Gerald Glynn "Dirk" West (??, 1930 - 26 July 1996) was an editorial cartoonist and journalist from Lubbock, Texas most famous for his caricatures of collegiate mascots. 1930 is a common year starting on Wednesday. ... July 26 is the 207th day (208th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, with 158 days remaining. ... 1996 is a leap year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year for the Eradication of Poverty. ... An editorial is a statement or article by a news organization (generally a newspaper) that expresses an opinion rather than attempting to simply report news. ... A cartoonist at work. ... A journalist is a person who practices journalism, the gathering and dissemination of information about current events, trends, issues and people. ... Lubbock is the ninth-largest city in the state of Texas, located in the northwestern part of the state, a region known historically as the Llano Estacado. ... Caricature of Alan Greenspan by Jan Op De Beeck. ... A college (Latin collegium) can be the name of any group of colleagues; originally it meant a group of people living together under a common set of rules (con-, together + leg-, law). As a consequence members of colleges were originally styled fellows and still are in some places. ... For the suburb of Sydney, Australia, see Mascot, New South Wales. ...

He was born in Littlefield, Texas but his family moved to Lubbock soon after. He attended Texas Tech University where he drew cartoons for The University Daily student newspaper. Littlefield is a city located in Lamb County, Texas. ... Texas Tech University is a doctoral level research university located in Lubbock, Texas, established in 1923 originally as Texas Technological College. ...

He appeared as "Uncle Dirk" on a local children's program for three years while heading up his advertising agency, West Advertising. Beginning in the 1960s, he cartooned for the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal. The 1960s, or The Sixties, in its most obvious sense refers to the decade between 1960 and 1969, but the expression has taken on a wider meaning over the past twenty years. ...

West's most famous works featured caricatures of the sports mascots of various universities, mostly those of the Southwest Conference (and later the Big Twelve), but other schools appeared as well, usually because they were playing Texas Tech. His cartoons appeared in program books, on posters, and in magazines. The Southwest Athletic Conference (SWC) was a college athletic conference in the United States, now defunct. ... The Big Twelve Conference is a college athletic conference of twelve schools located in the central United States. ...

Two of his characters would eventually be officially adopted by their respective universities: Texas Tech's Raider Red and the University of Nebraska's Herbie Husker. Texas Tech University is a Tier I research university located in Lubbock, Texas, established in 1923 originally as Texas Technological College. ... University of Nebraska seal The University of Nebraska is the main public higher education outlet of the State of Nebraska in the United States. ...

West drew a semi-weekly one-panel comic in the Avalanche-Journal's sports section where he would lampoon college mascots and coaches alike, as well as the stereotypes of various universities. Thus there was the dim-witted Texas A&M Aggie, the devout but overemotional Baylor Bear, the arrogant University of Texas Longhorn and of course Raider Red, whose bullet-riddled Stetson showed by the number of holes the number of game losses for Texas Tech so far that season. This article is about the comic strip, the sequential art form as published in newspapers and on the Internet. ... Texas A&M University at College Station Texas A&M University, often Texas A&M, A&M or TAMU for short, is one of the flagship universities of Texas, and is the flagship institution of the Texas A&M University System. ... Pat Neff Hall Baylor University is an independent coeducational Baptist institution of higher learning located in Waco, Texas The university holds the distinction as one of the most prestigious institutions in Texas. ... The University of Texas System comprises fifteen educational institutions in Texas, of which nine are general academic universities, and six are health institutions. ... The Texas Longhorn is a breed of cattle known for its characteristic horns, which can extend to six feet in width and have a slight upward turn at their tips, as well as for their distinctive burnt orange coloring. ... For the university, see Stetson University. ...

West would alter the image of his characters over the course of a sports season. A winning team's mascot would gradually get larger and tougher, the fans of losing teams would find their mascots growing thinner as the weeks went by.

After serving several years on the local Parks and Recreation Board and the city council, West was elected mayor of Lubbock in 1978, but disliked politics so much as a result that he did not run for a second term. He returned to his advertising agency and his cartooning, both of which he kept up until his death from a heart attack in 1996. The council-manager government is one of 2 main variations of representative municipal government (for contrast, also see Mayor-Council government). ... A mayor (from the Latin maīor, meaning larger,greater) is the politician who serves as chief executive official of some types of municipalities. ... 1978 was a common year starting on Sunday (the link is to a full 1978 calendar). ... 1996 is a leap year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year for the Eradication of Poverty. ...

An exhibition dedicated to West and his work is scheduled to open September 25, 2005 at the Museum of Texas Tech University and will run through the following January. September 25 is the 268th day of the year (269th in leap years). ... 2005 is a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar and is the current year. ...

See also

• Editorial cartoon

This early political cartoon by Ben Franklin was originally written for the French and Indian War, but was later recycled during the Revolutionary War An editorial cartoon, also known as a political cartoon, is an illustration or comic strip containing a political or social message. ...

External links

• Dirk West cartoon gallery