Mark J. Cohen
Encyclopedia
Mark J. Cohen was a realtor and a collector
of comic book
s and comic book art, and a prominent cartoonists' agent and dealer in original comics art. He was an occasional contributor to the Gasoline Alley
comic strip
.
Cohen was a native of Stockton, California
. As a collector of cartoon art, Cohen amassed an estimated 9,500 items of original Mad
original art. His collections of comic book art were considered among the best in the country, and parts of his collections were put on national tours.
One notable part of Cohen's collection was begun in 1971, when he decided to collect cartoonists' self-caricatures. His interest was sparked upon seeing an exhibition catalogue from a 1943 exhibit at San Francisco's de Young Museum titled Meet the Artist. Eventually he assembled more than 900 of such self-caricatures. In 1998 The Ohio State University Cartoon Research Library published A Gallery of Rogues featuring approximately 100 cartoonists' self-caricatures from Cohen's collection. The Cartoon Research Library also mounted an exhibition of nude self-caricatures called The Comic Strip in 2000. It was composed of work from Cohen's collection, made available by his widow, Cohen having died during the time the exhibit was being planned.
As an agent representing cartoonists in the sale of their original comic strip art, Cohen's clientele included Charles M. Schulz
, Lynn Johnston
, Pat Brady
, Greg Evans
and Jerry Scott
.
Cohen got to know Charles Schulz, creator of Peanuts
, very well, and Schulz called Cohen his "cartoon connection" because of the many cartoonists he met through him. After Schulz' death, the cartoonist's wife started the Charles Schulz Museum, and Mark Cohen became a member of the board of directors. Cohen's wife, Rose Marie McDaniel, later became director of the museum.
Cohen died at 57 at his home in Santa Rosa, California
on December 19. Cancer was said to be the cause of death. His obituary in The New York Times
states that Cohen's "comics collection, including about 3,000 books autographed by cartoonists -- many with original drawings -- and hundreds of other cartoon-related items, from Dick Tracy badges to Little Orphan Annie decoders, has been donated to Ohio State University
, the repository of the National Cartoonists Society
".
His friend, the cartoonist Wiley Miller
, memorialized Cohen after his death by creating a superhero, Obviousman, in his syndicated cartoon strip
Non Sequitur (comic strip)
whose mission in life was to wean people away from the endless stream of information in modern society and get them to think about what is really happening. Just as Superman
's "real name" was "Clark Kent
," so was Obviousman's real name "Mark Cohen" and his occupation was "realtor."
Cartoonist Jim Scancarelli
, in a 1997 interview, had credited Cohen as an unpaid collaborator who contributed a poem or story idea for a Gasoline Alley
Sunday page about once a month. Scancarelli quietly paid tribute to Cohen with a 2009 Sunday page that featured a whimsical letter Cohen had written.
Collecting
The hobby of collecting includes seeking, locating, acquiring, organizing, cataloging, displaying, storing, and maintaining whatever items are of interest to the individual collector. Some collectors are generalists, accumulating merchandise, or stamps from all countries of the world...
of comic book
Comic book
A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...
s and comic book art, and a prominent cartoonists' agent and dealer in original comics art. He was an occasional contributor to the Gasoline Alley
Gasoline Alley
Gasoline Alley is a comic strip created by Frank King and currently distributed by Tribune Media Services. First published November 24, 1918, it is the second longest running comic strip in the US and has received critical accolades for its influential innovations...
comic strip
Comic strip
A comic strip is a sequence of drawings arranged in interrelated panels to display brief humor or form a narrative, often serialized, with text in balloons and captions....
.
Cohen was a native of Stockton, California
Stockton, California
Stockton, California, the seat of San Joaquin County, is the fourth-largest city in the Central Valley of the U.S. state of California. With a population of 291,707 at the 2010 census, Stockton ranks as this state's 13th largest city...
. As a collector of cartoon art, Cohen amassed an estimated 9,500 items of original Mad
Mad (magazine)
Mad is an American humor magazine founded by editor Harvey Kurtzman and publisher William Gaines in 1952. Launched as a comic book before it became a magazine, it was widely imitated and influential, impacting not only satirical media but the entire cultural landscape of the 20th century.The last...
original art. His collections of comic book art were considered among the best in the country, and parts of his collections were put on national tours.
One notable part of Cohen's collection was begun in 1971, when he decided to collect cartoonists' self-caricatures. His interest was sparked upon seeing an exhibition catalogue from a 1943 exhibit at San Francisco's de Young Museum titled Meet the Artist. Eventually he assembled more than 900 of such self-caricatures. In 1998 The Ohio State University Cartoon Research Library published A Gallery of Rogues featuring approximately 100 cartoonists' self-caricatures from Cohen's collection. The Cartoon Research Library also mounted an exhibition of nude self-caricatures called The Comic Strip in 2000. It was composed of work from Cohen's collection, made available by his widow, Cohen having died during the time the exhibit was being planned.
