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W C FIELDS,
CARTOONIST
by Rick Marschall
I have always considered W C Fields to have been one of America's premier humorists of the 20th century. That is, not "merely" a comedian (or juggler, or actor, or radio comedian) but in the ranks of Robert Benchley, James Thurber, and Ring Lardner. Like them, he was a purveyor of the "Little Man" literary school -- depicting the confused guy enduring the slings and arrows of Modern Life.
Mechanization, "labor-saving" devices, impersonal bureaucrats, government regulations (not to mention oppressive relatives and bosses) bedeviled many guys in the 1920s and '30s. These humorists captured the angst in comic ways that others did not -- think Kafka -- and they found audiences, speaking to and for the "Little Man."
That one-half of Fields' persona was the irascible scoundrel or carnival barker made no difference" he honed both personalities superbly. Neither does it matter that perhaps one-half of his lines and scenarios were not written by him. (His longtime partnership with J P McEvoy is one of American letters' great collaborations -- waiting to be explored). (In fact it will be explored in an early number of NEMO Magazine) The point is that Fields recognized a phenomenon; honed its depiction; fine-tuned its presentation; and created, as much as mirrored, a Type that endures.
Among Fields's other "hats" was his surprising activity as a cartoonist.
It cannot truly be said that he was a genius as a caricaturist or cartoonist, yet his talent was above average. He drew frequently in his early days as a comic juggler and vaudeville comedian, often in self-promotional stationery and business cards; or for newspapers in cities along the theatrical circuit. He depicted himself or other players in the troupe.
Even in his last months (he died on Christmas Day, 1946) he drew and hand-colored Christmas cards and sent the self-caricatures to friends.
Here is a sample of his cartoon art from his early career days. He joins a select group of stage-folk who also were decent cartoonists. Roland Young and Fred Gwynne come immediately to mind. (This is a challenge to readers: remind us of others, and share their work!)
