[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 1 (Wednesday, January 3, 1996)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E6-E7]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




    TRIBUTE TO A HALF-CENTURY OF HERBLOCK--POLITICAL CARTOONIST AND 
                          POLITICAL CONSCIENCE

                                 ______


                            HON. TOM LANTOS

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Wednesday, January 3, 1996

  Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, this past Sunday the Washington Post 
dedicated the Outlook Section of the newspaper to its outstanding 
editorial cartoonist, Herb Block--Herblock--in appropriate recognition 
of his 50 years of cartooning for the Post. In 1946 Herb accepted the 
offer to join the Washington Post, and for the past half-century, we 
have been blessed or--at least in the view of some--cursed with his 
wit, his humor, and his principles.
  The selection of his cartoons from the past 50 years, which was 
included in the Outlook Section, brought back memories of the high 
points and low points of the political history of our Nation. Looking 
through these cartoons has brought Herb's wonderful gift into dramatic 
perspective for me. With a few well drawn lines and a few well chosen 
words, he has the ability to convey the essence of an entire complex 
political issue and highlight the absurdities and inconsistencies.
  But the laughter is never at the expense of the message. This is not 
humor for the sake of humor, but wit with a point. I admire Herb's 
humor, but even more I admire his principles. His cartoons always 
reflect his strongly held point of view, and I must say that most of 
the time I am in perfect agreement with him.
  Mr. Speaker, a few years ago when I was chairman of the House 
subcommittee conducting the investigation of fraud and mismanagement at 
the Department of Housing and Urban Development, Herb did a number of 
delightful and insightful cartoons about the HUD scandal. At that time, 
I invited Herb to join me for lunch at the Member's dining room. We 
spent a delightful hour or more talking about his background and 
highlights of his career. He mentioned then that he generally avoids 
spending time with those of us whom he cartoons, but I was delighted 
that he made an exception for me that day. It was an engaging 
experience that I still remember fondly.
  Mr. Speaker, we in the Congress seem to find ourselves the frequent 
focus of Herb's sharp wit and his sharper pen. This past year, and 
particularly these past 19 days of Government shutdown, have provided 
him with abundant material, which he has exploited with this typical 
skill. In the past few days, as well as throughout the last half-
century, Herb's humor and his principled point of view are important in 
keeping political issues in perspective. If this were Japan, I am 
certain that Herblock would be officially declared a ``National 
Treasure.'' He is a national treasure, and I invite my colleagues to 
join me in paying tribute to him for his contribution to our national 
political debate and to the strength of our democracy.
  Mr. Speaker, Kate Graham--the chairman of the Executive Committee of 
the Washington Post Co. who has had extensive experience and frequent 
exasperation with Herb--paid homage to Herblock in a wonderful column 
in Sunday's Outlook. I ask that her column be placed in the Record, and 
I urge my colleagues to read it.

               [From the Washington Post, Dec. 31, 1995]

     A Tiger by the Tail--the Turbulent Pleasures of Life With Herb

                         (By Katharine Graham)

