What It’s Like Under Thurber’s Spell
I’ve been under Thurber’s spell so long I hardly remember what it was like in the beforetimes. Well, that’s not really true: I remember subconsciously looking for graphic guidance in the pre “Dr. Millmoss” years. Comic books, comic strips, fine artists, underground artists — they all had their inspirational moments. Each helped in some undefined way, to keep my pen moving around paper.
With each, there came a time when I hit a wall: a moment when I knew I could not continue with that particular art. An example or two: I knew early on that being a comic book artist wouldn’t work. I had no patience, no discipline to create the panels, the stories — I felt it would be impossible for me to draw a character exactly the same way throughout a story. I wondered: How does the artist do that (I didn’t realize then that it often takes a number of people to create comic book stories. Hey, I was like ten years old). And forget about fine art: as much as I loved it, loved going to see art, it seemed on the other side of the river to me. The time I spent in my final year of college, painting on canvas using oils — well, it was exasperating. I floundered.
This is where Thurber differed. That first sighting of a Thurber drawing (“Millmoss”) was unlike the beginning of other inspirational paths. I liken it — no joke — to “lift off.” It was that exciting, and that energetic a moment (like hearing The Beatles for the very first time). And here’s the great thing: that feeling has never gone away. the Thurber spell has never been broken — I’ve never wanted it to be. It’s what keeps me fascinated about this New Yorker cartoon “world.”
Of course, not all Thurber cartoons are equal, but I’d argue that a large percentage of his New Yorker drawings are gold. Here’s an example of a Thurber cartoon — mentioned before on this site — that never fails to make my day. It appeared in The New Yorker May 6, 1933. Without pulling it apart to understand why it never fails, I’ll say this: it does not struggle to amuse. It’s as organic a comic moment as they come. It’s something that could have happened, and could still. The gold lies in the woman’s sincerity up against with the man’s unawares. Oh, and of course, the not-so-secret ingredient: Thurber’s “unbaked cookies” style of drawing.
For me, so much of Thurber’s art is a magic trick. I remain intrigued and inspired each and every time I see a Thurber cartoon rabbit pulled out of a Thurber cartoon hat.