# Was Gary Larson the best cartoonist there ever was? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 5, 2007, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-gary-larson-the-best-cartoonist-there-ever-was/406841 "2007-06-05T14:41:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![MichaelQReilly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/df705f/32.png) [@MichaelQReilly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MichaelQReilly)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2007, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-gary-larson-the-best-cartoonist-there-ever-was/406841/101 "2007-06-06T16:22:55Z")
Perhaps the all-time best. Cavemen playing rocks,paper,scissors and they all keep throwing rocks and saying “Tied again.” ---
**Author:** ![Alma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecd19e/32.png) [@Alma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alma)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2007, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-gary-larson-the-best-cartoonist-there-ever-was/406841/102 "2007-06-06T16:54:40Z")
A family sitting around a dinner table. The dog, standing and pointing a gun at the man’s head. Caption reads “Listen, buddy, I’m _through_ begging.” ---
**Author:** ![Trunk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/87869e/32.png) [@Trunk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trunk)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2007, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-gary-larson-the-best-cartoonist-there-ever-was/406841/103 "2007-06-06T17:35:13Z")
I also used to love “I’m moving over 500 donuts a day and I’m barely breaking even.” Every time I’m in a restaurant and I see a very large employee, I always think a variation on that, (“I’m moving 500 tacos a day and I’m barely breaking even.”) Wasn’t there also one where a dog is getting breakfast and he says, “I’ll have the ham and eggs.” and everyone else in the restaurant is a chicken or a pig. ---
**Author:** ![Encinitas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ee7513/32.png) [@Encinitas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Encinitas)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2007, 8:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-gary-larson-the-best-cartoonist-there-ever-was/406841/104 "2007-06-06T20:55:09Z")
“What dogs are really saying.” With images of dogs doing doggie things all over town (i.e., hanging out of car windows, chasing the mailman, etc.) going “Hey!”, “Hey, Hey!”, “Hey?”. ---
**Author:** ![OneCentStamp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/13edae/32.png) [@OneCentStamp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OneCentStamp)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2007, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-gary-larson-the-best-cartoonist-there-ever-was/406841/105 "2007-06-06T21:02:47Z")
[QUOTE=Encinitas] “What dogs are really saying.” With images of dogs doing doggie things all over town (i.e., hanging out of car windows, chasing the mailman, etc.) going “Hey!”, “Hey, Hey!”, “Hey?”. [/QUOTE] Also, the “What We Say/What Dogs Hear, What We Say/What Cats Hear” is classic. Not only is it funny, but I’ve gone on from the point I first read the comic stip believing it’s pretty much true. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2007, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-gary-larson-the-best-cartoonist-there-ever-was/406841/106 "2007-06-06T21:21:19Z")
On my _Far Side_ desk calendar today is one of my all-time favorites: A torturer is standing at the entrance to a dungeon. Three chained-up prisoners chorus, “Good MOOORNing, Mr. Johnson!” ---
**Author:** ![lissener](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lissener/32/6139_2.png) [@lissener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lissener)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2007, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-gary-larson-the-best-cartoonist-there-ever-was/406841/107 "2007-06-06T23:52:27Z")
I hate having my net off at home, and coming into the end of these three-page threads on my first day back at work. Larson was pretty dang funny, but I bristle a bit at seeing him described as the “best there ever was,” considering that he pretty much started where B. Kliban left off. For years I was unable to look at a Larson cartoon without getting pissed off that he was so thoroughly ripping off Kliban. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2007, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-gary-larson-the-best-cartoonist-there-ever-was/406841/108 "2007-06-07T00:19:00Z")
[QUOTE=lissener] Larson was pretty dang funny, but I bristle a bit at seeing him described as the “best there ever was,” considering that he pretty much started where B. Kliban left off. For years I was unable to look at a Larson cartoon without getting pissed off that he was so thoroughly ripping off Kliban. [/QUOTE] Ah, yes, Kliban. I remember one: Two ladies dressed like 18th-Century nobles, with high wigs and big dresses, are walking in what might be the grounds of the palace at Versailles. We see a walrus barely concealed behind a balustrade, peeking through it with one eye. One lady says to the other, “Did you ever have the feeling you were about to be raped by a walrus?” ---
