Summer break
You Write the Caption is on a summer break. We'll return with the winner of our latest challenge on Friday, July 10.
Your new challenge: June 29, 2009
Welcome to You Write the Caption, the Charlotte Observer cartoon caption contest, an opportunity to test your wit and win a prize. Each Monday, Observer editorial cartoonist Kevin Siers will post a political cartoon that needs a caption and invite readers to write one. To learn more about our contest and see our caption writing guidelines, please click here.
Submissions must reach us by noon, Wednesday, July 1.
Enter as many times as you wish. To submit your caption on-line, just click here to e-mail us. (Or address your e-mail to caption@charlotteobserver.com) Please include your mailing address and daytime phone number.
To mail your caption to the Observer, address it to You Write the
Caption, Editorial Department, The Charlotte Observer, P.O. Box 30308,
Charlotte, NC 28230-0308.
You Write the Caption will be taking a short vacation break this week. The winners of this challenge will be posted in two weeks.
For a discussion about last week's winners, please see the "Comments" section below the previous post.
Good luck, and have fun!
The new cartoon caption winner
The winner:
"Their stock is at rollback prices."
-- Patrick Sweeney of Charlotte
The runners-up:
"Clean up on aisle 401k."
-- Brent Sheppard, Morganton
"Salary rollback!"
-- Doug Cox, Albemarle
"He needs more practice with Wal-Mart's Happy Face."
-- Mary C. Henry, Fort Mill
“Hey! Can you get me a deal on red ink?”
-- Steven E. Davies, Charlotte
Thank you for all your entries. As usual, feel free to discuss any of this in our "Comments" section. Just click the blue link below this post and add your observations, criticisms or additional captions!
Here's a selection of some of the other better lines we received:
"I think Ken may be overdoing his common man image."
"If only he had shown his frugal side before he blew 50 billion on Merrill."
“Moonlighting to make ends meet, I guess…”
“Ask him about his everyday low prices.”
"Looks like Ken has finally found a job he can bank on."
"You can find his stock on aisle 9."
"The back says 'Kick Me'!"
"Don't criticize a guy until you walk in his shoes - or is it until you sell shoes?"
"Do you hear the sound of stock prices falling?"
"Too Big to Fail."
"Well, at least ONE of us has a job that cares about customer service!"
"It looks like Ken is the only one with a backup plan."
"I understand Ken’s board has offered him a 'Blue Parachute.'”
"He's a master at watching stock go out the door."
"What does BofA mean by hiring someone who knows what they're doing?"
Please join us again Monday, June 29, for a new cartoon caption challenge.
Impromptu comics survey
It's that quiet time here at the ol' You Write the Caption blog -- that dead zone where the cartoon caption entry deadline has passed but the new winner won't be announced until Friday. This might be a good time for the You Write the Caption Community to do a little sharing -- specifically about what our favorite comic strips are. You may have noticed this has become a hot topic of conversation in our editorial page's Buzz column. Folks can use the space here to expand on their feelings if they wish.
So, to get things started, I'll start with mine. It may give you new insights in what I think is funny -- info that could either help you win, or realize you will never understand my warped sense of humor. And vice versa, of course, when you tell me yours.
No surprise to anyone, of course, is my number one pick, Garry Trudeau's 'Doonesbury':
But the strip that makes me actually laugh out loud, almost every day, is a relative new-comer on the comics scene -- Darby Conley's 'Get Fuzzy':
And I think Stephan Pastis' 'Pearls Before Swine' is genius:
And even though he's been dissed in the Observer's 'Buzz' column lately, Judge Parker is good, campy fun, especially since the artistic chores have been taken over by Eduardo Barreto!
But now it's YOUR turn! You write the survey: What are your favorite strips? Just click on the 'Comments' link below to leave your answers.
Your new challenge: June 22, 2009
Welcome to You Write the Caption, the Charlotte Observer cartoon caption contest, an opportunity to test your wit and win a prize. Each Monday, Observer editorial cartoonist Kevin Siers will post a political cartoon that needs a caption and invite readers to write one. To learn more about our contest and see our caption writing guidelines, please click here.
Submissions must reach us by noon, Wednesday, June 24.
Enter as many times as you wish. To submit your caption on-line, just click here to e-mail us. (Or address your e-mail to caption@charlotteobserver.com) Please include your mailing address and daytime phone number.
To mail your caption to the Observer, address it to You Write the
Caption, Editorial Department, The Charlotte Observer, P.O. Box 30308,
Charlotte, NC 28230-0308.
Winners are posted online Friday, and published in the paper on Monday. For a discussion about last week's winners, please see the "Comments" section below the previous post.
Good luck, and have fun!
The new cartoon caption winner
The winner:
"I hear you got a job as an investigative reporter in Raleigh."
-- Hansford M. Epes of Davidson
The runners-up:
"Nope, this is diverse school!"
-- Guy Snow, Charlotte
"Were your grades below 'C' level?"
-- From several readers
"Going into banking?"
-- From many readers
"Drowning in college debt?"
-- From many, many readers
Thank you for all your entries. As usual, feel free to discuss any of this in our "Comments" section. Just click the blue link below this post and add your observations, criticisms or additional captions!
Here's a selection of some of the other better lines we received:
"Are you getting the same sinking feeling that I am?"
"Really? A Sand Dollar is worth more than an American dollar?"
"Dude, everyone knows you majored in Marine Biology.""
"Just how low was your GPA?"
"I take it you took all of your classes online."
"Ummm.... I think you are looking for Coastal Carolina's graduation."
"I don’t think that’s what they meant when they said all the jobs are offshore."
