We Want Playmates We Can Own.

I Have No Sense Of Direction; I Never Know Where I Am. When I Back Up A Car, I'm More Likely To Hit What's Behind Me Than Not, Because I Have No Vision For It. I've Never Been Able To Play Games Or Play Cards Because I Can't In My Head Get The Next Move. I've Never Been Able To Balance A Checkbook. So There's Some Brain Damage, But It May Be That Very Brain Damage That Allows Me To Do The Work I Do. I've Never Met A Cartoonist Who Isn't Quirky Or Weird In Some Ways.

When I Am Working A Book, I Go Through My Library And Take A Look Through Some Of The Great Cartoonists Of The Past, Like Cliff Sterrett, Who Did "polly And Her Pals," Or Winsor Mccay Who Did "a Little Nemo In Slumberland," And Herriman - And I Just Looked Through These Guys And Looked For Somebody To Steal. You Know, Looked For Who I Could Swipe, Or Turn Into - Who's Work I Will Turn Into My Work. And I Still Use, After All These Years, These Artists As Inspirations. So, Here In My Eighties, I Go Back To When I Was Eight For My Inspiration.

There's Some Brain Damage, But It May Be That Very Brain Damage That Allows Me To Do The Work I Do.

At Sixteen I Was Stupid, Confused And Indecisive. At Twenty-five I Was Wise, Self-confident, Prepossessing And Assertive. At Forty-five I Am Stupid, Confused, Insecure And Indecisive. Who Would Have Supposed That Maturity Is Only A Short Break In Adolescence?

I'm Not Sure About That Role Any Longer. The Role Used To Be To Mix Things Up And I Think To A Great Extent It Still Is, But The Quality Of The Work Of The Political Cartoon Has Been Succeeded By The Wisecrack, The Gag Cartoon, So That The Cartoonist Becomes More Of The Equivalent Of The Jay Leno Monologues, Or David Letterman Monologues.