Gary Larson
Encyclopedia
Gary Larson is the creator of The Far Side
, a single-panel cartoon series that was syndicated internationally to newspapers for 15 years. The series ended with Larson's retirement on January 1, 1995. His 23 books of collected cartoons have combined sales of more than 45 million copies.
. His parents are Verner, a car salesman, and Doris, a secretary
. He attended Curtis Senior High School
before attending Washington State University
, from which he graduated in 1972 with a degree in communications. In 1987, Larson married Toni Carmichael, an anthropologist and 1972 Safford High School
alumna.
Larson credits his older brother, Dan, for his "paranoid" sense of humor. Dan pulled countless pranks on Gary, taking advantage of his phobia of monsters under the bed by waiting in the closet for the right moment to pounce. He is also credited for nurturing Gary's love of science. They caught animals in Puget Sound
and placed them in terrariums in the basement, even making a small desert ecosystem. Larson's use of snakes in his cartoons stems from his long-standing interest in herpetology
. Dan died of cancer in 1991.
According to Larson in his anthology
, The Prehistory of the Far Side
, he was working in a music store when he took a few days off, after finally realizing how much he hated his job. During that time, he decided to try cartooning and drew six cartoons and submitted them to Pacific Search (now Pacific Northwest Magazine), a Seattle-based magazine. After contributing to another local Seattle paper, in 1979 Larson submitted his work to The Seattle Times
. Under the title Nature’s Way, his work was published weekly next to the Junior Jumble.
To supplement his income, Larson worked for the Humane Society
. Larson soon decided he could increase his income from cartooning by selling his strip to another newspaper. Taking his vacation in San Francisco, Larson pitched his work to the San Francisco Chronicle
. To Larson’s surprise, the Chronicle bought the strip and promoted it for syndication
, renaming it The Far Side. This all occurred a week before The Seattle Times dropped Nature’s Way.
In The Complete Far Side, Larson says that his greatest disappointment in life occurred when he was at a luncheon and sat across from Charles Addams
. Larson was not able to think of a single thing to say to him, and deeply regretted the missed opportunity.
Since retiring from the Far Side, Larson has occasionally done some cartooning work, such as magazine illustrations and promotional artwork for Far Side merchandise.
In 1998 Larson published his first post-Far Side book, There's a Hair in My Dirt!: A Worm's Story, an illustrated story with the Far Side mindset.
Themes in The Far Side were often surreal
, such as “How cows behave when no human watches” or "The unexpected dangers of being an insect." Often, the behavior of supposedly superior humans was compared with animals: surrounded by fences and dense housing, a father explains to his son that a bird song is a territorial marking common to the lower animals. Animals and other creatures were frequently presented anthropomorphically
. For example, one strip depicts a family of spiders driving in a car with a "Have a Nice Day" bumper sticker, featuring a "smiley face" with eight eyes.
One of Larson's more famous cartoons shows a chimpanzee
couple grooming. The female finds a blonde human hair on the male and inquires, "Conducting a little more 'research' with that Jane Goodall
tramp?" The Jane Goodall Institute
thought this was in bad taste, and had their lawyers draft a letter to Larson and his distribution syndicate, in which they described the cartoon as an "atrocity". They were stymied by Goodall herself, who was in Africa at the time, when she returned and saw the cartoon. She stated that she found the cartoon amusing, and later personally met Larson. Since then, all profits from sales of a shirt featuring this cartoon go to the Goodall Institute.
Goodall wrote a preface to The Far Side Gallery 5, detailing her version of the "Jane Goodall Tramp" controversy. She praised Larson's creative ideas, which often compare and contrast the behavior of humans and animals. In 1988, Larson visited Gombe Streams National Park
and was attacked by Frodo, a chimp described by Goodall as a "bully." Larson escaped with cuts and bruises.
Larson's Far Side cartoons were syndicated worldwide and published in many collections. They were reproduced extensively on greeting cards which continue to be popular. Two animated versions
, "Tales from the Far Side
" and "Tales from the Far Side II", were produced for television in 1994 and 1997, respectively.
