Killed Cartoons #2

Plus My “First Five”

Lately, New Yorker cartoonists have been sharing their “first five” cartoons published in the magazine. For me, this means taking a look back at my older drawing style.

I have a tendency to be overly critical of these drawings—a habit I should probably get over. Just yesterday, in a Substack Live with Jason Chatfield, I said the older work reminds me of an insecure actor who doesn’t know what to do, so he does too much. In retrospect, that’s a little harsh. This style has its own peculiar charm, as seen in the very first cartoon I published in October of 2004.

I’m not as happy with the second published drawing, though the weirdness of the style does suit the material.

The third still looks good to me, mainly because I took a certain amount of care with the characters and composition.

The fourth is my maybe favorite of the ones done in the old style.

The fifth I wish I could go back in time and redraw.

That pig needs to be more piggy and less dog-like.

Why I changed styles is a topic for a future post, but I will say it had to do with my finished cartoons meeting the same fate as this one and being killed by the magazine before publication.

Many of these early killed cartoons are lost, due to a mailing mix-up that I enjoy blaming entirely on my friend, former assistant cartoon editor Marc Philippe Eskenazi. Two that survive as roughs will battle it out in this week’s…

The first contender is called No, Einstein.

The challenger, though killed by the New Yorker, found a second life as an episode of Pale Force. It’s Tuque a Chance.

Noth Things is proud to announce the winner of last month’s Tournament of Champions: Cards on the Table.

If you enjoy my cartoons, please order my first collection, I Am Going to Eat You… And Other Awkward Truths, available October 13th. If you would like this cool signed bookplate, please email your mailing address to paul@paulnoth.com.

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