October 1, 2007
Cox and Forkum Take 'Final Bow'
The dynamic editorial cartoon duo of Cox and Forkum have decided to amicably part ways:
With mixed emotions I announce: John and I will no longer be producing editorial cartoons. John will continue posting his work at his blog, John Cox Art, and he and I will continue working together on various projects, but there will be no more regularly scheduled editorial cartoons. The Web site will remain running indefinitely, as a means to market our books and as an archive of our work....In an age when the overwhelming majority of editorial cartoonists are liberal, Cox and Forkum's hilariously funny drawings with a conservative slant were like a breath of fresh air. Their take on the news as well as their poking fun at liberals will be sorely missed.
For better or worse, I've always had to approach the editorial cartoon work as a "part time" career. I never quit my "day job" as co-owner of a small newspaper publishing business. The editorial work, though intellectually rewarding, is not very rewarding financially. Furthermore, researching the cartoons, writing/designing them, managing the blog, publishing the books, marketing them, and running the business side all take an enormous amount of time.
All of that comes with the territory, of course, and John and I have done pretty well over the last six years. We're fairly well known on the Internet, we have a few newspaper and magazine clients, we've self-published four books, and we've made some money, if not a living. But lately, for reasons I won't go into here, I can no longer afford to divert so much time and attention away from my publishing business and other personal concerns, such as my family.
If you're interested in conservative editorial cartoonists, Townhall.Com tracks the best conservative satirists in the country on a daily basis.