Larson published a 2007 calendar with all author royalties donated to Conservation International
.
who feels his life is insignificant. The main plot is told by the young worm's father and follows a beautiful (but slightly dim) maiden named Harriet, who takes a stroll across a woodland trail, encountering different aspects of the natural world. She admires it, but knows little about the land around her, and that eventually leads to her downfall. The story ends when the young worm realizes that the hair in his dirt is actually a "Harriet" (a hair from the long dead harriet's body). The story became a New York Times bestseller on May 24, 1998.
in 1985 and 1988. Larson earned the society’s Reuben Award for 1990 and 1994. Larson has been recognized for various individual strips by the National Cartoonist Society in 1989, 1990, 1991, 1993 and 1995.
On March 15, 1989, a newly discovered insect
species was named after Larson by Dale H. Clayton, head of the Committee of Evolutionary Biology at the University of Chicago
. The Strigiphilus garylarsoni
is a biting louse
of a genus
only found on owl
s. Wrote Larson: "I considered this an extreme honor. Besides, I knew no one was going to write and ask to name a new species of swan after me. You have to grab these opportunities when they come along." A 8"x11"
magnification of the insect appeared in the Prehistory of the Far Side 10th anniversary compilation, along with the letter requesting permission to use his name. A similar thing happened when an Ecuador
ian rain forest butterfly was named after him; Serratoterga larsoni. The Garylarsonus beetle carries his name. The term "thagomizer
", a feature of stegosaurus
anatomy, was coined in a Far Side cartoon.
magazine, an offer he felt was too prestigious to refuse.
Larson is a jazz guitarist. In exchange for guitar lessons from Herb Ellis
, he provided the cover illustration for the album Doggin' Around (Concord, 1988) by Ellis and bassist Red Mitchell
.
Larson voices himself in the Simpsons
episode "Once Upon a Time in Springfield
."
The Far Side
The Far Side is a popular single-panel comic created by Gary Larson and syndicated by Universal Press Syndicate, which ran from January 1, 1980, to January 1, 1995. Its surrealistic humor is often based on uncomfortable social situations, improbable events, an anthropomorphic view of the world,...
, a single-panel cartoon series that was syndicated internationally to newspapers for 15 years. The series ended with Larson's retirement on January 1, 1995. His 23 books of collected cartoons have combined sales of more than 45 million copies.
Biography
Larson grew up on Fox Island, WashingtonFox Island, Washington
Fox Island is a census-designated place in Pierce County, Washington, United States, on an island of the same name in Puget Sound. It is located approximately five miles from Gig Harbor. The island was named Fox by Charles Wilkes during the United States Exploring Expedition, to honor J.L. Fox, an...
. His parents are Verner, a car salesman, and Doris, a secretary
Secretary
A secretary, or administrative assistant, is a person whose work consists of supporting management, including executives, using a variety of project management, communication & organizational skills. These functions may be entirely carried out to assist one other employee or may be for the benefit...
. He attended Curtis Senior High School
Curtis Senior High School
For the school of the same name in Staten Island, see Curtis High School.Curtis Senior High School is a public high school located in University Place, Washington....
before attending Washington State University
Washington State University
Washington State University is a public research university based in Pullman, Washington, in the Palouse region of the Pacific Northwest. Founded in 1890, WSU is the state's original and largest land-grant university...
, from which he graduated in 1972 with a degree in communications. In 1987, Larson married Toni Carmichael, an anthropologist and 1972 Safford High School
Safford High School
Safford High School, of the Safford Unified School District, is one of two public high schools in Safford, Arizona. The campus hosts the Safford Center for the Arts, located on the north lot of the campus property....
alumna.
Larson credits his older brother, Dan, for his "paranoid" sense of humor. Dan pulled countless pranks on Gary, taking advantage of his phobia of monsters under the bed by waiting in the closet for the right moment to pounce. He is also credited for nurturing Gary's love of science. They caught animals in Puget Sound
Puget Sound
Puget Sound is a sound in the U.S. state of Washington. It is a complex estuarine system of interconnected marine waterways and basins, with one major and one minor connection to the Strait of Juan de Fuca and the Pacific Ocean — Admiralty Inlet being the major connection and...
and placed them in terrariums in the basement, even making a small desert ecosystem. Larson's use of snakes in his cartoons stems from his long-standing interest in herpetology
Herpetology
Herpetology is the branch of zoology concerned with the study of amphibians and reptiles...
. Dan died of cancer in 1991.
According to Larson in his anthology
Anthology
An anthology is a collection of literary works chosen by the compiler. It may be a collection of poems, short stories, plays, songs, or excerpts...
