Which Four Creators Belong on a Cartoonists' Mount Rushmore?

By: E&P Staff Who are the top four cartoonists of all time -- worthy of being on Mount Rushmore?

The debate began on the regular WashingtonPost.com chat conducted by Gene Weingarten, the Washington Post/Washington Post Writers Group humor columnist who won the Pulitzer Prize for feature writing last month.

One chat participant suggested Walt Kelly ("Pogo"), Charles Schulz ("Peanuts"), Bill Watterson ("Calvin and Hobbes"), and a bunch of other cartoonists as the possible fourth Rushmore honoree.

Weingarten responded by taking Schulz off the list, and putting on Gary Larson ("The Far Side") and Garry Trudeau ("Doonesbury").

Daily Cartoonist blogger Alan Gardner did a Thursday post on the debate, and a number of his readers responded. In addition to some of the names mentioned above, people suggested George Herriman ("Krazy Kat"), Winsor McCay ("Little Nemo in Slumberland"), Frederick Opper ("Happy Hooligan"), Milton Caniff ("Terry and the Pirates"), Elzie Segar ("Thimble Theatre," starring Popeye), and R.F. Outcault ("Hogan's Alley," starring The Yellow Kid), among others.

Various editorial cartoonists -- including Thomas Nast and Herblock -- were mentioned as well.

Gardner's blog can be seen here.

The Rushmore debate was mentioned Wednesday on Mike Rhode's ComicsDC blog, which can be seen here.