rubbercat.net

August 29, 2023

Bruce Tinsley Watch

Decided to check in on Mallard Fillmore cartoonist Bruce Tinsley. Last time I checked, about three months ago, his seldom-used Twitter account had been hacked by a Bitcoin spammer. Well, now the account has been suspended:

A screenshot showing that the @mallardfillmore account has been suspended from Twitter.

Tinsley’s in his 60s and presumably in ill health, he shouldn’t have to be dealing with this shit. Why isn’t King Features Syndicate doing anything about this?

March 7, 2023

Mallard Fillmore Watch

A Mallard Fillmore strip in which Mallard offers an unhoused man some money.
Mallard: Here you go... maybe buy yourself a nice cup of coffee.
Man: Coffee? But that's only a twenty.
3/5/2023

Mallard Fillmore voluntarily giving a generous handout to someone less fortunate??? Has the world gone topsy-turvy?!?

December 14, 2022

Mallard Fillmore Watch

A Mallard Fillmore strip in which the title character shares a recipe for the perfect eggnog that consists of pouring eggnog down the drain
12/13/2022

I always knew Mallard Fillmore was an eggnog hater…

February 28, 2022

Mallard Fillmore Watch

A Mallard Fillmore strip in which the title character is annoyed with incessant TV coverage of CNN scandals, and switches to CNN which is covering Trump
2/28/2022

One of the problems with working two weeks ahead is that sometimes a war breaks out

January 17, 2022

Mallard Fillmore Watch


1/17/2022

Doesn’t seem like the new guy fully understands the Mallard Fillmore mindset when it comes to Martin Luther King, Jr. Day… you’re supposed to ignore it, treat it as frivolous, or try to use King’s words to do an epic own on affirmative action

July 17, 2021

Bruce Tinsley Watch

 

Fascinating look into the mind of Mallard Fillmore. This must be that compassionate conservatism I’ve heard so much about.

July 15, 2021

Mallard Fillmore Watch



7/11/2021

Mallard looking at the crime statistics and seeing a 55% increase in knock out games

March 4, 2021

Mallard Fillmore Watch

I regret to inform you that Mallard Fillmore has been CANCELLED by one of the nation’s largest newspaper consortiums:

Bruce Tinsley, creator of the 27-year-old cartoon, said he was told this week by his syndication company that Gannett newspapers across the country simultaneously dropped the comic over two strips critical of President Biden and transgender participation in women’s sports.

The strips in question:



2/19/2021



2/20/2021

Mallard has always been shitty on this issue so I guess I’m a little surprised that only now it’s a problem.

Also, finally, an on-the-record explanation of Tinsley’s mysterious disappearance:

He said he took time off last year due to a long illness. During that time, the syndicate brought in another cartoonist, Loren Fishman, to draw “Mallard Fillmore,” and that they now split duties.

Mr. Tinsley said he has gone back to creating four of the seven daily comics per week, and he drew the two Biden cartoons at the center of the controversy.

September 16, 2020

Mallard Fillmore Watch

Mallard Fillmore, 9/14/2020
9/14/2020

Mallard Fillmore, 9/15/2020
9/15/2020

Mallard Fillmore, 9/16/2020
9/16/2020

Bruce Tinsley made a triumphant return to his comic strip for the first time in nearly a year. Two days later, it’s back to the other guy.

April 21, 2020

Bruce Tinsley Watch

It’s been nearly two months since a substitute artist took over Mallard Fillmore and it’s still unclear what happened to Bruce Tinsley, but now there are some clues courtesy of comics curmudgeon Josh Frulinger. First, according to The Daily Cartoonist, the syndicate started rerunning strips in late November “due to unforeseen circumstances.” Secondly, the syndicate published – and then mysteriously removed – an interview with the substitute artist, which just says Tinsley’s “away.” Finally, earlier this month Tinsley made his first tweet in more than a year, a reply to Candace Owens.

For what it’s worth, I don’t think the new guy’s doing a bad job – he remembered that the supporting characters exist, which I appreciate, but it lacks the smugness, vitriol, and thinly-concealed bigotry of The Real Thing. Also, I still don’t like that font. Speaking of which…

new artist
4/17/2020

…is Mallard going after me??