"To what depths has your professional status sunk, Mrs. Easley?"
"How much deeper do you expect the recession to get?"
"Do you really think the economy will sink that low?"
“So, the job market has taken a deep dive?”
"So, the job market's tanked?"
“Looking for a job after graduation? Don’t hold your bre… Ohhhh.”
"You must be preparing for when all the graduates flood the job market."
"I guess N.C. State is sinking fast!"
"Were you here on a Lloyd Bridges Scholarship?"
"First it was the Paper Chase, now it's the Sea Hunt!"
Comic Fans, don't miss Heroes Convention 2009!
There's not much for this blog to do on Thursday's -- the deadline for the caption contest has passed and the new winner won't be announced until tomorrow -- so this might be a good day to plug the best event in Charlotte for fans of cartoons and comic art. It's the HeroesCon 2009, the huge, annual comic book convention sponsored by Charlotte's Heroes Aren't Hard to Find comic shop and superbly organized by its tireless proprietor, Shelton Drum. This year's guests will include many of the top names in the business, tons of dealers, and lots of seminars and events.
Two events in particular might be of interest to fans of this site. The first is The Art of the Comic Strip, at 1:30 pm Friday. Andy Mansell sits down with some of the greats of strip cartooning, including Richard Thompson (Cul De Sac), Jim Scancarelli (Gasonline Alley), Marcus Hamilton (Dennis the Menace), and June Brigman (Brenda Starr). Don't miss this look into one of America's oldest and most unique artforms, the newspaper strip!
The second is at 3 pm Saturday: A STEVE DITKO CELEBRATION! Midnight Sun cartoonist Ben Towle and Thought Balloonist blogger Craig Fischer host an extensive tribute to one of the most creative and enigmatic figures in comics: Spider-Man co-creator Steve Ditko! The first hour will be a screening of Jonathan Ross’s provocative BBC documentary In Search of Steve Ditko (2007), featuring interviews with John Romita, Alan Moore, Neil Gaiman,
and other high-profile Ditko fans. Following the documentary, two
comics legends who worked extensively with Ditko--writer/editor Roy Thomas and artist/editor Dick Giordano--will share their memories of the man and his art. The tribute ends with Ben, Craig, and cartoonist/educator Chris Schweizer (Crogan's Vengeance) analyzing their favorite Ditko pages and dissecting Ditko’s contributions to comics history. (Well, ok, maybe this isn't the cup of tea of most who like to write captions for political cartoons, but Ditko was the guy whose Spider-man made me want to be a cartoonist -- so I know I don't want to miss this!)
There's also an original comic art auction at the Westin Hotel Saturday night. For more info, admission fees, a complete list of guests and events, check out their web site at http://www.heroesonline.com
Your new challenge: June 15, 2009
Welcome to You Write the Caption, the Charlotte Observer cartoon caption contest, an opportunity to test your wit and win a prize. Each Monday, Observer editorial cartoonist Kevin Siers will post a political cartoon that needs a caption and invite readers to write one. To learn more about our contest and see our caption writing guidelines, please click here.
Submissions must reach us by noon, Wednesday, June 17.
Enter as many times as you wish. To submit your caption on-line, just click here to e-mail us. (Or address your e-mail to caption@charlotteobserver.com) Please include your mailing address and daytime phone number.
To mail your caption to the Observer, address it to You Write the
Caption, Editorial Department, The Charlotte Observer, P.O. Box 30308,
Charlotte, NC 28230-0308.
Winners are posted online Friday, and published in the paper on Monday. For a discussion about last week's winners, please see the "Comments" section below the previous post.
Good luck, and have fun!
The new cartoon caption winner
The winner:
"I don't need a rock. I trashed you on my Facebook page."
-- Kyle Bartel of Matthews
The runners-up:
"Northlake Mall is serious about the new chaperon policy!"
-- Candy Lake, Indian Trail
"I see you are not one of my friends."
-- Al Vaughn, Waxhaw
"ABT2ROCKURWRLD"
-- Doug Cox, Albemarle
"There's gotta be an 'app' for this somewhere!"
-- from many readers
Thank you for all your entries. As usual, feel free to discuss any of this in our "Comments" section. Just click the blue link below this post and add your observations, criticisms or additional captions!
Here's a selection of some of the other better lines we received:
"I'm sorry I didn't take your friend request on Facebook, but isn't this a little extreme?"
"You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of Apple."
"What we have here is a failure to communicate!"
"Just what I need, another character!"
"It’s called a peace tweety."
"cnt ch@, I'm bZ"
“Wii can settle this!”
“I just ‘un-friended’ you on Facebook.”
Please join us again Monday, June 15, for a new cartoon caption challenge.
Your new challenge: June 8, 2009
Welcome to You Write the Caption, the Charlotte Observer cartoon caption contest, an opportunity to test your wit and win a prize. Each Monday, Observer editorial cartoonist Kevin Siers will post a political cartoon that needs a caption and invite readers to write one. To learn more about our contest and see our caption writing guidelines, please click here.
Submissions must reach us by noon, Wednesday, June 10.
Enter as many times as you wish. To submit your caption on-line, just click here to e-mail us. (Or address your e-mail to caption@charlotteobserver.com) Please include your mailing address and daytime phone number.
To mail your caption to the Observer, address it to You Write the
Caption, Editorial Department, The Charlotte Observer, P.O. Box 30308,
Charlotte, NC 28230-0308.
Winners are posted online Friday, and published in the paper on Monday. For a discussion about last week's winners, please see the "Comments" section below the previous post.
Good luck, and have fun!
