About Chip Bok
Arthur “Chip” Bok
Through Los Angeles-based Creators Syndicate, Chip Bok’s cartoons appear worldwide in publications including The Times of London, Chicago Tribune, Washington Post, New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Time, and Newsweek. He is a member of the steering committee for The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press in Arlington, Virginia.
Awards & Recognition
Time Magazine: Top 10 Political Cartoons of 2008
The Week Magazine Opinion Awards, Editorial Cartoonist of the Year, 2007
Best Editorial Cartoonist, National Cartoonist Society, 1995, 1999
Best Editorial Cartoonist, Associated Press Society of Ohio, 1992,1996,1999, 2000
Berryman Editorial Cartooning Award (National Press Foundation), 1993
H.L. Mencken Award (Free Press Association), 1993
John Fischetti Award (Columbia College Chicago), 1988
Pulitzer Prize finalist in 1997.
Bok is author of two cartoon history books: Bok! the 9.11 Crisis in Political Cartoons (University of Akron Press, 2002), A Recent History of the United States in Political Cartoons: A Look Bok! (University of Akron Press, 2005).
He and Helen Thomas are co-authors of a children’s book, The Great White House Breakout (Dial Books for Young Readers, 2008), the story of a president’s young son and his escapades throughout Washington D.C.
Chip came from Miami to the Akron Beacon Journal as staff editorial cartoonist in 1987. “Bok” was the title of a weekly cartoon on off beat South Florida issues such as snakes, bugs and strangler figs drawn for the Miami Herald’s Sunday magazine, Tropic, in 1985 and 86. He illustrated Dave Barry’s column for the same publication 1982-84. At the time, he also was a graphic designer for Viewtron, Knight Ridder’s early entry in the online business from 1983-86. As a graphic designer there he gained experience with very low speed computer animation. Prior to Viewtron he was staff editorial cartoonist for the Clearwater, Florida Sun (1981-1982).
In 1991 Bok’s editorial cartoons appeared in animated form on PBS stations in Cleveland, Dayton, Atlanta, and West Palm Beach. He was the 2000 Silha Lecturer at the University of Minnesota School of Journalism and Mass Communication.
Bok is a graduate of the University of Dayton. He lives in Akron, Ohio, with his wife, Deborah. They have four children.
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Mr. Bok,
More often than not I enjoy your political cartoons but this latest example of your work befuddled me completely. I forwarded it to 26 friends with the message you see below. 19 have responded to date, all experiencing much the same confusion as I. If it makes any difference, that group is pretty closely divided blue and red on the political spectrum today.
John Burns
john1512burns@gmail.com
Friends:
Good political cartoons by their very nature do not require study or extended thought. Perhaps this one simply is not good since I can’t figure it out after considerable study…and now I am asking for outside assistance!
What I see is the overweight dude rudely sitting on top a student desk. I assume he represents a labor union goon. The teacher introduces him as Luca, who will be visiting the class periodically now since her teacher union dues are no longer collected by the state. The state is Wisconsin but unless the procedure in that state is incredibly unique, her teacher union dues were never collected by the state but were deducted monthly from her paycheck and paid to the union…so is the presence of Luca supposedly to frighten her into paying him her monthly union dues to him?
Walker’s re-election last Tuesday undoubtedly seriously injured…if not outright killed…the teacher’s union in addition to all unions…so what is the message behind this cartoon?
John
Mr. Burns (and friends),
Wisconsin membership in AFSCME dropped from 62,818 in March 2011 to 28,745 in Feb 2012. For the AFT it was 17,000 to 6,000 over the same time period.
The point of the cartoon was that the huge decline in public service union membership, due to the Walker reform ending collection of dues, was the real source of anger for union bosses.
I expect AFSCME dues were collected by the state. In the case of the teachers union I suppose you’re right that the actual dues collector would have been whatever controlling legal authority wrote the paychecks – which sounds even less pithy than saying “the state”.
FYI,on caglecartoons.com, they mistakenly publish your website as bokbuster.com, rather than bokbLuster.com.
It’s a little thing, but you may wish to correct it.
Thanks for the wonderful perspective, insight, humor, and fine artwork, that appear in each and every political cartoon you publish. The American public needs to have the very high standards that you contribute to the political discourse day in and day out.
Peace & blessings,
Ken Mooney
Flying Squirrel cartoon is in real bad taste. You are writing about a 16 year old who is on top to the world and you associate her with a cartoon character.
Drawing is not becoming at all. This is a time of celebration for her and team.
I think your latest “cartoon” is unbelievably insensitive.
miss you since you left abj.i will follow you on internet since I found you.