By: Dave Astor Bruce Plante of the Chattanooga (Tenn.) Times Free Press will succeed the late Doug Marlette as editorial cartoonist of the Tulsa (Okla.) World.
Plante told E&P Sunday that he'll join the World -- which approached him about the job -- the week of October 22.
Why the move? "The World is a larger paper, and about an hour and a half from my old stomping grounds in Fayetteville," replied Plante, a former student at the University of Arkansas in that city.
The cartoonist added that he felt comfortable with the World executives he met, while emphasizing that the Times Free Press -- which is seeking a replacement for Plante -- "has been really good to me," too.
Plante, who joined what's now the Times Free Press in 1985 and will probably do his last cartoon for the paper on October 16, said both the Times Free Press and the World appreciate the benefits of having a staff editorial cartoonist.
"It can't be a coincidence that both papers are family-owned," commented Plante. "There's a dedication to their local readers rather than the bottom line. They understand that this [editorial cartoons] is something readers love and they want to give it to them."
Plante, a former Association of American Editorial Cartoonists president who has remained active in AAEC affairs, added that the two papers are "willing to take the heat" when a cartoon is controversial.
The new World staffer will do five cartoons a week for the paper, with about 60% of them local. He'll also continue self-syndicating his editorial cartoons (via PlanteInk.com) and his "Born Lucky" outdoors comic panel. And he'll still do cartoon illustrations about college football and basketball for Universal Press Syndicate sports packages.
Marlette, a Pulitzer Prize winner syndicated by Tribune Media Services, died in a car accident on July 10 at the age of 57. Several weeks later, the World announced that it was looking for a replacement for Marlette. That made the World somewhat unusual at a time when many dailies are not replacing their editorial cartoonists or are not hiring any in the first place.
Plante said he sent cartoons to the World before Marlette was hired, but hadn't applied for the job again after Marlette died because he was spending all the time he could with his son -- who, ironically, has been recovering from a serious May 2007 car accident.
According to Plante, the Times Free Press is seeking submissions for a new cartoonist at cartoonist@TimesFreePress.com.
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