I Never Sound Dumber Than When I Speak
A few years ago a college student interviewed me for a project that I can only imagine was titled "Trudeau Wouldn't Return My Calls So I Had to Settle For This No-Name Cartoonist Instead. Please Forgive Me." Shortly after the interview the student sent me a transcript of our conversation for corrections or—bless their soul—complete rewrites and to say that I was shocked by what I read is an understatement.
Now, I am rather shy and have always been a lot more forthcoming in print than in person, but until I read the transcript I at least had the impression that I spoke in a manner that did not recall Jodie Foster in the first act of "Nell." How very, very wrong I was. According to the "raw feed" I not only have a tendency to switch subjects in mid-sentence but also in mid-syllable. I mumble more than Marlon Brando as Kurtz. I say the exact same thing three different ways, each more incoherent than the last. And for someone reticent to open his mouth in public, I apparently think an interview is the perfect venue to joke about cross-dressing.
The following are a few excerpts from that transcript because, God knows, you would not want to read the whole thing. They have not been edited in any way. Once again, allow me to stress that this was a recorded interview, not an email exchange (thus allowing me to maintain some small sense of false dignity). And although this may go without saying, please note that the opinions stated in the interview are mine and mine alone and do not represent those of my employer.
Q: Tell me a little about the comic strip.
FM: Uh, I’d rather not, under these circumstances…okay, Sally Forth is syndicated by King Features. It’s been running since approximately 1980. The subject matter is a working wife and mom, so the comic strip covers both her experiences in the office and at home. It currently runs in about 750 newspapers, as far as Iceland, actually, where it seems to enjoy some popularity to a degree that I can’t understand––but then again they like Bjork. But then again so do I. And Sigur Ros. I really should visit Iceland sometime.
Q. What’s it like to be writing from a woman’s perspective?
FM: Well, I’ve been doing the whole woman’s perspective since I was four, with the dress and … it was a little daunting at first until I realized that I couldn’t do the comic strip from a woman’s perspective, because that would ring false. I’m never going to be able to write a strip from the woman’s perspective. It just can’t happen. And, I thought if I tried writing the strip from a woman’s perspective that would more-or-less just flatten out the character. She would be the voice for all working women. And quite frankly that would be, excuse the term, bullshit. She can’t be the voice of an entire generation; she can’t be the voice of entire group of people, because she would end-up becoming a stereotype. So I think I managed to avoid that difficulty by writing it from this particular character’s perspective--from Sally Forth’s experiences rather than from ALL working woman’s experiences. It’s kind of an out for me, but I think it also helps the character. I think. Jesus, I hope so.
Q. Is there any one particular complaint that you keep hearing from readers of the strip?
FM: Well, "not funny" is perhaps the greatest complaint. It depends. A lot of people take comic strips rather personally. Unfortunately, the email one usually receives is negative. At least that’s the theory I’m gonna cling to, because I would hate to think other people are getting happy email and I’m getting death threats. There’s a certain group of people that want to identify with the character in some way and wish the character would mirror their own life more. Apparently, I guess when they yell at the character on the printed page, and the character doesn’t flinch or yell back, they take the next logical step and they write to me. And I think they go "Well I don’t agree with this because this isn’t the experience I had with my boss." An email I got was: "I don’t understand why Sally Forth is working in an office when, like me…" and this is an actual quote "… me, I went back to school. Why isn’t Sally Forth going back to school?" Well, this is a comic strip about a working mom and wife, and that doesn’t exactly work if she’s learning about 18th century agrarian politics in college and getting a graduate degree. I’m assuming she would get a more practical degree, but that’s the sort of thing I’d do if I went for a graduate degree, unfortunately.