As an agent representing cartoonists in the sale of their original comic strip art, Cohen's clientele included Charles M. Schulz
Charles M. Schulz
Charles Monroe "Sparky" Schulz was an American cartoonist, whose comic strip Peanuts proved one of the most popular and influential in the history of the medium, and is still widely reprinted on a daily basis.-Early life and education:Born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Schulz grew up in Saint Paul...
, Lynn Johnston
Lynn Johnston
Lynn Johnston, CM, OM is a Canadian cartoonist, well known for her comic strip For Better or For Worse, and was the first woman and first Canadian to win the National Cartoonist Society's Reuben Award.-Early life:...
, Pat Brady
Pat Brady
Pat Brady was best known as cowboy Roy Rogers' "comical sidekick." Pat's full name was Robert Ellsworth Patrick Aloysious O'Brady and this was shortened to "Bob Brady," although it is not known when the "O'" was dropped from "O'Brady."Born in Toledo, Ohio, Pat Brady first set foot on-stage at the...
, Greg Evans
Greg Evans
Greg Evans is an American cartoonist and the creator of the syndicated comic strip Luann. He received the 2003 National Cartoonists Society Reuben Award for the strip...
and Jerry Scott
Jerry Scott
Jerry Scott in South Bend, Indiana. He is an American cartoonist, co-creator of Baby Blues and co-creator of Zits.-Career:...
.
Cohen got to know Charles Schulz, creator of Peanuts
Peanuts
Peanuts is a syndicated daily and Sunday American comic strip written and illustrated by Charles M. Schulz, which ran from October 2, 1950, to February 13, 2000, continuing in reruns afterward...
, very well, and Schulz called Cohen his "cartoon connection" because of the many cartoonists he met through him. After Schulz' death, the cartoonist's wife started the Charles Schulz Museum, and Mark Cohen became a member of the board of directors. Cohen's wife, Rose Marie McDaniel, later became director of the museum.
Santa Rosa, California
Santa Rosa is the county seat of Sonoma County, California, United States. The 2010 census reported a population of 167,815. Santa Rosa is the largest city in California's Wine Country and fifth largest city in the San Francisco Bay Area, after San Jose, San Francisco, Oakland, and Fremont and 26th...
on December 19. Cancer was said to be the cause of death. His obituary in The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
states that Cohen's "comics collection, including about 3,000 books autographed by cartoonists -- many with original drawings -- and hundreds of other cartoon-related items, from Dick Tracy badges to Little Orphan Annie decoders, has been donated to Ohio State University
Ohio State University
The Ohio State University, commonly referred to as Ohio State, is a public research university located in Columbus, Ohio. It was originally founded in 1870 as a land-grant university and is currently the third largest university campus in the United States...
, the repository of the National Cartoonists Society
National 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...
".
His friend, the cartoonist Wiley Miller
Wiley Miller
David Wiley Miller , an American cartoonist whose work is characterized by wry wit and trenchant social satire, is best known for his comic strip Non Sequitur, which he signs Wiley...
, memorialized Cohen after his death by creating a superhero, Obviousman, in his syndicated cartoon strip
Comic strip
A comic strip is a sequence of drawings arranged in interrelated panels to display brief humor or form a narrative, often serialized, with text in balloons and captions....
Non Sequitur (comic strip)
Non Sequitur (comic strip)
Non Sequitur is a comic strip created by Wiley Miller in 1992 and syndicated by Universal Press Syndicate to over 700 newspapers...
whose mission in life was to wean people away from the endless stream of information in modern society and get them to think about what is really happening. Just as Superman
Superman
Superman is a fictional comic book superhero appearing in publications by DC Comics, widely considered to be an American cultural icon. Created by American writer Jerry Siegel and Canadian-born American artist Joe Shuster in 1932 while both were living in Cleveland, Ohio, and sold to Detective...
's "real name" was "Clark Kent
Clark Kent
Clark Kent is a fictional character created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster. Appearing regularly in stories published by DC Comics, he debuted in Action Comics #1 and serves as the civilian and secret identity of the superhero Superman....
," so was Obviousman's real name "Mark Cohen" and his occupation was "realtor."
Cartoonist Jim Scancarelli
Jim Scancarelli
James Scancarelli , known professionally as Jim Scancarelli, is an American cartoonist who has been writing and drawing the syndicated comic strip Gasoline Alley for Tribune Media Services since 1986...
, in a 1997 interview, had credited Cohen as an unpaid collaborator who contributed a poem or story idea for a Gasoline Alley
Gasoline Alley
Gasoline Alley is a comic strip created by Frank King and currently distributed by Tribune Media Services. First published November 24, 1918, it is the second longest running comic strip in the US and has received critical accolades for its influential innovations...
Sunday page about once a month. Scancarelli quietly paid tribute to Cohen with a 2009 Sunday page that featured a whimsical letter Cohen had written.