CLAY Jones, meet Hawaii. Hawaii, Clay Jones. Now that those awkward formalities are out of the way, here's how the Star-Bulletin came to irk about 40 newspapers in Mississippi by hiring away that state's most popular and prolific editorial cartoonist. Introducing the new cartoonist in town
In late March, our own beloved Corky Trinidad asked for a year-long sabbatical from his artistic duties to pursue a personal business project. After the initial shock and sadness had dissipated, a search began for a temporary replacement.
An ad in the industry bible, Editor & Publisher magazine, drew dozens of queries, mostly from professionals on the mainland and in the Far East. Seems like a lot of folks want to come live and work in Hawaii - go figure.
One of those applying was 30-year-old Clay Jones, a self-described "unreliable conservative" from Brandon, Miss. "My cartoons do not tell readers what they should believe. I hope they simply challenge people to think," he wrote in his cover letter. "I can be mean in my work, but I always try to be fair."
Feisty but fair. A winning combination.
Clay was a bonafide journalism celebrity in his home state. He produced six cartoons a week and self-syndicated his work to more than 40 newspapers in Mississippi since 1992. He won the first-place editorial cartooning award from the Mississippi press association for the past three years, and was republished in biggies like the Los Angeles Times, Washington Post and USA Today.
His artwork, notes and papers are to be archived in the Mitchell Memorial Library at Mississippi State University this summer, along with those of other local notables like author John Grisham.
Also this summer, his first book of editorial cartoons, "Knee-Deep in Mississippi," is scheduled for nationwide release, and his excited agent had Clay set for a whirlwind, around-the-state book-signing tour.
Sorry, Mr. Agent. When Clay was informed that he had won the coveted rectangular spot on this page, he resigned himself to the enviable fate of being cooped up in aloha land for the next 12 months. Yep, sometimes life just ain't fair.
Some people might wonder whether a tall, gangly, life-long mainland resident with a charming Southern accent - who has never before visited Hawaii - will be able to capture the political, social, economic and ethnic idiosyncrasies and nuances of this crazy place. Can he do it?
See below and flip to this same page, for the next year or so, to find out...
AS Clay began packing and saying his alohas in Mississippi, he was impressed by the number of people there who had previously visited the islands. They tried to scare him with horror stories about the high cost of living, gave him advice about what to see, eat and experience (Eat the poi! Visit the volcano!), and called him the luckiest fellow in the world.
That he is. Clay will discover there is a lot of material for a humorist here, even when the kooky state Legislature isn't in session.
Longtime and just-arrived residents know that there's way too much to laugh about when it comes to overzealous government and union leaders, so-called crime and punishment, the sorry state of business and other troubling aspects of lucky-you-live-Hawaii mumbo jumbo.
Clay Jones, formerly of Brandon, Miss.: Welcome to our paradise. Welcome to our nightmare.