Jerry W. Holbert (November 9, 1958 – August 2, 2022) was an American cartoonist best known for his political cartoons. Holbert had a syndicated editorial comic strip. He received the

National Cartoonist 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 ...

Editorial Cartoon Award for the year 2000. Holbert was born in

Long Branch, New Jersey Long Branch is a beachside City (New Jersey), city in Monmouth County, New Jersey, Monmouth County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2010 United States census, 2010 U.S. census, the city's population was 30,719,< ...

on November 9, 1958, and grew up in

Middletown Township, New Jersey Middletown Township is a township in Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2020 United States Census, the township had a total population of 67,106, making it the most-populous municipality in the county and the state's 16th ...

. Holbert worked for the ''

Boston Herald The ''Boston Herald'' is an American daily newspaper whose primary market is Boston, Massachusetts, and its surrounding area. It was founded in 1846 and is one of the oldest daily newspapers in the United States. It has been awarded eight Pulit ...

'' newspaper, where he published

editorial cartoon A political cartoon, a form of 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 combine a ...

s. In October 2014, Holbert came under criticism for what many people viewed as a racist depiction of United States President

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the U ...

which used the

watermelon stereotype The watermelon stereotype is a stereotype that African Americans African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Afric ...

: Holbert pictured a White House intruder using the president's bathtub while recommending to Obama the use of watermelon-flavored toothpaste. After negative public reaction, Holbert and the ''Boston Herald'' apologized. The nationally syndicated version of the cartoon changed the toothpaste flavor prior to the cartoon's release, but the ''Herald'' version was not changed . In 2015, Holbert began manifesting symptoms of

frontotemporal dementia Frontotemporal dementia (FTD), or frontotemporal degeneration disease, or frontotemporal neurocognitive disorder, encompasses several types of dementia involving the progressive degeneration of frontal and temporal lobes. FTDs broadly present as ...

. As a result, he retired from the ''Herald'' in 2018, but with his wife's assistance, continued drawing for

Andrews McMeel Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC (formerly Andrews, McMeel and Parker (1975–1986) and Andrews and McMeel (1986–1997)) is a company that publishes books, calendars, and related toys. It is a part of Andrews McMeel Universal (which comprises AM ...

until November 2020. He was formally diagnosed in August 2020.Rare form of dementia ‘just takes everything’
by Jessica Heslam, in the ''

''; published January 6, 2020; retrieved May 13, 2024 Holbert died in

Derry, New Hampshire Derry is a town in Rockingham County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 34,317 at the 2020 census. Although it is a town and not a city, Derry is the most populous community in Rockingham County and the fourth most populous in the ...

on August 2, 2022, at the age of 63.

References

External links

NCS AwardsBoston Herald Jerry Holbert Cartoon Page
^{dead link}
gocomics.com Jerry Holbert Cartoon Page

Holbert's Obama/watermelon cartoon (reprinted in ArtNet criticism)
1958 births 2022 deaths American editorial cartoonists People from Middletown Township, New Jersey {{US-cartoonist-stub