America Gone Wild: Cartoons by Ted Rall
Cartoon Collection, 2006
Andrews McMeel Paperback, 8″x8″, 160 pp., $12.95
“In addition to political cartoons that have been featured in national newspapers such as the New York Times, this volume includes comics that appeared in the magazine Men’s Health. With these panels, Rall turns his scathing wit on relationships and the human condition.”
—School Library Journal
Ted Rall’s fourth cartoon collection AMERICA GONE WILD collects the work that made him America’s undisputed most controversial cartoonist. Here are the classic “dirty dozen” cartoons that shocked and awed newspaper readers after 9/11: “Terror Widows” and its sequels, “FDNY 2011,” the Pat Tillman series. The real treat here is Rall’s lengthy introduction and commentary, which includes behind-the-scenes looks at the hate mail and death threats that poured in from outraged right-wingers. It may be hard to believe now, with George W. Bush’s popularity rating at a dismal 20 percent, but when Rall penned these cartoons (from 2000 through 2006) he was virtually alone (except for a few other cartoonists) in standing up against a tsunami of patriotism, militarism and nationalism.
To order a copy inscribed by Ted to the person of your choice, click here (price includes shipping within the United States):
_______________________________________________________________________________
Search and Destroy: Cartoons by Ted Rall
Cartoon Collection, 2001
Andrews & McMeel Paperback, 8″x8″, 160 pp., $16.95
A must for any fan of hard-hitting political and social-commentary cartooning, “SEARCH AND DESTROY: CARTOONS BY TED RALL” collects Ted’s best 150 syndicated cartoons from 1995 to 2000 on everything from the disappointments of the Clinton era to popular music to the dot-com boom to, as usual, screwed-up relationships. “Search and Destroy” includes an introduction by word.com/”Gig” author John Bowe and a preface by Ted himself, as well as extensive commentary to explain and accompany each cartoon.
To order: Amazon
_______________________________________________________________________________
All The Rules Have Changed
Cartoon Collection, 1995
Rip Off Press Paperback, 8.5″x11″, 96 pp., $9.95
Ted’s second collection of cartoons, mainly including work from 1992 to 1995, including many editorial and full-page cartoons not published elsewhere. Fetishists of such matters will note that Dave Eggers (McSweeney’s, A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius) designed the front and back cover. Unfortunately, Rip Off Press published this beauty in the middle of the Great Comics Distribution Meltdown of 1995, and only a few hundred copies were ever distributed before the print run was pulped.
Alternative Press Review called ATRHC “a great collection of stuff – from cynical to radical, from witty to nasty, but all coming down hard on corporate America and the layers of illusion it promotes and sells as reality. Rall’s is a topsy turvy world in the worthy tradition of the Ranters, antinomians and Luddites of other eras.”
Copies occasionally show up in used bookstores and on eBay, and Ted brings them with him to public appearances. For all practical purposes this book is out-of-print and not available; however, Rip Off Press currently lists the title on their website. Once there, use their search engine to search for “Ted Rall.”
_______________________________________________________________________________
Waking Up in America
Cartoon Collection, 1992
St. Martin’s Paperback, 6″x9″, 128 pp., $6.95
Ted’s first book is a collection of his editorial cartoons that span the period from 1988 to 1992. He was experimenting with different styles during that period before being picked up for syndication and the look of these cartoons varies wildly. Not helping matters is the atrocious reproduction quality; St. Martin’s Press didn’t set their photostat machine at the proper exposure, causing many cartoons to appear with moray patterns. Even syndication dates were left on some of the pages! A somewhat shoddy effort, but of interest to Rallophiles.
WAKING UP isn’t as difficult to find as ATRHC–it was widely distributed and sold fairly well at the time, but at this point it has been long out-of-print and the only chance of picking it up would be online or at one of Ted’s public appearances.
