35 Facts About Paul Conrad

Paul Francis Conrad was an American political cartoonist and winner of three Pulitzer Prizes for editorial cartooning.

Paul Conrad is best known for his work as the chief editorial cartoonist for the Los Angeles Times during a time when the newspaper was in transition under the direction of publisher Otis Chandler, who recruited Conrad from the Denver Post.

At the conservative Times, Paul Conrad brought a more liberal editorial perspective that readers both celebrated and criticized; he was respected for his talent and his ability to speak truth to power.

Paul Conrad was raised in a conservative, Catholic family with his identical twin brother James and older brother Bob in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

Paul Conrad was left-handed, but was forced by teachers to favor his right hand.

At an early age, Paul Conrad was exposed to the work of Jay Norwood Darling, more popularly known as "Ding Darling", whose conservative cartoons were featured in local newspapers and who became a "childhood role model" for Paul Conrad.

Paul Conrad honed his talent as a musician while playing piano in a bordello.

Paul Conrad originally planned to attend Iowa State University after the war in 1945, but instead taught himself to play bass and joined a big band.

Paul Conrad first got the idea to become a cartoonist while hanging out at a local bar in Iowa City.

Early in his career, Paul Conrad sought out the then retired Ding Darling in Florida for advice, and showed him copies of his work from the Daily Iowan.

Unimpressed, Ding told Paul Conrad to "get into another line of work".

In 1960, Time magazine recognized Paul Conrad's talent, saying that he was "probably the nation's hottest new cartooning property".

Paul Conrad received the Pulitzer Prize for editorial cartooning in 1964.

Paul Conrad took the offer of an initial three-year contract and was later replaced at the Post in August 1964 by Australian cartoonist Pat Oliphant from the Adelaide Advertiser.

Paul Conrad lectured at the Denver Art Museum in 1964 under a sponsorship from the Cooke-Daniels Lecture Fund.

Paul Conrad moved his family to southern California, and for three decades, from 1964 to 1993, he worked as the chief editorial cartoonist for the Los Angeles Times.

Paul Conrad's cartoons were now syndicated to hundreds of newspapers worldwide.

Paul Conrad later described the cartoon as one of his all-time favorites.

In 1973, the Associated Press contacted Paul Conrad to inform him that he had been added to Nixon's Enemies List.

Unperturbed, Paul Conrad considered his place on this list as a badge of honor, but members of the list were exposed to greater scrutiny by the government and subject to investigation.

Paul Conrad accepted an early retirement from the Times on April 1,1993, but continued to draw four cartoons a week in syndication for the Los Angeles Times Syndicate.

Paul Conrad spent time at the public library learning to make welded sculpture and three months later emerged with a 272-kilogram sculpture titled The Trinity, which was installed at Marymount College.

Paul Conrad created several other works of public art: Risen Christ, an altar piece located at Saint John Fisher Catholic Church in Rancho Palos Verdes, California; Otis Chandler, a bust of the publisher installed in the Los Angeles Times building; and Chain Reaction, a peace monument in the shape of a mushroom cloud located in the Santa Monica Civic Center.

Paul Conrad earned the Pulitzer Prize for Editorial Cartooning three times, once for his work at the Denver Post in 1964, and twice more for his work at the Los Angeles Times, in 1971 and 1984.

Paul Conrad received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Association of American Editorial Cartoonists in 1998, and the Lifetime Public Service Award from the Edmund G "Pat" Brown Institute of Public Affairs at California State University, Los Angeles in 2000.

Paul Conrad criticized the Catholic church for not letting priests marry and for treating their nuns poorly.

Paul Conrad was an imposing man with a powerful voice who was often seen smoking a pipe while working on his cartoons.

Paul Conrad married Kay King, the Post's society editor, in 1953.

Paul Conrad remained a devout Catholic and his belief in social justice informed his work.

Paul Conrad changed his views in the 1980s, when he came to believe that it was a matter of private choice.

Paul Conrad died at home in Rancho Palos Verdes at the age of 86.

Paul Conrad's funeral was held at Saint John Fisher Catholic Church in Rancho Palos Verdes on September 11,2010, with eulogies delivered by journalist Robert Scheer and editorial cartoonist Tony Auth.

Paul Conrad was survived by his wife, Kay King, two sons, two daughters, and one grandchild.

Paul Conrad authored several books about his work and donated many of his original editorial cartoons to the Prints and Photographs Division of the United States Library of Congress.

In honor of this legacy, the "Paul Conrad Scholarship" is annually awarded to journalism and mass communication students by the University of Iowa.