Michael Leunig - cartoonist

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Several discussions back I wrote about Spike Milligan and was surprised to learn he seemed largely unknown in the US. So I won’t presume you’ve ever heard of Michael Leunig although again I would have thought he’s have an international following. He is an Australian cartoonist and an example of his work is above. He often manages to include social commentary in his cartoons. I remember one Christmas card designed by Leunig. Santa and his reindeer were stopped at a red light while a little donkey bearing a pregnant woman and accompanied by a man slowly made their way across the intersection. He has always been something of an enigma and didn’t do well at school although he has great intelligence. He has supplied cartoons for several prestigious Australian magazines and newspapers. His work hangs in many private and public collections and in 1999, he was declared a ‘National Living Treasure’ by the National Trust. So there you go. Have you by any chance heard of him?