"Cartooning Texas" presents a century of this state's history through a craft that is one of the nation's liveliest art forms. Few states have enjoyed as rich a history of political cartooning as the great state of Texas. William Sydney (O. Henry) Porter and his depiction of railroad graft, turn-of-the century Tobe Bateman and his trademark goat, Pulitzer Prize winner Ben Sargent--these cartoonists have helped readers understand what this country's changes would mean to them. Even the first cartoon known to have lampooned native son Lyndon Johnson appears in these pages. Their sometimes humorous, always pointed lines have appeared in the "Austin American-Statesman," the "Rolling Stone," the "Houston Post," the "Dallas Morning News," and other state papers. With deft movements of pen across page, they have portrayed the events and personalities that have shaped public life. Lone Star cartoonists have provided a record that will amuse and educate new generations of Texans as well as those who remember the originals.
Maury B. Forman and Robert A. Calvert provide context and explanations for each cartoon and overviews of each decade's main developments in the art.