Bob Eckstein’s cartoon is set at a cocktail party, where a large, anthropomorphic red and white pill is holding a glass of wine and chatting with three other guests. Because many medications interact poorly with alcohol, I first had the pill explaining why he could have a cocktail: “You can’t drink if you’re on medication,…
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Caption Contest Commentary
“Surgeon and Potted Plant” Caption Contest Commentary with Lawrence Wood
Many New Yorker cartoons are set in a hospital waiting room, where a surgeon addresses someone who’s anxiously awaiting news of the patient’s condition. Frank Cotham’s surgeon was mercenary: Zachary Kanin’s was desperate for company: And Danny Shanahan’s was well-intentioned but misguided: Shanahan is now back with yet another variation on this scenario, but this…
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“Unicorn Meeting” Caption Contest Commentary with Lawrence Wood
John Klossner’s cartoon is set in a conference room. Three unicorns in business suits are meeting with a man. One of these mythological creatures is holding a document (maybe a report or a resume) and addressing the man. I first imagined they were discussing sales figures and projections: “Are these numbers real?” “If we don’t improve…
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“Tiny House” Caption Contest Commentary with Lawrence Wood
In Jon Adams’s drawing, a bearded man with long white hair is standing barefoot in the doorway of a small house in the woods and saying something to a disgruntled woman who’s walking away with a duffle bag. He looks reluctant to move beyond the doorway, and his left arm is extended back into the…
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“Bucking Chair” Caption Contest Commentary with Lawrence Wood
Teresa Burns Parkhurst’s drawing is challenging. It appears to take place at an art exhibit where a small crowd is watching a woman who’s on a bucking car seat that’s spinning around wildly. The woman’s lost one shoe and her hands are in the air. There’s a seat belt, but it’s unbuckled. It’s not clear…
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“Frog Prince” Caption Contest Commentary with Lawrence Wood
In Carolita Johnson’s cartoon, two women are sitting on a couch and having tea. Behind the woman who’s speaking is a barefoot man squatting on the back of the couch as if he were a frog. The drawing immediately calls to mind the Brothers Grimm’s “The Frog Prince,” or later versions like Disney’s “The Princess…
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