Archive for the 'Cartooning & comics' Category

Portland Opera’s Production of “Candide”

Thursday, May 10th, 2012 by Barry Deutsch

So I had the great pleasure of being invited to see a dress rehearsal of the Portland Opera’s production of Candide. So much fun! The show is hilarious, just a little bit dirty, and incredibly cynical, and the performances were all terrific. I think Candide is one of those operas that even folks who don’t usually like Opera would like, so if you’re in Portland I recommend checking it out.

I didn’t have time to do illustrations as elaborate as I’ve done for past Portland Opera productions, so I did caricatures of four of the characters in the show. I’m pretty pleased with how Pangloss came out.

Also, be sure to check out the #pdxcandide tag on twitter to get links to the drawings by all the other Portland cartoonists who were invited!

candide-by-barry
candide-cunegonde-by-barry
candide-pangloss-by-barry
candide-theoldlady-by-barry

Cartoon: Really Good Careers

Tuesday, April 3rd, 2012 by Barry Deutsch

Description of cartoon: The cartoon shows a woman holding a child’s hand, in a fairly dismal-looking city area, standing on a sidewalk at the entrance to a building. Above the entrance is a sign that says “Really Good Careers.” To the right of the entrance, a smaller sign says “An equal opportunity employer.” The entrance is shaped like a male silhouette; it seems apparent that the woman and her child could not fit through the entrance.

Which grotesque drawings should I make into prints?

Thursday, March 29th, 2012 by Barry Deutsch

I want to select six of these drawings to turn into prints to sell at comic book convention appearances.

Which ones do you think should be included, or definitely not included? Opinions eagerly sought.

Print 1
Print 2
Print 3
Print 4
Print 5
Print 6
Print 7
Print 8
Print 9
Print 10
Print 11
Print 12
Print 13
Print 14
Print 15
Print 16
Print 17

Jean “Moebius” Giraud, 1938-2012

Saturday, March 10th, 2012 by Barry Deutsch

moebius pequeno_pedaço
thing
starbox
moebius1
moebius-arzach-sketch
Moebius-splashing-girls
Arzach0001
Moebius - Free Fall5
40_days_dans_le_d_sert_B_p24
moebius07
04
al_Moebius001_Venise_Celeste
add02
moebius17
WillowMoebius4
40_days_dans_le_d_sert_B_p21
Partie_IV_Fig._1_-_1_-_Moebius
z-27-moeb-15ttts
z-04
z-moebius-harzak1
z-habs1

Political cartoon: See Sue Run

Wednesday, February 8th, 2012 by Barry Deutsch

Script for this comic SelectShow

I largely based the above cartoon on this table:

Percentage of Program Beneficiaries Who Report They “Have Not Used a Government Social Program”
Program “No, Have Not Used a Government Social Program”
529 or Coverdell 64.3
Home Mortgage Interest Deduction 60.0
Hope or Lifetime Learning Tax Credit 59.6
Student Loans 53.3
Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit 51.7
Earned Income Tax Credit 47.1
Social Security—Retirement & Survivors 44.1
Pell Grants 43.1
Unemployment Insurance 43.0
Veterans Benefits (other than G.I. Bill) 41.7
G.I. Bill 40.3
Medicare 39.8
Head Start 37.2
Social Security Disability 28.7
Supplemental Security Income 28.2
Medicaid 27.8
Welfare/Public Assistance 27.4
Government Subsidized Housing 27.4
Food Stamps 25.4
Source: Suzanne Mettler, “Reconstituting the Submerged State: The Challenge of Social Policy Reform in the Obama Era,” Perspectives on Politics (September 2010): 809. (pdf link)

From The Baseline Scenario:

Mettler distinguishes between visible federal programs, such as Pell Grants and Social Security, which are administered by government agencies and therefore are more recognizable as government programs, and submerged programs such as the mortgage interest deduction or 529 accounts. She found that the more visible programs a person uses, “the more likely he or she was to agree that government had helped in times of need.” Benefiting from submerged programs, however, had no impact on people’s perception that the government had helped them—even in the case of things like HOPE or Lifetime Learning tax credits, which help people pay for eduction. In fact, “the greater the number of tax breaks an individual had benefited from, the more likely he or she was to disagree that government had provided opportunities for an improved standard of living” (pp. 41–43, emphasis added). (This is after controlling for socio-economic characteristics.)

In short, the way our government currently distributes goodies makes it possible for people to think that they are paragons of individual self-reliance while still being enormous beneficiaries of other people’s tax dollars. That explains a lot about politics today.

I’m contemplating changing the wording of the final panel. Right now, it seems too much like a slam on the Tea Party, whereas what I really want to criticize is broader than just the Tea Party.

UPDATE: Alternative ending.

Cartoon: The Ten Stupidest Objections to the Occupy Wall Street Movement

Monday, November 14th, 2011 by Barry Deutsch

Script for this comic SelectShow

Political Cartoon: When I Get Thin

Friday, November 4th, 2011 by Barry Deutsch

Script for this comic SelectShow

Top Ten Ways Teachers’ Unions Caused The Economic Crisis (Political Cartoon)

Friday, October 28th, 2011 by Barry Deutsch

Script for this comic SelectShow

New Cartoon: Government To The Rescue!

Monday, October 10th, 2011 by Barry Deutsch

Script for this comic SelectShow

It’s frustrating that in times like these, governments tend to make things worse by pursing austerity programs, laying off huge numbers of government employees, etc..

Political cartoon: The End Of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell

Saturday, October 8th, 2011 by Barry Deutsch

Script for this comic SelectShow

Don’t get me wrong — I’m thrilled about the end of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell. We should celebrate. But we shouldn’t forget that the work ain’t done.

Transgender American Veteran’s Association (TAVA) president Monica Helms wrote:

On this day of celebration, TAVA has one request for all of those who will be cheering and partying. We ask that everyone take a moment of silence to acknowledge that the fight is not over. A moment of silence for all of those trans people who will still face discharge when being outed.

Take a moment to remember the trans people who gave their lives in silence to protect this country. TAVA stands in solidarity with our brothers and sisters in celebrating this historical day. All we ask is for them to stand in solidarity with the trans community in our struggle to end ALL discrimination in the US military. The fight is not over.