March 10, 2020

Mallard Fillmore Watch

new artist
3/09/2020

Mallard Fillmore has been in reruns since the start of the year (if not earlier) and as of yesterday there’s a replacement… er… substitute artist. That font looks atrocious, Mallard Fillmore should always be hand-lettered. I don’t know what’s going on but I sincerely hope Bruce Tinsley is able to return.

June 19, 2019

Mallard Fillmore Watch

undignified
6/10/2019

free electoral college for all
4/03/2019

establishing your base
5/15/2019

Bruce Tinsley’s Bernie Sanders cariacature is his Elizabeth Warren caricature with Trump’s hair. They’re all slowly merging into one. Just imagine the sheer efficency of having one caricature that can represent potentially anyone

April 30, 2019

Mallard Fillmore Watch

crippling student-loan debt
4/30/2019

Bruce Tinsley has been doing strips about college students being saddled with debt for years if not decades now, so I have no doubt he’ll be an enthusiastic supporter of Elizabeth Warren’s plans to cancel student loan debt

January 11, 2019

Mallard Fillmore Watch



12/17/2018

Mallard Fillmore bids farewell to President George “Home Work” Bush, who was the comic’s biggest fan:

Bruce Tinsley, creator of the conservative comic strip Mallard Fillmore, remembers feeling stunned when the fan letter showed up in February 1998. After all, his strip— featuring a right-leaning TV newsman or, more accurately, newsduck—was still in its relative infancy. Yet here was George Herbert Walker Bush declaring that he and Barbara turned to Mallard, “sage duck that he is,” first thing every morning. Even more gratifying, the former president thanked Tinsley for taking on “that horrible Doonesbury” and its creator, liberal icon Garry Trudeau, “a guy that tore me up in a vicious, personal way strip after strip.”

I didn’t realize Bush’s distaste for Doonesbury ran so deep until I read this article by Matt Taibbi. Nowadays newspaper comic strips are thought of as this weird relic of a bygone era so it’s wild to learn about, like, Mort Walker being ambushed by a feminist on Phil Donahue or that four panels could reduce The Most Powerful Man On The Face of the Earth into a fuming volcano of rage:

A few weeks later, the Doonesbury comic strip — which was a big deal in an age when everyone read newspapers — ran a cartoon playing on the theme of Bush’s “manhood problem.” Cartoonist Garry Trudeau had newsman character Roland Hedley Jr. doing a standup outside the White House, announcing, “In a White House ceremony today, Bush will formally place his embattled manhood in a blind trust.”

The Bush family never got over the Doonesbury thing. “He’s been reduced to a cartoon,” fumed son Jeb in a 1987 Newsweek cover story called “BUSH BATTLES THE WIMP FACTOR”…

After the “Wimp” cover, Doonesbury doubled down — among other things, depicting Bush as literally invisible, which caused the Bushes to overreact in historic fashion. Bush himself admitted in an interview that he wanted to “kick the hell” out of Trudeau dating back to 1984, and his sons George and Jeb actually reached out to the cartoonist, who was a Yale classmate of W. This is in Poppy’s recollection:

″Trudeau says to our son, ‘Well, I hope your family doesn’t take this personally.’ And George says, ’They don’t take it personally, but my brother (Jeb) wanted to come up and kick your ass all over New York.”

This all seems absurd now, but Bush spent the rest of his political career beating back the wimp/manhood thing.

November 5, 2018

Mallard Fillmore Watch

Mallard Fillmore, 11/5/2018

11/05/2018

Not pictured: elephant armed with an AR-15 ready to mow down some Soroscucks

November 2, 2018

Mallard Fillmore Watch

running in the halls

10/02/2018

believe women

10/09/2018

clarence thomas me too

10/20/2018

Just an absolute banner month for Mallard Fillmore

July 10, 2018

Mallard Fillmore Watch

Our top story on ABC World News Tonight... will just have to wait... while we examine the true meaning of whatever Melania Trump is wearing today...

07/09/2018

I seem to recall right-wingers flipping out because one of Obama’s daughters wore a shirt with the peace symbol on it, but yes, I agree, the focus on Melania’s jacket was a dumb distraction from a far more important issue…

The government should PUNISH any private business that refuses service to anyone!! Except Trump staffers, of course.

07/10/2018

That’s right, the uncivil behavior of the boorish Left. Mallard Fillmore will still be talking about Red Hen/Whataburger in 2020.