I Don't Get Fan Mail. It Disappeared

The Digital World Has Allowed Me A Connection With My Reader That I'd Never Had Before. I Didn't Meet The People Who Read My Material. The Fan Letters Were Mostly Answered By Professional People That'd Done Them For A Living. And I Didn't Have Any Daily Connection With Their Response To My Work. I Didn't Have A Relationship With My Audience. And Every Artist Should Have It.

Keep In Mind That In 1985, I Had A Potential Readership Of Over 50 Million Americans. At That Time, A Good Portion Of Those Were Under 30.

I Can Say That Even In The Midst Of My Most Cynical Comic Stripping: Opus Shone Through With A Bit Of Heart, Anchoring The Ugly Proceedings With A Comforting Pull Of Emotion.

The Cartooning Was Always Just An Abstraction. It Was An Income. It Was Making Me Famous. It Was Allowing Me To Go And Do Other Things That I'd Wanted To Do.

Doonesbury Had The Requisite And Overwhelming Influence In 1980, As It Did On Any College Cartoonist Who Was Paying Attention, Of Course.