Q. Are there things the fans really like about the strip?
FM: I do get positive email, often, again, when it mirrors their own experiences. Like: " I like the way Sally handles her boss, and so and so. I like the way Sally deals with finances; I like the way Ted cowers." You know, just various things that they like. Overall, I think they like the fact that there’s a comic strip from a particular woman’s perspective, oddly enough written by a man. But at least it’s a strip about a strong personality, who is female, who can handle things both at home, and at the office, which of course, 99 percent of all working women can do that. But unfortunately in the comic strips you never see that. You see women who apparently…well…you see Cathy, and Cathy, I think, is a poor representation for woman to deal with in the comic strips: a whiney person who is worried about her weight and worried about landing a man. Sally Forth is someone who, for lack of a better term, has gotten her shit together. She’s a career woman. She’s an equal partner in a relationship. She’s an equal partner in her office, and she’s a strong character that people can identify with, and I get a lot of email to that regard. My mom writes a lot.
Q. What do you see as the future of comic strips?
FM: Holograms. Actually, often, you look at it and you think there is no future to comic strips. They’re shrunk down. They run alongside a tire ad, which is three times the size. There are strips running that maybe should have been taken away a long time ago, the Apartment 3-Gs and such. You have some that say "later that same day" and it’s fifty years later, so apparently some strips need time to develop. The greatest obstacle to the future of comic strips is blandness. But I think that’s the case in most mediums. That said, I’m not gonna maintain that Sally Forth is the arbiter of all that is edgy and all that is cultural and all that is enlightened…Jesus, what the fuck have I done to that poor strip?
Q. What are the chances that Sally Forth will "jump the shark"?
FM: Actually, oddly enough, there is going to be a plot in about two weeks where Sally Forth does jump a shark. It will be very much like Fonzie's jump, except in a Ford.
Q. If heaven exists, what do you hope God says when you arrive?
FM: "Here are the keys. Beer's in the fridge."
Now, I am rather shy and have always been a lot more forthcoming in print than in person, but until I read the transcript I at least had the impression that I spoke in a manner that did not recall Jodie Foster in the first act of "Nell." How very, very wrong I was. According to the "raw feed" I not only have a tendency to switch subjects in mid-sentence but also in mid-syllable. I mumble more than Marlon Brando as Kurtz. I say the exact same thing three different ways, each more incoherent than the last. And for someone reticent to open his mouth in public, I apparently think an interview is the perfect venue to joke about cross-dressing.
The following are a few excerpts from that transcript because, God knows, you would not want to read the whole thing. They have not been edited in any way. Once again, allow me to stress that this was a recorded interview, not an email exchange (thus allowing me to maintain some small sense of false dignity). And although this may go without saying, please note that the opinions stated in the interview are mine and mine alone and do not represent those of my employer.
Q: Tell me a little about the comic strip.
FM: Uh, I’d rather not, under these circumstances…okay, Sally Forth is syndicated by King Features. It’s been running since approximately 1980. The subject matter is a working wife and mom, so the comic strip covers both her experiences in the office and at home. It currently runs in about 750 newspapers, as far as Iceland, actually, where it seems to enjoy some popularity to a degree that I can’t understand––but then again they like Bjork. But then again so do I. And Sigur Ros. I really should visit Iceland sometime.
Q. What’s it like to be writing from a woman’s perspective?
FM: Well, I’ve been doing the whole woman’s perspective since I was four, with the dress and … it was a little daunting at first until I realized that I couldn’t do the comic strip from a woman’s perspective, because that would ring false. I’m never going to be able to write a strip from the woman’s perspective. It just can’t happen. And, I thought if I tried writing the strip from a woman’s perspective that would more-or-less just flatten out the character. She would be the voice for all working women. And quite frankly that would be, excuse the term, bullshit. She can’t be the voice of an entire generation; she can’t be the voice of entire group of people, because she would end-up becoming a stereotype. So I think I managed to avoid that difficulty by writing it from this particular character’s perspective--from Sally Forth’s experiences rather than from ALL working woman’s experiences. It’s kind of an out for me, but I think it also helps the character. I think. Jesus, I hope so.
