggory Shields.
 Okay, so it gets repetitive, but I like the hands.
 Another NYer rough, this one with a Marley's Ghost angle.
 This one also for the NYer, showing him older and more pensive.
 The rough above is the one the NYer chose, and this is the rough sketch for the rough sketch.
 The final looked almost exactly like this, though I trimmed the nose down some and tilted the drawing to the right (note the horizon line). My favorite of the roughs I sent in for this story is the first one in this post, with his hands clasped.
 Here's a rough for another NYer story, dealing with the reactions of various Republican politicians to Nixon's passing and his legacy. Pete Wilson and Bob Dole choke up at the end of a Nixon movie.
A color piece for US News & World Report. I forget the exact point of the story it illustrated, but the pot full of tapes provides a clue.

5 comments:

Miss Lisa said...

I liked his clasped hands too. Like he's holding his soul in there.

Mister Fweem said...

Nixon is truly a fascinating character.

David Hagen said...

"Er..erm...I'm not a COOK."

gilda92 said...

Lordee! These _do_ bring the man back to memory! The roughs are so good I'm shuddering all over again.
Your talent is extraordinary!

pq said...

That last one in the kitchen is my favorite.

On another note, so loving seeing your Poor Almanac online. And laughing today to see weatherman Bob Ryan featured once again. Are y'all friends or do you just have a humorous obsession with him? :-)