It's 63 degrees outside on a January afternoon in New York City as I write this, so it seems the perfect time to review cartoonist Sidney Harris’ new book “101 Funny Things About Global Warming.”
Even though the effects and serious consequences of global warming have been known for a long time, it has once again become a national priority with many articles and documentaries flooding the media with dire predictions. The cartoons in this book, however, tackle this subject with humor. It’s an approach that manages to effectively combine laughter with sense of urgency, a welcome respite from the preachiness.
A cartoon by Sidney Harris shows two urbanites walking down a sidewalk with the caption, “They say it’s a bad sign when the pigeons are coughing.”
Another by Warren Miller depicts two Eskimos looking out over a body of water with the caption, “We’ll have to start looking at senior citizens homes. There’s not enough ice these days to float Grandma.”
There’s also an excellent series of sketches by Sidney that parody public figures, mostly politicians, and their often dismissive attitudes about the environment and conservation. A sketch of Gale Norton, former U.S. Secretary of the Interior, who was criticized for making misleading reports regarding the environment and other issues, is captioned, “Forests and rangelands have grown like a cancer.”
This little hardcover gem contains a hundred and one cartoons on the subject by many of today’s top cartoonists including Playboy magazine contributors Gahan Wilson, Mort Gerberg, Nick Downes, Jack Ziegler, Mike Williams, Ed Frascino, Glen Le Lievre, Lee Lorenz, Joseph Farris, Warren Miller and, as noted, Sidney Harris, whose first Playboy cartoon appeared in 1961. Keep your eyes peeled for the March 2008 issue where his latest cartoon will appear.