, The Prehistory of the Far Side
The Prehistory of the Far Side
The Prehistory of The Far Side: A 10th Anniversary Exhibit is a book chronicling the origin and evolution of The Far Side , giving inside information about the cartooning process and featuring a gallery of Larson's favorite Far Side cartoons from the 1980s.- Part 1: Origin of the Species :Larson...
, he was working in a music store when he took a few days off, after finally realizing how much he hated his job. During that time, he decided to try cartooning and drew six cartoons and submitted them to Pacific Search (now Pacific Northwest Magazine), a Seattle-based magazine. After contributing to another local Seattle paper, in 1979 Larson submitted his work to The Seattle Times
The Seattle Times
The Seattle Times is a newspaper serving Seattle, Washington, US. It is the largest daily newspaper in the state of Washington. It has been, since the demise in 2009 of the printed version of the rival Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Seattle's only major daily print newspaper.-History:The Seattle Times...
. Under the title Nature’s Way, his work was published weekly next to the Junior Jumble.
To supplement his income, Larson worked for the Humane Society
Humane Society
A humane society may be a group that aims to stop human or animal suffering due to cruelty or other reasons, although in many countries, it is now used mostly for societies for the prevention of cruelty to animals...
. Larson soon decided he could increase his income from cartooning by selling his strip to another newspaper. Taking his vacation in San Francisco, Larson pitched his work to the San Francisco Chronicle
San Francisco Chronicle
thumb|right|upright|The Chronicle Building following the [[1906 San Francisco earthquake|1906 earthquake]] and fireThe San Francisco Chronicle is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California, but distributed throughout Northern and Central California,...
. To Larson’s surprise, the Chronicle bought the strip and promoted it for syndication
Print syndication
Print syndication distributes news articles, columns, comic strips and other features to newspapers, magazines and websites. They offer reprint rights and grant permissions to other parties for republishing content of which they own/represent copyrights....
, renaming it The Far Side. This all occurred a week before The Seattle Times dropped Nature’s Way.
In The Complete Far Side, Larson says that his greatest disappointment in life occurred when he was at a luncheon and sat across from Charles Addams
Charles Addams
Charles "Chas" Samuel Addams was an American cartoonist known for his particularly black humor and macabre characters...
. Larson was not able to think of a single thing to say to him, and deeply regretted the missed opportunity.
Since retiring from the Far Side, Larson has occasionally done some cartooning work, such as magazine illustrations and promotional artwork for Far Side merchandise.
In 1998 Larson published his first post-Far Side book, There's a Hair in My Dirt!: A Worm's Story, an illustrated story with the Far Side mindset.
The Far Side
Nature's Way, the precursor to The Far Side first appeared in the Seattle Times in 1979. After Larson’s success with the San Francisco Chronicle, The Far Side was syndicated in 1980 by Chronicle Features. Its first appearance in the Chronicle was on January 1, 1980. It ran for 15 years until Larson retired with his final strip published on January 1, 1995. Larson thought the series was getting repetitive and did not want to enter what he called the "Graveyard of Mediocre Cartoons."Themes in The Far Side were often surreal
Surreal humour
Surreal humour is a form of humour based on violations of causal reasoning with events and behaviours that are logically incongruent. Constructions of surreal humour involve bizarre juxtapositions, non-sequiturs, irrational situations, and/or expressions of nonsense.The humour arises from a...
, such as “How cows behave when no human watches” or "The unexpected dangers of being an insect." Often, the behavior of supposedly superior humans was compared with animals: surrounded by fences and dense housing, a father explains to his son that a bird song is a territorial marking common to the lower animals. Animals and other creatures were frequently presented anthropomorphically
Anthropomorphism
Anthropomorphism is any attribution of human characteristics to animals, non-living things, phenomena, material states, objects or abstract concepts, such as organizations, governments, spirits or deities. The term was coined in the mid 1700s...
. For example, one strip depicts a family of spiders driving in a car with a "Have a Nice Day" bumper sticker, featuring a "smiley face" with eight eyes.
