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Jeffrey Koterba (born May 6, 1961) is an American editorial cartoonist based in
Omaha, Nebraska Omaha ( ) is the List of cities in Nebraska, most populous city in the U.S. state of Nebraska. It is located in the Midwestern United States along the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. The nation's List of United S ...
. He was the editorial cartoonist for the ''
Omaha World-Herald The ''Omaha World-Herald'' is a daily newspaper in the midwestern United States, the primary newspaper of the Omaha-Council Bluffs metropolitan area. It was locally owned from its founding in 1885 until 2020, when it was sold to the newspaper ...
'' from 1989 until September 2020 and his work is syndicated nationwide to over 850 newspapers by
Cagle Cartoons Cagle Cartoons, Inc. is a Print syndication, syndication service for political cartoons and Columnist, opinion columnists. Started by editorial cartoonist Daryl Cagle in 2001, Cagle Cartoons distributes the cartoons of sixty cartoonists and four ...
.


Biography

Koterba started drawing editorial cartoons for the Omaha South High School newspaper. While at the
University of Nebraska at Omaha The University of Nebraska Omaha (UNO) is a public university, public research university in Omaha, Nebraska, United States. Founded in 1908 by faculty from the Presbyterian Theological Seminary (Omaha, Nebraska), Omaha Presbyterian Theological ...
he was the editorial cartoonist of the college newspaper, the Gateway. In college, he also drew cartoons for the suburban Omaha newspaper, the ''Bellevue Leader''. After college he drew sports cartoons on a part-time basis for the ''
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'' from 1986 to 1989 where his work also regularly appeared in the ''
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''. He was hired by the ''Omaha World-Herald'' in 1989 as the editorial cartoonist, filling a 9-year void at that position. While at the ''World Herald'', Koterba has occasionally written editorials and feature stories. Koterba describes himself as "passionate centrist".The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'', ''
Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is an American daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Founded in 1847, it was formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper", a slogan from which its once integrated WGN (AM), WGN radio and ...
'', ''
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'', ''
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'', ''
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'' and
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. He has also been featured in many magazines and high-profile websites. His cartoons regularly appear in the ''Best Editorial Cartoons of the Year'', and ''Best Political Cartoons of the Year'' publications. Koterba also regularly appears on panels discussing his craft. In 2009, he was part of an editorial cartooning panel at
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. He has appeared as a panelist discussing his cartooning on
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and has been a featured guest on Public Radio International's Michael Feldman's Whad'Ya Know?.Omaha World Herald June 16, 2009
/ref> Koterba has written for ''
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'',
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, and ''
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''. In 2009, he was named a finalist in the Great Plains Journalism Awards for a three-part essay he wrote for the ''
Omaha World Herald The ''Omaha World-Herald'' is a daily newspaper in the midwestern United States, the primary newspaper of the Omaha-Council Bluffs metropolitan area. It was locally owned from its founding in 1885 until 2020, when it was sold to the newspaper ...
'' titled "Ink and Ash". His fiction has appeared in Parcel, and his graphic nonfiction has appeared in Ecotone. Koterba has given two TEDx talks where he's discussed
Tourette's syndrome Tourette syndrome (TS), or simply Tourette's, is a common neurodevelopmental disorder that begins in childhood or adolescence. It is characterized by multiple movement (motor) tics and at least one vocal (phonic) tic. Common tics are blinki ...
, vulnerability, and cartooning. Koterba is the lead singer, guitarist and songwriter for the Omaha-based swing and jump-blues band the Prairie Cats, who have released three albums. The Prairie Cats have been featured at the
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music festival, the Hudson River Festival, have toured nationally, and appears in the motion picture Lucky featuring
Ann-Margret Ann-Margret Olsson (born 28 April 1941), credited as Ann-Margret, is a Swedish-American actress and singer with a career spanning seven decades. Her many screen roles include '' Pocketful of Miracles'' (1961), ''State Fair'' (1962), '' Bye Bye B ...
,
Colin Hanks Colin Lewes Hanks (born November 24, 1977) is an American actor and filmmaker. He is best known for his role as Gus Grimly on the FX crime series '' Fargo'' (2014–2015), which earned him nominations for a Golden Globe Award, a Primetime Emmy ...
, and Ari Graynor. They have been included on several Sony/BMG compilations in Europe alongside the likes of Tony Bennett, Natalie Cole, and Frank Sinatra. He has published three collections of his cartoons including a book on
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football cartoons he drew while in college. In October 2009,
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published Koterba's memoir, ''Inklings'', which deals with his dysfunctional childhood and his lifelong love of cartooning and music. Many of his original cartoon drawings are regularly available for sale on
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. On April 5, 2010, two original Koterba cartoons blasted off into space aboard
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compliments of astronaut Clayton Anderson. Koterba was laid off by the Omaha World Herald on September 18, 2020, after 31 years of employment.


