from the Daily Nebraskan

This is still one of my most famous cartoons. At the time, there was a billboard along the I-180 bridge that had women’s basketball coach Paul Sanderford’s very round head measured to be the same width as a basketball. It said “Coincidence? Nebrasketball.”

From what I was told, this cartoon was discussed on Jim Rome’s nationally-syndicated sports talk show. It led Danny Nee to decide to stop talking to Daily Nebraskan reporters and eventually all media.

from the Daily Nebraskan

The DN sported a new design in the spring semester. It wasn’t particularly well-received by everyone.

from the Daily Nebraskan

from the Daily Nebraskan

from the Daily Nebraskan

from the Daily Nebraskan

I was having surgery a few days before the spring term started, so in the event that I wasn’t going to be ready to cartoon, we wanted to have a cartoon ready to go. The problem was, there was going to be no way to know what was going on that far ahead.

To play on rumors that I was going to be fired and the fact that I had personally solicited applications for my replacement, we decided to run a cartoon I drew right-handed as the work of my fill-in successor, “Phil.” Instead of the usual “Obermeyer’s View” banner above the cartoon, the page said “Phil’s View.”

I was having lunch in Burger King that day and overheard two guys talking. One said “Isn’t that his name anyway? Phil Obermeyer?”

from the Daily Nebraskan

from the Daily Nebraskan

I literally copied and pasted this cartoon. I don’t remember if there was a deeper meaning behind that, like if maybe I was trying to make the twin chimps regular news commentators, or if I was just being lazy.