How About Never—Is Never Good for You?

December 16, 2013
Mankoff’s (The Naked Cartoonist) memoir of life as the cartoon editor of the New Yorker, how he got there, and what he has seen and learned along the way, is a must-read for devotees of the magazine and is as funny as the best of his own work. The title is taken from what Mankoff calls “by far the most popular cartoon” he’s ever done, one that has become part of the American vernacular: a businessman talking into a telephone while looking at his appointment book, who says, “No, Thursday’s out. How about never—is never good for you?” Mankoff traces his career from his youth in New York City, when the fluent Yiddish spoken by his mother—a language “combining aggression, friendliness, and ambiguity, a basic recipe for humor”—heavily influenced him. The book generously displays New Yorker cartoons by Mankoff and others from earlier (Peter Arno, Charles Addams) and contemporary (Roz Chast and Bruce Eric Kaplan) generations of artists. In this way, How About Never serves up not only a mini-collection of great cartoons but also as a look at the shift in styles through the editorships of legendary William Shawn, Tina Brown, and current editor David Remnick. Mankoff also provides a very funny and insightful look at how to win the New Yorker cartoon caption contest.

February 15, 2014
Part glib memoir and part cartoon anthology from the cartoon editor for the New Yorker. The most fascinating part takes readers inside the process of just how these cartoons are inspired, created and selected for publication. Mankoff (The Naked Cartoonist: Ways to Enhance Your Creativity, 2002) knows how tough it can be for an artist to achieve that career pinnacle and what an honor it is to be a regular contributor--particularly now that so many other publications that might have provided a similar market for cartoonists have either folded or no longer use the drawings. It's also a precarious position: "I think every cartoonist--indeed, everyone who's funny for money--fears that either they'll stop being funny or whoever decides what's funny will think they have. Little did I know that one day I'd be in the whoever role." Breezy text alternates with lots of cartoons--the author's own and others'--as he details how he went from years of being rejected by the New Yorker to his early acceptances to his current role as a gatekeeper. As Mankoff notes, the magazine makes that gate difficult to penetrate, with those under contract expected to deliver 10 or so cartoons every week so that maybe one might be selected. After starting from that prescreened 1,000 per week, he writes, "eventually I cull the pile down to fifty or so" and then take those to the weekly Wednesday meeting, where editor David Remnick will ultimately pass judgment on which 17 or so will be published. Mankoff offers a number of tips on the "intelligent humor" that makes it into the New Yorker--and even how to better your odds in the weekly caption process--but the one that trumps all others: "Make David Remnick laugh." Those who aspire to a career drawing for the New Yorker will find this essential reading--or just give up.

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March 1, 2014
Mankoff was close to earning a PhD in psychology when he finally admitted that cartooning was his true calling. He developed his distinctive dot style as a vehicle for his heady sense of humor, had his first cartoon published in the New Yorker in 1977, and has been serving as the magazine's cartoon editor since 1997. In a witty mix of memoir and New Yorker cartoon history exuberantly illustrated with New Yorker cartoons past and present, Mankoff discusses his mother's complicated influence ( Humor thrives on conflict ), how his psychology background helps him understand what makes cartoons funny or thought-provoking, and why he created the Cartoon Bank, which transformed the profession. He also unveils the magazine's cartoon selection process under editors William Shawn, Tina Brown, and David Remnick and describes his own rigorous assessment of 1,000 cartoons a week. Other cartoonists describe their working methods, and Mankoff even offers inside information on the New Yorker's devilishly difficult Cartoon Caption Contest, which the late great movie critic Roger Ebert won in 2011 after 107 tries. A cartoon lover's feast.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2014, American Library Association.)