Distinctive New Yorker cartoonist Leo Cullum passed away over the weekend. He had published four cartoon collections, including in 2009.
The cartoonist served as a TWA pilot for 30 years before retiring to work as an artist. He once explained the transition: “I would draw during my layovers and on my days off from flying, so it really wasn’t much of an adjustment, except that I wasn’t drawing in Paris or Rome anymore.”
The NY Times has a great collection of Cullum cartoons. In an interview, Cullum once explained why he loved working for the magazine: The New Yorker pays attention to the cartoons just as they do the articles. The cartoons are not an afterthought, but an equal part of the equation, and they expect the best. Many people will begin reading the magazine’s cartoons before they get in the habit of reading the magazine from cover to cover … Other magazines just use them as filler.”