When Tweed tried to flee conviction, he was arrested in Spain, because authorities recognized his face from Nast's cartoons. By the way, Nast deserves partial credit for another icon, one that has stood the test of time. Along with an artist named Clement Moore, Nast drew the first Santa Claus. Photography became a part of America newspapers and magazines as early as the Civil War, but the process was difficult and illustrations remained a part of American newspapers until early into the 20th Century. But the sketches known as editorial cartoons are as popular today as they ever have been.
People love the humor, simplicity and caricatures of politicians of the day.
Caricatures, I told the students at Senior High, are exaggerations of one's physical features. In recent years, there have been the JFK haircut, the LBJ ears, the Nixon eyebrows, the Carter teeth and the Clinton jaw. Of course, each cartoonist has his or her own style, but it amazing how they reach out to the same features to identify a politician. A good editorial cartoon must have five basic features. It must be simple.