One of Larson's more famous cartoons shows a chimpanzee
Chimpanzee
Chimpanzee, sometimes colloquially chimp, is the common name for the two extant species of ape in the genus Pan. The Congo River forms the boundary between the native habitat of the two species:...
couple grooming. The female finds a blonde human hair on the male and inquires, "Conducting a little more 'research' with that Jane Goodall
Jane Goodall
Dame Jane Morris Goodall, DBE , is a British primatologist, ethologist, anthropologist, and UN Messenger of Peace. Considered to be the world's foremost expert on chimpanzees, Goodall is best known for her 45-year study of social and family interactions of wild chimpanzees in Gombe Stream National...
tramp?" The Jane Goodall Institute
Jane Goodall Institute
The Jane Goodall Institute is an international wildlife and environment conservation organization with branches in many countries. It was founded in 1977 by English primatologist Dr...
thought this was in bad taste, and had their lawyers draft a letter to Larson and his distribution syndicate, in which they described the cartoon as an "atrocity". They were stymied by Goodall herself, who was in Africa at the time, when she returned and saw the cartoon. She stated that she found the cartoon amusing, and later personally met Larson. Since then, all profits from sales of a shirt featuring this cartoon go to the Goodall Institute.
Goodall wrote a preface to The Far Side Gallery 5, detailing her version of the "Jane Goodall Tramp" controversy. She praised Larson's creative ideas, which often compare and contrast the behavior of humans and animals. In 1988, Larson visited Gombe Streams National Park
Gombe Streams National Park
Gombe Stream National Park is located in western Tanzania, 10 miles north of Kigoma, the regional capital of western Tanzania. Established in 1968, Gombe is the smallest national park in Tanzania, with only of forest running along the hills of the northern shore of Lake Tanganyika...
and was attacked by Frodo, a chimp described by Goodall as a "bully." Larson escaped with cuts and bruises.
Larson's Far Side cartoons were syndicated worldwide and published in many collections. They were reproduced extensively on greeting cards which continue to be popular. Two animated versions
Gary Larson's Tales from the Far Side
Gary Larson's Tales From the Far Side is an animated short film created in 1994 by Gary Larson, based on his The Far Side comic strip. It was first shown as a Halloween special on U.S. television, and later it was awarded the Grand Prix at the Annecy International Animated Film Festival.The film is...
, "Tales from the Far Side
Gary Larson's Tales from the Far Side
Gary Larson's Tales From the Far Side is an animated short film created in 1994 by Gary Larson, based on his The Far Side comic strip. It was first shown as a Halloween special on U.S. television, and later it was awarded the Grand Prix at the Annecy International Animated Film Festival.The film is...
" and "Tales from the Far Side II", were produced for television in 1994 and 1997, respectively.
Larson published a 2007 calendar with all author royalties donated to Conservation International
Conservation International
Conservation International is a nonprofit organization headquartered in Arlington, Virginia, which seeks to ensure the health of humanity by protecting Earth's ecosystems and biodiversity. CI’s work focuses on six key initiatives that affect human well-being: climate, food security, freshwater...
.
There's a Hair in My Dirt!: A Worm's Story
There's a Hair in My Dirt!: A Worm's Story is a short illustrated story of an earthwormEarthworm
Earthworm is the common name for the largest members of Oligochaeta in the phylum Annelida. In classical systems they were placed in the order Opisthopora, on the basis of the male pores opening posterior to the female pores, even though the internal male segments are anterior to the female...
who feels his life is insignificant. The main plot is told by the young worm's father and follows a beautiful (but slightly dim) maiden named Harriet, who takes a stroll across a woodland trail, encountering different aspects of the natural world. She admires it, but knows little about the land around her, and that eventually leads to her downfall. The story ends when the young worm realizes that the hair in his dirt is actually a "Harriet" (a hair from the long dead harriet's body). The story became a New York Times bestseller on May 24, 1998.
Awards
Larson was awarded the Newspaper Panel Cartoon Award by the National Cartoonists SocietyNational Cartoonists Society
The National Cartoonists Society is an organization of professional cartoonists in the United States. It presents the National Cartoonists Society Awards. The Society was born in 1946 when groups of cartoonists got together to entertain the troops...
in 1985 and 1988. Larson earned the society’s Reuben Award for 1990 and 1994. Larson has been recognized for various individual strips by the National Cartoonist Society in 1989, 1990, 1991, 1993 and 1995.