Q. Is there any one particular complaint that you keep hearing from readers of the strip?
FM: Well, "not funny" is perhaps the greatest complaint. It depends. A lot of people take comic strips rather personally. Unfortunately, the email one usually receives is negative. At least that’s the theory I’m gonna cling to, because I would hate to think other people are getting happy email and I’m getting death threats. There’s a certain group of people that want to identify with the character in some way and wish the character would mirror their own life more. Apparently, I guess when they yell at the character on the printed page, and the character doesn’t flinch or yell back, they take the next logical step and they write to me. And I think they go "Well I don’t agree with this because this isn’t the experience I had with my boss." An email I got was: "I don’t understand why Sally Forth is working in an office when, like me…" and this is an actual quote "… me, I went back to school. Why isn’t Sally Forth going back to school?" Well, this is a comic strip about a working mom and wife, and that doesn’t exactly work if she’s learning about 18th century agrarian politics in college and getting a graduate degree. I’m assuming she would get a more practical degree, but that’s the sort of thing I’d do if I went for a graduate degree, unfortunately.
Q. Are there things the fans really like about the strip?
FM: I do get positive email, often, again, when it mirrors their own experiences. Like: " I like the way Sally handles her boss, and so and so. I like the way Sally deals with finances; I like the way Ted cowers." You know, just various things that they like. Overall, I think they like the fact that there’s a comic strip from a particular woman’s perspective, oddly enough written by a man. But at least it’s a strip about a strong personality, who is female, who can handle things both at home, and at the office, which of course, 99 percent of all working women can do that. But unfortunately in the comic strips you never see that. You see women who apparently…well…you see Cathy, and Cathy, I think, is a poor representation for woman to deal with in the comic strips: a whiney person who is worried about her weight and worried about landing a man. Sally Forth is someone who, for lack of a better term, has gotten her shit together. She’s a career woman. She’s an equal partner in a relationship. She’s an equal partner in her office, and she’s a strong character that people can identify with, and I get a lot of email to that regard. My mom writes a lot.
Q. What do you see as the future of comic strips?
FM: Holograms. Actually, often, you look at it and you think there is no future to comic strips. They’re shrunk down. They run alongside a tire ad, which is three times the size. There are strips running that maybe should have been taken away a long time ago, the Apartment 3-Gs and such. You have some that say "later that same day" and it’s fifty years later, so apparently some strips need time to develop. The greatest obstacle to the future of comic strips is blandness. But I think that’s the case in most mediums. That said, I’m not gonna maintain that Sally Forth is the arbiter of all that is edgy and all that is cultural and all that is enlightened…Jesus, what the fuck have I done to that poor strip?
Q. What are the chances that Sally Forth will "jump the shark"?
FM: Actually, oddly enough, there is going to be a plot in about two weeks where Sally Forth does jump a shark. It will be very much like Fonzie's jump, except in a Ford.
Q. If heaven exists, what do you hope God says when you arrive?
FM: "Here are the keys. Beer's in the fridge."
posted by Francesco Marciuliano at 6:04 PM
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6 Comments:
You're way too hard on yourself, Ces, this is funny. I do hope that my blog has helped you see the light on the glory and majesty that is Apartment 3-G, though.
jf
ces
Despite my general ramblings and commentary that you know about...you've got my respect, for sure. So don't take what I say too personally....'ceot that if you visit Boca one of these days I hope you give us a call! ;)
I think it's refreshing that despite the fact you are relatively famous --or is infamous the better word-- you don't bullshit about syndicated comic strips, including your own,and yet still find time to keep your deliciously perverse sense of humor.
"I like the way Ted cowers." Jeez people, leave the little puss alone.
Ces,
Sorry, I also thought it was pretty funny. True, you are super clever on the printed page but the interview wasn't that bad. And, as Josh noted, thanks to him Apartment 3-G is required reading in my household. Now, Gil Thorpe on the other hand...death to him!
One of the Cardinals said...
Ha! There's a cross-threader in the midst!
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