Charles George Werner (March 23, 1909 – July 1, 1997) was an American

editorial cartoon A political cartoon, also known as an editorial cartoon, is a cartoon graphic with caricatures of public figures, expressing the artist's opinion. An artist who writes and draws such images is known as an editorial cartoonist. They typically co ...

ist who won a

Pulitzer Prize The Pulitzer Prizes () are 23 annual awards given by Columbia University in New York City for achievements in the United States in "journalism, arts and letters". They were established in 1917 by the will of Joseph Pulitzer, who had made his fo ...

in 1939 and later worked 47 years for the ''

Indianapolis Star Indianapolis ( ), colloquially known as Indy, is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the county seat of Marion County. Indianapolis is situated in the state's central till plain region along the west fork of ...

''."Charles Werner Papers"
Syracuse University Libraries. Revised September 17, 2009. Retrieved 2010-11-23."Editorial Cartooning"
The Pulitzer Prizes. Retrieved 2010-11-23.

Biography

Charles Werner was born on March 23, 1909, in Marshfield, Wisconsin. Werner attended

Oklahoma City University Oklahoma City University (OCU) is a private university historically affiliated with the United Methodist Church and located in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The university offers undergraduate bachelor's degrees, graduate master's degrees and docto ...

with no formal training in art. From 1930 until 1935 he worked as staff artist and photographer for Springfield, Missouri's ''Leader and Press.'' Werner joined the ''

Daily Oklahoman ''The Oklahoman'' is the largest daily newspaper in Oklahoma, United States, and is the only regional daily that covers the Greater Oklahoma City area. The Alliance for Audited Media (formerly Audit Bureau Circulation) lists it as the 59th larg ...

'' in 1935, eventually becoming editorial cartoonist in 1937. Werner left the ''Oklahoman'' for a job as Chief Editorial Cartoonist at the ''Chicago Sun'' in 1941. However he left the ''Sun'' for the ''Indianapolis Star'' in 1947 and worked there until his retirement in 1994. In 1959 he also served as the president of the Association of American Editorial Cartoonists. In his nearly 60-year career, Werner's work garnered interest from several U.S. Presidents. In 1965

Lyndon B. Johnson Lyndon Baines Johnson (; August 27, 1908January 22, 1973), also known as LBJ, was the 36th president of the United States, serving from 1963 to 1969. He became president after the assassination of John F. Kennedy, under whom he had served a ...

requested over a dozen original cartoons for his personal collection. Former President

Harry Truman Harry S. Truman (May 8, 1884December 26, 1972) was the 33rd president of the United States, serving from 1945 to 1953. As the 34th vice president in 1945, he assumed the presidency upon the death of Franklin D. Roosevelt that year. Subsequen ...

also requested an original cartoon from Werner for his presidential library. Charles Werner died on July 1, 1997, from cancer.

Awards

Werner won the

Pulitzer Prize for Editorial Cartooning Pulitzer may refer to: *Joseph Pulitzer, a 19th century media magnate *Pulitzer Prize, an annual U.S. journalism, literary, and music award *Pulitzer (surname) *Pulitzer, Inc., a U.S. newspaper chain *Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting, a non-prof ...

in 1939. The winning cartoon was published in the ''Daily Oklahoman'' on October 6, 1938. Titled "Nomination for 1938", it depicted the

Munich Agreement The Munich Agreement was reached in Munich on 30 September 1938, by Nazi Germany, the United Kingdom, the French Third Republic, French Republic, and the Kingdom of Italy. The agreement provided for the Occupation of Czechoslovakia (1938–194 ...

which provided for the transfer of

Sudetenland The Sudetenland ( , ; Czech and ) is a German name for the northern, southern, and western areas of former Czechoslovakia which were inhabited primarily by Sudeten Germans. These German speakers had predominated in the border districts of Bohe ...

to Hitler's Germany. At 29 years old, Werner was the youngest person to win the Pulitzer for Editorial Cartooning. Werner also received the

Sigma Delta Chi Award The Sigma Delta Chi Awards are presented annually by the Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ) (formerly Sigma Delta Chi) for excellence in journalism. The SPJ states the purpose of the award is to promote "the free flow of information vital ...

for excellence in journalism in 1943, and seven Freedom Foundation Awards (1951–1963). During the 1969 International Salon of Cartoons in Montreal, Werner won an award as one of the world's six best cartoonists.

References

External links

Charles Werner Papers (1938–1966)
at Syracuse University (primary source material). * {{DEFAULTSORT:Werner, Charles 1909 births 1997 deaths American editorial cartoonists American political artists People from Marshfield, Wisconsin Pulitzer Prize for Editorial Cartooning winners