Today we welcome Bob Mankoff to the podcast. For over 40 years, Bob Mankoff has been the driving force of comedy and satire at some of the most honored publications in America, including The New Yorker and Esquire. He is the founder of Cartoon Collections, parent company to CartoonStock.com, the world’s most successful cartoon licensing platform. For twenty years as Cartoon Editor for The New Yorker, Bob pored over thousands of submissions each week, analyzing, critiquing, and selecting each cartoon. In 2005, he helped start the “New Yorker Cartoon Caption Contest.” Bob is the author of numerous books, including his New York Times bestselling memoir, How About Never – Is Never Good For You?: My Life In Cartoons.
In this episode, I talk to Bob Mankoff about the psychology of humor. Looking back at his illustrious career as a cartoonist, Bob talks about his early beginnings and the people he's mentored in the field. He explains the anatomy of a joke and reveals his all-time favorite cartoons. While humans are creative creatures, Bob believes that using AI and technology can further augment our intelligence and humor by opening up worlds of possibilities.
Website: www.bobmankoff.com/
Twitter: @BobMankoff
Topics
02:14 Bob’s childhood & upbringing
10:42 Personality of cartoonists and comedians
19:54 Types of humor
23:44 The grand scheme of time
26:28 Augmenting intelligence and creativity
38:30 Cartoon Bank
44:24 All-time favorite cartoons
52:17 Theory of humor
57:49 Censorship & cancel culture
01:01:24 Bob Mankoff’s legacy
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