Rex Babin (August 17, 1962 – March 30, 2012) was an American

editorial cartoonist An editorial cartoonist, also known as a political cartoonist, is an artist who draws editorial cartoons that contain some level of political or social commentary. Their cartoons are used to convey and question an aspect of daily news or curren ...

. He worked for ''

The Denver Post ''The Denver Post'' is a daily newspaper and website published in Denver, Colorado. As of June 2022, it has an average print circulation of 57,265. In 2016, its website received roughly six million monthly unique visitors generating more than 13 ...

'' from 1988 to 1989; the ''Times Union''; and ''

The Sacramento Bee ''The Sacramento Bee'' is a daily newspaper published in Sacramento, California, in the United States. Since its foundation in 1857, ''The Bee'' has become the largest newspaper in Sacramento, the fifth largest newspaper in California, and the 2 ...

'' from 1999 to 2012.

Life and career

Rex Babin was born on August 17, 1962 in Los Angeles, California. His father died when he was 4 years old and he was primarily raised my his mother. Babin graduated with a

B.A. Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

(1985) in English from

San Diego State University San Diego State University (SDSU) is a public research university in San Diego, California. Founded in 1897 as San Diego Normal School, it is the third-oldest university and southernmost in the 23-member California State University (CSU) system ...

. He was a strong advocate for the use of local cartoons, and typically drew three cartoons about California subjects per week. In 1988 to 1989 Babin worked at ''

'' in an interim capacity. Afterwards, he served as the editorial cartoonist of the Albany '' Times Union'', before taking a position as a political cartoonist for ''

'' in 1999, replacing retiring cartoonist Dennis Renault. His innovative cartoons include "Caleeforneeya," a recurring satire of

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

Governor

Arnold Schwarzenegger Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger (born July 30, 1947) is an Austrian and American actor, film producer, businessman, retired professional bodybuilder and politician who served as the 38th governor of California between 2003 and 2011. ''Time'' ...

. Babin was the recipient of the National Press Foundation's 2001

Berryman Award The National Press Foundation is a nonprofit journalism training organization. It educates journalists on complex issues and trains them in reporting tools and techniques. It recognizes and encourages excellence in journalism through its awards. ...

; and a finalist for the

Pulitzer Prize The Pulitzer Prize () is an award for achievements in newspaper, magazine, online journalism, literature, and musical composition within the United States. It was established in 1917 by provisions in the will of Joseph Pulitzer, who had made h ...

in 2003. In 2009, Babin served as president of the

Association of American Editorial Cartoonists The Association of American Editorial Cartoonists (AAEC) is a professional association concerned with promoting the interests of staff, freelance and student editorial cartoonists in the United States, Canada and Mexico. With nearly 200 members, it ...

Death and legacy

Babin died from complications of

stomach cancer Stomach cancer, also known as gastric cancer, is a cancer that develops from the lining of the stomach. Most cases of stomach cancers are gastric carcinomas, which can be divided into a number of subtypes, including gastric adenocarcinomas. Lymph ...

at the age of 49. A few months after his death, his colleague

Jack Ohman Jack Ohman (born September 1, 1960) is an American editorial cartoonist and educator. He works for ''The Sacramento Bee'', and previously worked for ''The Oregonian.'' His work is syndicated nationwide to over 300 newspapers by Tribune Media Se ...

took the role of editorial cartoonist at The Sacramento Bee.

The California Museum The California Museum is the state history museum of California, located in its capital city of Sacramento. It is dedicated to Californian history and the stories of California. The museum is home to the California Hall of Fame and has more t ...

held a posthumous exhibition of his art, ''Drawing Caleeforneeya: Political Cartoons of Rex Babin, 1999-2012'' (2018).

References

External links

Rex Babin's Favorite Cartoons
posthumous slideshow.
Obituary for Rex Babin in the Sacramento Bee newspaper
2012 deaths American cartoonists Deaths from cancer in California American caricaturists 1962 births {{US-cartoonist-stub