**Author:** ![Surbey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/4491bb/32.png) [@Surbey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Surbey)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2007, 5:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-gary-larson-the-best-cartoonist-there-ever-was/406841/109 "2007-06-07T05:07:38Z")
looked up a bunch of B.Kilban, I don’t see it… From the large amount of comics I found online, I didn’t see a single funny one. Sorry, but IMHO Larson is much better. ---
**Author:** ![lissener](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lissener/32/6139_2.png) [@lissener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lissener)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2007, 5:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-gary-larson-the-best-cartoonist-there-ever-was/406841/110 "2007-06-07T05:45:03Z")
[QUOTE=Surbey] looked up a bunch of B.Kilban, I don’t see it… From the large amount of comics I found online, I didn’t see a single funny one. Sorry, but IMHO Larson is much better. [/QUOTE] Yes, Larson went for the punchline. As I said, he was very funny; Kliban was more “conceptual.” But there’s simply no question that Larson’s drawing style is about 85% Kliban. And it seems very clear to me that early Larson was simply B-grade Kliban. Some examples of Kliban: [![](http://www.coldbacon.com/pics/kliban/bkassholes.gif) ](http://www.coldbacon.com/pics/kliban/bkassholes.gif) [![](https://www.lambiek.net/artists/k/kliban/kliban_men.gif) ](https://www.lambiek.net/artists/k/kliban/kliban_men.gif) [![](https://www.lambiek.net/artists/k/kliban/kliban_exist.gif) ](https://www.lambiek.net/artists/k/kliban/kliban_exist.gif) [![](http://www.coldbacon.com/pics/kliban/bkunicorn.jpg) ](http://www.coldbacon.com/pics/kliban/bkunicorn.jpg) [![](http://www.coldbacon.com/pics/kliban/bkunjust.gif) ](http://www.coldbacon.com/pics/kliban/bkunjust.gif) [![](http://www.coldbacon.com/pics/kliban/bkportugal.gif) ](http://www.coldbacon.com/pics/kliban/bkportugal.gif) Seems pretty clear to me. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2007, 6:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-gary-larson-the-best-cartoonist-there-ever-was/406841/111 "2007-06-07T06:14:11Z")
Those are great, **lissener** , but my two most memorable Kliban images are: “Never eat anything bigger than your head,” and the cat folksinger: > [@Cat sitting on a stool](#): > > Love to eat them mousies, > Mousies what I love to eat. > Bite they little heads off, > Nibble on they tiny feet. Oh, and I forgot a third one. Cats courting: \*If I had two dead rats, I’d give you one." ---
**Author:** ![lissener](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lissener/32/6139_2.png) [@lissener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lissener)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2007, 6:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-gary-larson-the-best-cartoonist-there-ever-was/406841/112 "2007-06-07T06:25:41Z")
Yeah, those weren’t my favorites, just the first particularly larsonesque I came across in searching. “Whack your porcupine” might be my favorite. Although “Fig 1 and Fig 2” is definitely in the running. And then there’s “[How to tell a cat from a meatloaf](http://www.webpak.net/~heartctr/cats/meatloaf.gif)” . . . ---
**Author:** ![Askance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/askance/32/8281_2.png) [@Askance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askance)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2007, 6:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-gary-larson-the-best-cartoonist-there-ever-was/406841/113 "2007-06-07T06:33:47Z")
Flying saucers piloted by dogs overhead. The pet dog looks at his erstwhile master and says “So they’re finally here. Before I go, roll over and play dead.” And the bored dog driving a car, with the super-enthusiastic guy hanging out the window with his tongue flapping in the wind. ---
**Author:** ![Freezair\_SilverEye](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b2d939/32.png) [@Freezair\_SilverEye](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freezair_SilverEye)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2007, 6:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-gary-larson-the-best-cartoonist-there-ever-was/406841/114 "2007-06-07T06:47:44Z")
As far as Larson’s “ordinary stuff reimagining” goes, I’ve always had a soft spot for “La Brea Carpets.” ---
**Author:** ![davidm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidm/32/225_2.png) [@davidm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davidm)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2007, 9:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-gary-larson-the-best-cartoonist-there-ever-was/406841/115 "2007-06-07T09:40:12Z")
Dr. Frankenstein and his monster, sans head, searching through tall grass. Caption: “That does it. This time we’re bolting the sucker on!” ---