On March 15, 1989, a newly discovered insect
Insect
Insects are a class of living creatures within the arthropods that have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body , three pairs of jointed legs, compound eyes, and two antennae...
species was named after Larson by Dale H. Clayton, head of the Committee of Evolutionary Biology at the University of Chicago
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
. The Strigiphilus garylarsoni
Strigiphilus garylarsoni
Strigiphilus garylarsoni is a biting louse of a genus only found on owls. It is a member of the traditional suborder Mallophaga . The species is classified in the Ischnocera suborder and the Philopteridae family. The species has no common name.The louse's taxonomer, biologist Dale H...
is a biting louse
Louse
Lice is the common name for over 3,000 species of wingless insects of the order Phthiraptera; three of which are classified as human disease agents...
of a genus
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
only found on owl
Owl
Owls are a group of birds that belong to the order Strigiformes, constituting 200 bird of prey species. Most are solitary and nocturnal, with some exceptions . Owls hunt mostly small mammals, insects, and other birds, although a few species specialize in hunting fish...
s. Wrote Larson: "I considered this an extreme honor. Besides, I knew no one was going to write and ask to name a new species of swan after me. You have to grab these opportunities when they come along." A 8"x11"
Letter (paper size)
Letter or US Letter is the most common paper size for office use in several countries, including the United States, Canada, Mexico, Bolivia, Colombia, Venezuela, the Philippines, and Chile. It measures 8.5 by 11 inches ....
magnification of the insect appeared in the Prehistory of the Far Side 10th anniversary compilation, along with the letter requesting permission to use his name. A similar thing happened when an Ecuador
Ecuador
Ecuador , officially the Republic of Ecuador is a representative democratic republic in South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and by the Pacific Ocean to the west. It is one of only two countries in South America, along with Chile, that do not have a border...
ian rain forest butterfly was named after him; Serratoterga larsoni. The Garylarsonus beetle carries his name. The term "thagomizer
Thagomizer
Thagomizer is an informal name for the distinctive arrangement of four to ten spikes on the tails of stegosaurid dinosaurs. These spikes are believed to have been a defensive measure against predators.-Paleobiology:...
", a feature of stegosaurus
Stegosaurus
Stegosaurus is a genus of armored stegosaurid dinosaur. They lived during the Late Jurassic period , some 155 to 150 million years ago in what is now western North America. In 2006, a specimen of Stegosaurus was announced from Portugal, showing that they were present in Europe as well...
anatomy, was coined in a Far Side cartoon.
Other works
In 2003, Larson drew a cover for the November 17 edition of The New YorkerThe New Yorker
The New Yorker is an American magazine of reportage, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons and poetry published by Condé Nast...
magazine, an offer he felt was too prestigious to refuse.
Larson is a jazz guitarist. In exchange for guitar lessons from Herb Ellis
Herb Ellis
Mitchell Herbert "Herb" Ellis was an American jazz guitarist. Perhaps best known for his 1950s membership in the trio of pianist Oscar Peterson, Ellis was also a staple of west-coast studio recording sessions, and was described by critic Scott Yanow as "an excellent bop-based guitarist with a...
, he provided the cover illustration for the album Doggin' Around (Concord, 1988) by Ellis and bassist Red Mitchell
Red Mitchell
Keith Moore "Red" Mitchell Keith Moore "Red" Mitchell Keith Moore "Red" Mitchell (September 20, 1927, New York City - November 8, 1992, Salem, Oregon, was an American jazz double-bassist, composer, lyricist, and poet. He was the brother of Whitey Mitchell....
.
Larson voices himself in the Simpsons
The Simpsons
The Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical parody of a middle class American lifestyle epitomized by its family of the same name, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie...
episode "Once Upon a Time in Springfield
Once Upon a Time in Springfield
"Once Upon a Time in Springfield" is the tenth episode of The Simpsons twenty-first season. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on January 10, 2010. It was promoted as the 450th episode of the series, but is actually the 451st, and aired alongside The Simpsons 20th...
."
External links
- The Far Side official site
- Biography on NNDB
- NCS Awards
- The Far Side at Toonopedia
- Article at Salon.com (Three pages)
- http://www.csmonitor.com/2001/1025/p19s3-hfes.htmlProfile and update in The Christian Science MonitorThe Christian Science MonitorThe Christian Science Monitor is an international newspaper published daily online, Monday to Friday, and weekly in print. It was started in 1908 by Mary Baker Eddy, the founder of the Church of Christ, Scientist. As of 2009, the print circulation was 67,703.The CSM is a newspaper that covers...
, October 25, 2001]