Mr. McCutcheon is also an author, having published Stories of Filipino Warfare, and several series of cartoons in book form, as Boy in Springtime Series, and others. As a lecturer he has proved very popular in Lyceum and Chautauqua courses.
It is interesting to know that the dog appearing so often in his earlier cartoons was first introduced merely because there was a space in his picture that needed filling. The same thing happened several times, and when later he made a cartoon without the dog, people wrote and asked him what had become of it.
By permission of Mr. John T. McCutcheon
When Newspapers Are Scarce
George Ade, in his introduction to the Boy in Springtime Series, has summed up Mr. McCutcheon’s qualities as a cartoonist in this way: “Clever execution, gentle humor, considerate treatment of public men, and wisdom in getting away from political subjects and giving us a few pictures of everyday life, which is our real interest.”
Questions about the art. What is the difference between a cartoon and a caricature? How did the word cartoon come to have its present meaning? What kind of a magazine is Punch? Tell something of the early history of caricatures and cartoons. What effect did the invention of the printing press have upon them? Who was the first American caricaturist? Tell about Benjamin Franklin and his newspaper. What magazines publish cartoons now? What is your idea of a good cartoon? What subjects are usually chosen in newspaper cartoons? What good can they do in the world? what harm? What preparation is it necessary for a cartoonist to have? What preparation has Mr. J. T. McCutcheon made for his work? Tell something of his life and his cartoons.
To the Teacher: The lesson may be prepared by assigning subjects to various pupils as follows:
1. Meaning of the Terms Caricature and Cartoon.
2. Events Leading to the New Meaning of the Word Cartoon.
3. The History of Caricatures and Cartoons.