**Author:** ![cmkeller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmkeller/32/118_2.png) [@cmkeller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmkeller)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2007, 1:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-gary-larson-the-best-cartoonist-there-ever-was/406841/116 "2007-06-07T13:44:30Z")
Apropos of that, two of my favorite Frankenstein Far Sides: “As he got off the plane, Doctor Frankenstein (looking into his carry-on bag) was horrified to discover he’d left his brain in San Francisco.” and (this one wasn’t published as a Far Side cartoon, but came from the _Prehistory_ book): The quartet from the Wizard of Oz is at the door of Castle Frankenstein, and the Doctor tells them, “I’m sorry, but I just used my last heart and brain - maybe try the Wizard down the road.” ---
**Author:** ![Malthus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/85f322/32.png) [@Malthus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malthus)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2007, 2:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-gary-larson-the-best-cartoonist-there-ever-was/406841/117 "2007-06-07T14:25:36Z")
[QUOTE=lissener] Yes, Larson went for the punchline. As I said, he was very funny; Kliban was more “conceptual.” But there’s simply no question that Larson’s drawing style is about 85% Kliban. And it seems very clear to me that early Larson was simply B-grade Kliban. Some examples of Kliban: [![](http://www.coldbacon.com/pics/kliban/bkassholes.gif) ](http://www.coldbacon.com/pics/kliban/bkassholes.gif) [![](https://www.lambiek.net/artists/k/kliban/kliban_men.gif) ](https://www.lambiek.net/artists/k/kliban/kliban_men.gif) [![](https://www.lambiek.net/artists/k/kliban/kliban_exist.gif) ](https://www.lambiek.net/artists/k/kliban/kliban_exist.gif) [![](http://www.coldbacon.com/pics/kliban/bkunicorn.jpg) ](http://www.coldbacon.com/pics/kliban/bkunicorn.jpg) [![](http://www.coldbacon.com/pics/kliban/bkunjust.gif) ](http://www.coldbacon.com/pics/kliban/bkunjust.gif) [![](http://www.coldbacon.com/pics/kliban/bkportugal.gif) ](http://www.coldbacon.com/pics/kliban/bkportugal.gif) Seems pretty clear to me. [/QUOTE] I dunno. Those are pretty funny, but neither the drawing nor (except for the first you listed) the subject-matter is terribly similar to that of Larson. In terms of drawing style, Kliban is more detailed, Larson more stylized; in terms of subject-matter, Kliban as you note is more “conceptual”, and the focus is different - Kliban’s humour is more likely to be focused on sex and its absurdities, Larson on science. I see them as very different, myself. I like both, but for me Larson has the edge because I prefer the focus of his humor. ---
**Author:** ![Full\_Metal\_Lotus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/df705f/32.png) [@Full\_Metal\_Lotus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Full_Metal_Lotus)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2007, 4:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-gary-larson-the-best-cartoonist-there-ever-was/406841/118 "2007-06-07T16:37:21Z")
Just saw a reprint of this one recently… Two cavemen standing inside a baited box trap, with saber tooth tiger sneaking up on it. Caption is “Be Quiet! Here he come!” Actually laughed out loud… Regards FML ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2007, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-gary-larson-the-best-cartoonist-there-ever-was/406841/119 "2007-06-07T17:32:35Z")
View through a rifle’s scope. The bear in the crosshairs is pointing pleadingly at another bear. Farmer catches cows looking at an anatomical diagram of a human being, with different cuts of meat marked on it. “Somewhere, far off in the distance, a dog barked.” God is winning a TV trivia contest by a score of 8,098,762 to 0. The other player, “our defending champion,” has his hands on his hips and looks annoyed. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2007, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-gary-larson-the-best-cartoonist-there-ever-was/406841/120 "2007-06-07T18:14:50Z")
[QUOTE=lissener] But there’s simply no question that Larson’s drawing style is about 85% Kliban. [/QUOTE] I’m curious as to why you think that. I don’t see it. What about his style is similar? (Or, to be more precise, more similar as opposed to what you’d expect between two single-panel cartoonists.) In your fifth link, Kliban appears to be aping Johnny Hart. > [@](#): > > And it seems very clear to me that early Larson was simply B-grade Kliban. I must have not read any early Larson because I don’t remember him being that dull. I don’t see any more connection between Kliban and Larson than I do between, say, Jim Unger and Larson. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-gary-larson-the-best-cartoonist-there-ever-was/406841.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-gary-larson-the-best-cartoonist-there-ever-was/406841.md?page=7)