Cartoons and the Funny Papers

Charles Shultz, creator of the "Peanuts" comic strip said, "If I were a better artist, I'd be a painter, and if I were a better writer, I'd write books…but I'm not, so I draw cartoons!" Oh, but how those cartoons have entertained us over the years!

Americans especially love cartoons and comic strips. It's not a uniquely American entertainment medium, but Americans have managed to give cartoons and comic strips standing in the artistic community and in the entertainment industry unlike any other country on earth.

Scott Adams draws the "Dilbert" comic strip. Adams, through his character (perhaps alter ego) has given Americans words and sayings over the years that have become part of the national vocabulary. Does anybody here not know what YSLE (You Stupid Lemon Eater) or BOCTAOE (But of course there are obvious exceptions) mean? Yes, Scott Adams entertains us!

We can't talk about cartoons without mentioning Walt Disney. Disney said, "Fantasy, if it's really convincing can't become dated for the simple reason that it represents a flight into a dimension that lies beyond the reach of time." Yes, indeed. Mr. Disney certainly did make fantasy timeless!

Bob Kane gave is Batman, Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster gave us Superman, Stan Lee and Steve Ditko gave us Spiderman.

Berkeley Breathed created the comic strips "Bloom County" and "Outland." They hilariously combine silly humor with social commentary. Breathed won the Pulitzer Prize for cartooning in 1987.

Bill Watterson's comic strip "Calvin and Hobbes" (the world as seen through the eyes of a six-year-old) makes all of us laugh!

Garfield, a fat, lazy, lasagna-loving, cynical cat came from the imagination of Jim Davis! Who doesn't love Garfield? We all know a living, breathing, human version of Garfield.

Cartoons and funny papers make us laugh. That's entertainment!