Awards

In 1983 Koterba was awarded the Mark of Excellence Award for college cartooning from the
Society of Professional Journalists The Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ), formerly known as Sigma Delta Chi, is the oldest organization representing journalists in the United States. It was established on April 17, 1909, at DePauw University,2009 SPJ Annual Report, lette ...
. In 1996 he was a finalist for the H.L. Mencken Award, placed second in the 2000 and 2012 National Headliner Awards and in 2002 he was a finalist for Editorial Cartoonist of the Year (Reuben Award) from the
National Cartoonists Society The National Cartoonists Society (NCS) is an organization of professional cartoonists in the United States. It presents the National Cartoonists Society Awards. The Society was born in 1946 when groups of cartoonists got together to entertain the ...
. In 2009, 2010, 2013, 2016, and 2017 Koterba won first place for editorial cartooning in the Great Plains Journalism Awards. On May 6, 2010, Koterba was honored by the Omaha Press Club as his "Face" was put on the Barroom Floor. He was the 125th "Face" in a tradition dating back to 1971. Past honorees have ranged from local politicians, business leaders and members of the press to national figures with Omaha ties such as
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,
Johnny Carson John William Carson (October 23, 1925 – January 23, 2005) was an American television host, comedian, and writer best known as the host of NBC's ''The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson'' (1962–1992). Carson is a cultural phenomenon and w ...
, and President
Gerald Ford Gerald Rudolph Ford Jr. (born Leslie Lynch King Jr.; July 14, 1913December 26, 2006) was the 38th president of the United States, serving from 1974 to 1977. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, Ford assumed the p ...
. The "Face on the Barroom Floor" is a drawing of Koterba and his life that is encased on the barroom floor to be walked upon and admired by members until a new "Face" is unveiled. His "Face" will then be moved to a lofty position on the club's walls. In 2018 Koterba was nominated for a Heartland Chapter Emmy Award for his work in connection with
KMTV KMTV-TV (channel 3) is a television station in Omaha, Nebraska, United States, affiliated with CBS. Owned by the E. W. Scripps Company, the station has studios on Mockingbird Drive in southwest Omaha, and its transmitter is located on a "tower ...
television on a segment concerning the cartooning process.


Personal life

Koterba has
Tourette syndrome Tourette syndrome (TS), or simply Tourette's, is a common neurodevelopmental disorder that begins in childhood or adolescence. It is characterized by multiple movement (motor) tics and at least one vocal (phonic) tic. Common tics are blinkin ...
and also survived a lightning strike in high school. He has one child, Josh Koterba, who is a singer and a songwriter. Koterba lives in the Benson neighborhood area of Omaha, Nebraska. Koterba is friends with filmmaker
Alexander Payne Constantine Alexander Payne (born February 10, 1961) is an American film director, screenwriter and producer. He is noted for his satire, satirical depictions of contemporary American society. Payne has received List of awards and nominations rec ...
and was an extra in Payne's 2002 film ''
About Schmidt ''About Schmidt'' is a 2002 American comedy drama film co-written and directed by Alexander Payne and starring Jack Nicholson in the title role. The film also stars Hope Davis, Dermot Mulroney, and Kathy Bates. It is loosely based on the 1996 no ...
''. However, his scene was deleted. A Koterba cartoon also appeared in Payne's 1999 film ''
Election An election is a formal group decision-making process whereby a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold Public administration, public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative d ...
''. Koterba is friends with astronaut Clayton Anderson and has featured him in several cartoons. In March 2012, "Voluntary Gestures" a short film by Canadian filmmaker Stefan Morel on Koterba and his experience with Tourette's syndrome, debuted at the Omaha Film Festival. Not only is Koterba the central figure in the movie, he penned drawings for the film and with his son Josh, wrote and composed original music for it.Omaha World Herald March 4, 2012
/ref>


Books

*''The Big Red Cartoon Book'' (1985) *Illustrator, ''To Spank or Not to Spank''(1994), Rosemond, John, author *''Jeff Koterba Back from the Drawing Board'' (1995) *''Inklings'' (2009) *''Koterba: Drawing You In'' (2014)


References


External links


Official websiteOmaha World Herald Editorial Cartoon website"Koterba: Drawing You In" cartoon collectionKoterba's 2017 TEDx TalkKoterba's 2019 TEDx TalkEbay StorePatreon Site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Koterba, Jeff American editorial cartoonists American political artists American sports cartoonists American blues singers American blues guitarists Artists from Omaha, Nebraska University of Nebraska Omaha alumni People with Tourette syndrome 1961 births Living people Berkshire Hathaway employees