Cheers for the little guy
When Chase, a New Orleans-based cartoonist, was asked to create personalized program covers for Green Wave football games, he decided against using the then-typical “photograph of a pretty girl or a football player.”
Instead, he created Greenie a small, unostentatious character who wears an oversized helmet and a Tulane University jersey, and often carries a standard bearing the Green Wave logo.
On why being the little guy is noble, Chase said, “You automatically have the buyer"s sympathy then. Besides, it isn"t so bad when you lose.”
Long before Chase became known for his artwork in football programs across the country, the native New Orleanian attended the Chicago Academy of Fine Arts and held jobs as an assistant cartoonist at the Chicago Tribune and editorial cartoonist for the New Orleans Item.
Later in his career, he served as a special lecturer at Tulane University and authored several books including Frenchmen, Desire, Good Children about New Orleans street names and Today"s Cartoon, which chronicles the history of editorial cartooning.
As for program covers, Tulane wasn"t Chase"s first gig.
Read more about Chase and Greenie in Tulane magazine.
