Happily Ever After?
Ann Telnaes contributes sharply humorous drawings to Six Chix,
a comic strip that she and five other women cartoonists produce collaboratively.
This unique strip, which highlights contemporary women's often comical
points of view on everyday life, is distributed by King Features
Syndicate, which launched it in 2000. Each cartoonist creates a strip
for one day of the week--Telnaes's day is Thursday--and the six creators
trade off Sundays. Having never drawn a comic strip before, Telnaes
finds Six Chix a personal challenge because she wants to
make political cartoons out of what she draws. Comic strips must
be done four weeks ahead of time, unlike editorial cartoons, so it
is difficult to integrate current events into them. Telnaes often
uses the theme of fairy tales because "they are inherently sexist." She
typically turns these familiar stories on end and reworks them in
order to comment wryly on women's situations today--in the workplace,
at home, in relationships, and as consumers. In addition to Six
Chix and cartoons on women's issues that are more political
in content, Telnaes sometimes makes visual commentary on women prominent
in public life, as seen in the drawing in tribute to Katherine Hepburn,
which was published as a "commentoon" for Women's eNews.
" Why, yes. . . It's
easy to see what attracted
you to each other. . .",
in Six
Chix, September 7, 2000
Brush and ink and opaque white over
pink pencil and graphite on bristol board
LC-DIG-ppmsca-04714; LC-USZ62-134255
© Reproduced with special permission of King Features Syndicate (2)
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May-December Romance
Telnaes's cartoon conveys her frustration over the ease with
which people commonly accept a May-December romance between
an older man and a young woman. "Nobody lifts an eyebrow," she
points out "But what happens when an older woman is with a
younger man?" In this drawing she makes clear what each one
of the couple sees in the other. |
"Female Humor" With an Edge
Women may not always have all the opportunities men have to
succeed in the workplace, but statistically, they live longer.
Recent comparative data on the life spans of men and women
in industrial market economies (including Western Europe, North
America, Japan, Australia, and New Zealand) in the late twentieth
century supports the little girl's statement in this example
of what Telnaes calls "female humor." |
I Didn't
Touch Him. . .,
in Six Chix, September 20,
2000
Brush and ink and opaque white over
blue pencil and graphite on bristol board
LC-DIG-ppmsca-04625; LC-USZ62-134252
© Reproduced with special permission of King Features Syndicate (3)
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Snow
White and Sex in the City,
in Six Chix, April
25, 2002
Brush and ink and opaque white over
pink pencil and graphite on bristol board
LC-DIG-ppmsca-04716; LC-USZ62-134253
© Reproduced with special permission of King Features Syndicate (4)
|
TV Update on Snow White
In this cartoon the story of Snow White is turned upside down.
No longer cooking and cleaning for the seven dwarves, she has
joined the ranks of HBO's recent hip show "Sex in the City," whose
young female stars assert that they have as much right to being
cared for and pleased as men do. In Telnaes's cartoon, both
Snow White and the dwarves look happy. |
Whose Power Breakfast?
This comic strip mocks and challenges the notion that today's
women will willingly perpetuate traditional female roles, as
symbolized by the long-standing practice of making the morning
coffee. Telnaes's cartoon also plays off the idea that everything
from exercise to diet to meditation can bestow power on those
who are ready to take it. |
Fix
Your Own Power Breakfast,
March 8, 2001
Brush and ink over blue pencil and
graphite underdrawing with opaque white
LC-DIG-ppmsca-04626
© Reproduced with special permission of King Features Syndicate (60)
|
When
Fairy Tale Princesses get together,
in Six Chix,
October 8, 2000
Brush and ink over pink pencil
underdrawing with opaque white
LC-DIG-ppmsca-04715; LC-USZ62-134254
© Reproduced with special permission from King Features Syndicate (75)
|
How the Fairy Tale Really Ended
Telnaes often uses fairy tales in the comic strip Six
Chix because, as she comments, they "are inherently
sexist and have great potential for cartoons." In this example,
a group of fairytale princesses gather to commiserate and
exchange frustrations about how their relationships really
turned out. Cinderella, whose glass slippers sit by the tub
where she soaks her feet, has reservations about Prince Charming,
and Snow White, who sits next to a bowl of apples, expresses
second thoughts about her rescue. |
The Changing Roles of Women
The use of a little girl in this early cartoon for Six
Chix lends a humorous edge to a topic that continues
to be highly charged today--women with ambition. Although
the feminist movement of the 1960s and 1970s achieved gains
in women's rights and status, their changing and changed
roles continue to be debated by both men and women. |
"And
What's A Nice Little Girl Like
You Going To Be . . . ,"
in Six
Chix, September 10, 1999
Brush and ink and opaque white
over violet pencil on bristol board
LC-DIG-ppmsca-04628; LC-USZ62-134303
© Reproduced with special permission of King Features Syndicate (62)
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"First
you get an education, then you can
marry your Prince Charming,"
in Six
Chix, November 13, 2003
Brush and ink and opaque white
over pink pencil and graphite on bristol board
LC-DIG-ppmsca-04790; LC-USZ62-134302
© Reproduced with special permission of King Features Syndicate (61)
|
Advice for Today's Princesses
In this updated version of a fairy tale-whether Cinderella,
Snow White, or Sleeping Beauty-- a young princess listens reluctantly
as she is admonished not to rely solely on romantic love for
happiness and fulfillment. Telnaes implies that modern-day
heroines should be ready to rely on themselves. |
The Ultra-Thin Ideal
Models appear as a separate species of human in this cartoon
that stresses the ultra-thin body image promoted by advertising
and popular culture. Thin is considered ideal for women, regardless
of body type. Obsession with weight, however, can lead to eating
disorders such as anorexia and bulimia--the serious message
of Telnaes's humor. |
"Don't
Feed the Models, Honey,"
in Six Chix, May 31,
2001
Brush and ink and opaque white over
blue pencil and graphite on bristol board
LC-DIG-ppmsca-04629; LC-USZ62- 134304
© Reproduced with special permission of King Features Syndicate (63)
|
Katherine
Hepburn, 1907-2003,
July 2, 2003
Ink brush over blue pencil underdrawing
LC-DIG-ppmsca-04722; LC-USZ62-135305
Courtesy of Women's eNews (76)
Color print
from digital scan |
An American Icon
Katherine Hepburn died on June 29, 2003. Soon after, Telnaes
published this caricature of the actress that captures her
spirit of elegance, independence, and strength. |
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