The blog of Richard Thompson, caricaturist, creator of "Cul de Sac," and winner of the 2011 Reuben Award for Outstanding Cartoonist of the Year.

Tuesday, April 22, 2008

444 Years Young


April 23rd is Shakespeare's Birthday, and I'm celebrating by drinking lots of orange juice. My wife volunteers as a docent at the Folger Shakespeare Library and on Sunday they're doing their annual birthday party (there'll be cake for everybody so y'all come on down). One of the things they need for a children's craft project is orange juice can lids, lots and lots of them. I think they make jewelry or badges out of them. So we're pitching in and drinking frozen orange juice. or really I am, because nobody else here drinks orange juice (Sunny D doesn't count). My wife also runs the fifth grade Shakespeare program at my daughter's school. This year they're doing Richard III, or at least a forty minute version of it, with a big fight at the end, and the kids got to learn stage combat from a real stage combat specialist. So my house is full of wooden sword parts, handmade wooden-tray shields, costumes and orange juice can lids. And I'm full of vitamin C.

7 comments:

Dustin Harbin said...

Wow. This is one of my favorites yet, so much so that I just HAD TO COMMENT, though I get this blog on RSS and read every post, every sweet, sweet comic.

Best part: the rhythm of the jokes in the "6 Things Wrong With..." panel. I was smiling pretty big at #4, and was already writing this comment in my mind as of #5. Really great writing.

arcticcircle said...

Finally, Barky the wonder dog gets credit where credit is due.

Hey, it is also St George's Day. Hooray for people called George, everywhere!

Kid Shay said...

Happy Birthday, Bill. I'll drink an orange juice in your honor.

here today, gone tomorrow said...

I trust you and your wife already know about this.

Mike Lynch said...

I'm learning Shakespeare by watching those SLINGS & ARROWS TV shows.

richardcthompson said...

Thanks, Dustin. This one makes me pretty happy, except the drawing's a mess. But who looks at that?

I can think of at least one George I'll pass on cheering on, hd.

Spike it with something, Kid. Just think, What Would Bill Drink? Something revolting, probably.

HTGT, that site's just great. We've got some refrigerator magnet thing based on Shakespeare's Insults or something like that.

Mike, Amy's been watching that too. Also something called The Reduced Shakespeare Comapany that's a hoot. The best bit on acting I ever saw was Sir Ian McKellen on that British show Extras. Go to Youtube and look up Ian McKellen and Extras and one'll show up that says Wizard! He talks about playing Gandalf, but it works for any kind of acting. It's just wonderfully idiotic.

Mike Lynch said...

Oh, yeah! You're right, Richard. That Ian McKellen scene in EXTRAS is too too funny.