Davies Happy to Win for 'Underdog' Paper

By: Dave Astor Editorial cartoonist Matt Davies was thrilled to win a Pulitzer Prize yesterday for himself and for his paper -- The Journal News of White Plains, N.Y.

"If this newspaper were anywhere else, it would have huge respect," he told E&P today. "It puts out really good, top-notch stuff. But we're in the shadow of The New York Times. One thing the Times doesn't have is an editorial cartoonist. My publisher [Gary Sherlock] said to me, 'That's one of our biggest trump cards.'"

And it was, because Davies' Pulitzer was the first ever for the Journal News (Click for QuikCap), owned by Gannett Co. Inc.

Davies, who's syndicated by Tribune Media Services, didn't expect to win the Pulitzer. He said many other cartoonists did "superb" work during the past year -- including the other two finalists, "Doonesbury" creator Garry Trudeau of Universal Press Syndicate and Steve Sack of the Minneapolis Star Tribune and TMS.

"I was sitting at my desk yesterday drawing a cartoon, and had prepared myself extremely well not to win," he recalled. "Then I heard this incredible eruption from the newsroom!"

Luckily, Davies had almost finished his cartoon, because a lot of celebrating followed at the paper and at home. Then just three hours of sleep -- something Davies is used to with two young children -- before a 6 a.m. call from his parents, who were visiting Wales.

Davies, 37, a native of England, has also been doing interviews with various U.S. media outlets -- and is expecting a number of requests from the British press. In addition, he's trying to keep up with hundreds of congratulatory phone calls and e-mails.

Many of the 20 cartoons Davies submitted for Pulitzer consideration skewered -- in a hard-hitting yet also humorous way -- President Bush and his policies relating to Iraq, the environment, etc. Davies usually agonizes over which 20 to choose. This year, he said, "I went with my gut" the night before the entry deadline.

Davies, who won the $10,000 Herblock Prize last month, is receiving another $10,000 for the Pulitzer. What will the cartoonist and his wife, Lucy, do with the money? "Yet to be determined," he replied.

Speaking again about winning the Pulitzer for The Journal News, Davies concluded: "As an editorial cartoonist, I'm pro-underdog. I feel like the underdog newspaper won. To give that to my newspaper and my colleagues is a tremendous feeling I'll never forget."

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