Sunday morning toons: Obama turns 50, MTV turns 30

And you'll become eligible for Social Security when you turn 108. That and other news from the weekly wide world of political toons.

Today's items have been scientifically selected from the week's political cartoon pages at Slate, Time, Mario Piperni, About.com, and Daryl Cagle:

p3 Picks of the Week: Mike Luckovich, Daryl Cagle, Mike Keefe, Jeff Parker, Jen Sorenson, Mark Streeter, Nate Beeler, Don Wright, and Monte Wolverton.


p3 Best of Show: David Fitzsimmons.

p3 Award for Most Gruesome Toon of the Week: Pat Bagley.

p3 Legion of Honor, with flip-flops: Paul Fell.

p3 Award for Best Adaptation from Another Medium: Steve Kelly.

p3 World Toon Review: Cam Cardow (Canada), Ana von Rebeur (Argentina), Jianping Fan (China), and Petar Pismestrovic (Austria).


Ann Telnaes salutes the Lone Star State, where everything is bigger.


Mark Fiore says, Bipartisanship: it's a bee-yootiful ting. (Hate to see sumtin' happen to it.)


Taiwan's Next Media Animation asks, Why are there no Asian super-heroes? (Plus: why Kato doesn't count.)


I suppose it had to happen eventually; First they were worried about the Teletubbies. Then they were worried about Bert and Ernie (although they may have been right that time; even a blind squirrel finds an acorn every now and then). Now they're worried that Dora the Explorer and Sponge Bob Squarepants are filling our children's innocent minds up subversive stuff like energy efficiency.


Tom Tomorrow brings you another case -- or actually the same old case -- from the files of Thomas Friedman, Private Eye. When the Mustache of Understanding is on the case, you know it won't be long until it's cracked.


The K Chronicles says, San Francisco and Los Angeles -- practically the same!


Tom the Dancing Bug brings us another exciting chapter in the eternal adventures of the superhero with omnipotent powers.


At Red Meat Ted Johnson ponders the idea of forgiveness.


The Comic Curmudgeon examines ugly sexual games in Luann and Hi & Lois. (Last week, it was Lois and a guy covered in body art; this week it's a guy with a 70's porn 'stache and hints about of phone sex. Still waters run deep, apparently.)


Portland homeboy Jack Ohman pinpoints the great disconnect.


If you believe in "invisible hands," it's a short step to believing in elves: In 1956, Fritz Freleng directed "Yankee Dood It," the third of three Looney Toons that were underwritten by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, as a way to teach economics -- in this case introducing mass production to the old story of the shoemaker and the elves. (The title is an otherwise-irrelevant reference to a Red Skelton tag line.)

(Note to Facebook friends: If you're reading this in FB Notes, you'll need to click View Original Post, below, to see the video.)


No p3 Bonus Toon this week: Jesse Springer is still on vacation. But you can browse the archives. Why do doctors and cartoonists all go on vacation in August?


Test your toon-captioning chops at The New Yorker's weekly caption-the-cartoon contest. (Rules here.)