Cartooning and moving with the times

As each Anzac dawn parade comes around veterans show the passing of the years.

In 1994, Prince Charles visited New Zealand, as did the Pakistan cricket team. No doubt Prince Charles found his visit a welcome respite from speculation at home over his private life.

Throughout 1995, the pros and cons of euthanasia were widely debated.

As director general of the Commonwealth, Don McKinnon visited Zimbabwe. I field angry calls from readers claiming this cartoon was insulting to Robert Mugabe. I lose a lot of sleep over this.

In 1988, India increased its military spending.

What eventually emerged as the Civil Union Bill began with public debate and headlines in 1992.

In 1992, Sir Robert Muldoon passes on and makes his presence felt elsewhere.

As the rabbit problem threatens the viability of high-country farming, scientists investigate the possibility of air-dropping contraceptive matter. This cartoon was hugely popular — partly because mentioning contraceptives and depicting prophylactics...

Garrick Tremain marks 30 years of cartooning for the Otago Daily Times today. He describes how the job began.

Garrick Tremain’s 2010 caricature of himself.

In 1988, in a chance encounter in an Arrowtown pub, I first heard of the fax machine: an amazing gizmo into which one could feed a black-and-white drawing, dial some numbers, and send the image down phone lines to another fax machine. The quality delivered was sufficient to go into a newspaper, I was told. It was a "Eureka!" moment for me.

I had long harboured an inkling to try cartooning. I had long envied cartoonists their talent to amuse and their opportunity to express their opinions and prejudices to a wide audience.

So with a few cartoon drawings and a soul full of optimism I ventured to Dunedin to raise the prospect of me, with a fax machine, becoming the cartoonist for the ODT. I was as surprised by the negative reaction as they were by my suggestion of payment for anything published.

Not totally rebuffed, I persevered for some weeks, until it was agreed I supply the odd cartoon on a trial basis, with no promise that anything would be published. That evening I faxed my first effort. The next day it was in the paper. And so the next one was transmitted and that, too, was published; a pattern that has continued for 30 years.

For nostalgia’s sake I republish here eight cartoons from my first 10 years.

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