The Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum presents The Nancy Show: Bushmiller and Beyond, celebrating the beloved and iconic comic strip Nancy. On view May 22–Nov. 3, 2024, the exhibit will feature original art, stunning color Sunday newspaper pages, photographs, merchandise and other artifacts celebrating Ernie Bushmiller’s Nancy comic strip.
Bushmiller’s daily comic strip Nancy ran in American newspapers from 1938 to 1982 and reached a peak circulation of 880 papers in 1971. The strip starred eight-year-old Nancy, her friend Sluggo, and Nancy’s aunt, Fritzi Ritz. Bushmiller purposefully wrote and designed his iconic characters and the world they lived in to communicate to the widest audience possible, understanding that a comic strip is a medium of mass entertainment. It was crafted with an eye toward simplicity and humor above all.
Despite its popularity, Nancy was never taken seriously. Bushmiller’s deceptively simple approach is exactly why many cultural elitists failed to understand Nancy. They missed the point. To appreciate the perfection of Bushmiller’s creation, readers must let their defenses down, step out of the role of critic, and accept it for what it is—a comic strip, pure and simple.
“The Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum is thrilled to share this wonderful exhibit with our audiences,” said Caitlin McGurk, Curator of Comics and Cartoon Art and Associate Professor. “Few strips serve as a better vehicle for understanding the essence and mechanics of cartooning than Ernie Bushmiller’s Nancy. Plus, it’s just plain fun to read.”
The Nancy Show: Bushmiller and Beyond is divided into two sections. The Robinson Gallery focuses on Ernie Bushmiller’s life and work, and the Friends of the Library Gallery highlights a wide variety of artists who were inspired by Nancy, and the cartoonists who continued it after his passing.
In recent years, cartoon historians and aficionados have lauded Nancy for its zen-like qualities and have studied Bushmiller’s craft in detail. For over fifty years, Bushmiller continued his single-minded pursuit of the Perfect Gag. “I never quite seem to find it,” he admitted. But he sure came close. Many thousands of times.
Curated by Brian Walker, the exhibition will provide an in-depth look at the creative genius of Ernie Bushmiller and his impact on popular culture and the art of cartooning.
“The Nancy Show has something for everyone” said Brian Walker, exhibition curator. “The humor in Ernie Bushmiller’s masterfully crafted strips can be appreciated by fans of all ages. The artists he inspired have challenged the boundaries between comic art and fine art. Visitors will be both entertained and educated.”
NANCY FEST is a one-of a-kind, two-day celebration of the man who made three rocks an icon: Ernie Bushmiller!
Join us on May 24-25 at The Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum to celebrate the opening of The Nancy Show: Bushmiller and Beyond with panels (and even a play) by Nancy fans and aficionados from across the globe! Full schedule and program details at this LINK.
Special guests include: Bill Griffith (Three Rocks – The Story of Ernie Bushmiller the Man Who Created Nancy), Paul Karasik and Mark Newgarden (How to Read Nancy), Olivia Jaimes (virtual guest – Nancy), Denis Kitchen (Kitchen Sink Press), Patrick McDonnell (Mutts), Kaz (Underworld), Gary Hallgren (Air Pirates, MAD, Hagar the Horrible), Brian Walker (curator and author), and Tom Gammill (comedy writer for Seinfeld, The Simpsons, Curb Your Enthusiasm).
Nancy Fest and The Nancy Show are sponsored by the National Cartoonists Society and the National Cartoonists Society Foundation. Nancy Fest is co-sponsored by Andrews McMeel Universal and Scripps.