       My mother had a saying: ``Any man worth marrying is 
     impossible to live with.'' Why does this make me think of my 
     glorious life and times with Herblock, one of the greatest 
     ornaments to The Post and to all of journalism? Underneath 
     his genius for cartooning and writing lies a modest, sweet, 
     aw-shucks personality. Underneath that lies a layer of iron 
     and steel. For the publishers and editors over him--or under 
     him, as it would be more accurate to say--it's like having a 
     tiger by the tail.
       Herb started out in his hometown of Chicago doing editorial 
     cartoons for the Chicago Daily News in 1929. Four years later 
     he became a syndicated editorial cartoonist for the Newspaper 
     Enterprise Association Service in Cleveland, where he won the 
     first of his three Pulitzer Prizes.
       When World War II came along, Herb went into the Army and 
     produced and edited a feature service for Army newspapers. 
     After the war, Herb was passing through Washington. A chance 
     encounter led to a meeting with my father, Eugene Meyer, who 
     happened to be desperately looking for a cartoonist for The 
     Post. Herb provided a few samples and in return, my father 
     gave Herb a subscription to the paper. ``So you can see how 
     you like us,'' my father explained.
       Evidently the attraction was mutual. Herb arrived at The 
     Post the same week that my husband, Phil Graham, arrived in 
     January of 1946. The extraordinary quality of Herb's eye, his 
     insights and sharp comments immediately stood out. When The 
     Post was struggling for its existence, Herb was one of its 
     major assets, as he has been throughout his 50 years here. 
     The Post and Herblock are forever intertwined. If The Post is 
     his forum, he helped create it. And he has been its shining 
     light.
       Herb fought for and earned a unique position at the paper: 
     one of complete independence of anybody and anything. 
     Journalistic enterprises run best when writers and editors 
     have a lot of autonomy. But Herb's case is extreme. And 
     because he's a genius, it works.
       Since he arrived at The Post, five editors and five 
     publishers all have learned a cardinal rule: Don't mess with 
     Herb. He's just as tough within the confines of The Post as 
     he is in the political world outside.
       Herb's independence evolved gradually. In the early years, 
     he made several sketches for the day's cartoon and dutifully 
     submitted them to the editorial page editor to choose. When 
     the editor was away, Herb began showing them to a preferred 
     group of reporters and editorial writers whose opinions he 
     valued. Gradually, the editor's role was dropped altogether.
       Of course, this has produced a few tense moments. In 1952, 
     during the Eisenhower-Stevenson campaign, The Post endorsed 
     Ike, but Herb supported Stevenson and continued to jab away 
     at the general. Which point of view do you think made the 
     bigger impression with readers? Finally, Herb's cartoon was 
     dropped by the paper for the last days of the campaign. Since 
     his work continued to be syndicated in other papers, The Post 
     looked silly. The Washington Daily News ran a headline: 
     ``Where's Mr. Block? One of D.C.'s Top Draw-ers Is Missing.''
       Even earlier, Phil protested Herb's cartoons on Congress. 
     He feared they made The Post look as though it was ridiculing 
     and undermining the strength of that institution. ``I think 
     we should put that little `Congress' character back in the 
     ink bottle,'' Phil wrote.
       Back came three eloquent pages from Herb including, ``When 
     a majority of Congress fails to act, or acts badly, I think 
     it's fair to be critical of Congress.''
       I too sometimes opened the paper and gasped at Herb's 
     cartoons, particularly during Watergate when we were so 
     embattled on all fronts. But I had learned not to interfere. 
     And anyway, most of the time we're on the same wavelength. 
     Even when we aren't, I should confess, I generally find 
     myself laughing uproariously at the cartoon that has caused 
     my apprehension. In this sense, Herb always wins.
       Herb studies events and reacts to them in his own way. His 
     point of view is liberal, and his instincts are common-
     sensical. But his common sense has a special twist. As 
     economist Ken Galbraith once put it: ``While Herb appreciates 
     virtue, his real interest is in awfulness.'' His mind turns 
     to the rascals, the phonies and the frauds. He has pursued 
     them for 50 years without ever flagging except for time taken 
     off for a couple of heart attacks and operations. But these 
     ordeals were probably nothing compared with the distress he 
     has caused a number of other people, such as President Nixon 
     and Sen. Joseph McCarthy. It was Herb who is said to have 
     coined the term McCarthyism, using it on a tar barrel.
       Herb's unique ability to crystalize what is right--or, more 
     likely, wrong--about an issue or a person has often 
     influenced the course of events in Washington. Naturally, the 
     strength and impact of his cartoons often provoke strong 
     reactions from readers who disagree. Part of the job of Post 
     publishers is to defend Herb and the paper from these 
     reactions.
       ``Since Herblock is the most gifted political cartoonist of 
     our times,'' Phil wrote one reader, ``by definition he 
     therefore cannot be an organization man. Being an old 
     reactionary and individualist, I am all for people who simply 
     have to be individualistic. . . . I think--though it will 
     amaze you--that Herblock probably considers himself 
     frustrated and suffocated by our policy.''
       I too have written my share of explanatory letters. One, in 
     1989, said that to cartoon is to caricature, and people who 
     are very gifted at cartooning sometimes offend. ``Most of the 
     time, however, cartoons illuminate or amuse,'' the letter 
     went on to say. I doubt the irate reader was completely 
     satisfied, but the statement, I believe, is true.
     
[[Page E7]]

       As Herb begins his second 50 years at The Post, he has lost 
     none of his dynamic energy and original insight. He is going 
     as strong as ever and, as a matter of fact, has just 
     published his 12th book. It's about his cat Bella and, as 
     usual, it's just wonderful. Herb does caricature the cat, but 
     I don't think Don Graham and Meg Greenfield will hear from 
     her in protest.
       In fact, Bella has proven she's more than a match for Herb. 
     For example, she is known to complain about Herb's legendary 
     propensity to live in a rat's nest of old newspapers and 
     magazines, discarded clothes and paint brushes and pencils. 
     ``We cats are neat,'' Bella is alleged to have said, while 
     frowning on those who are not.
       Now maybe Herb knows what it feels like to have a cat by 
     the tail. It's a privilege, a pleasure and an honor we all 
     have loved and treasured.

                          ____________________