‘Dilbert’ creator courts danger
For many of his readers, it’s easy to view cartoonist Scott Adams as a former real-life avatar of his oppressed office-worker, Dilbert.
But chat with Adams for even a short time and you observe why Adams was able to leave the Land of Cubicles for fame and fortune and speaking engagements galore: Adams, as opposed to Dilbert, seeks danger.
Not physical danger, mind you, but rather financial danger and career risk. Professionally, he courts reasons to live perilously – whether he’s entering high-risk ventures or promoting his own licensing deals through his comic strip, which he did in recent days to a fair amount of controversy.
Question: So what kind of reaction did you get after you publicized your new licensing deal (for the file-transfer company Dilbertfiles.com) in last week’s “Dilbert”?
Answer: “The comic purists were saying: ‘Oh my God, the world has ended.’ But people who work in marketing who have blogs were saying: ’This is interesting,’ and they were looking at it as a business model. The strips were a controversy and a point of entry for the business, so it worked on a lot of levels.
Q.: So now, do you think any other cartoonists might follow your lead and plug a product?
A.: “I think it depends on how seriously the cartoonist takes himself – whether the cartoonist is a purist. When the artist – and I use that word loosely in my case – only wants to make people happy, then it’s (not such a big deal). But for the purist, the only person who benefits from this (sense of purity) is the cartoonist. It’s a feeling that’s not rational.”
Q.: As a former cubicle worker yourself at Crocker Bank and Pacific Bell, when did the personal workplace cynicism really set in for you? Was it gradual, or was there an “a-ha” moment?
A.: “It was gradual. Things happened each and every day. If you’re looking for (one moment), though, it was when my boss told me that a white male couldn’t get promoted. Then, the absurdity of the situation freed me to pursue my own agenda without guilt.”
Q.: Throughout your career, you seem to try to sneak subversive things into your strip. Are you drawn to pushing the boundaries or subverting the censors?
A.: “I have a perverse attraction to risk. Not physical risk but emotional, financial risk – anything than can’t kill you immediately. It’s like a loose tooth that you push on with your tongue. But it seems to have worked. Humor without danger doesn’t work as well.”
Q.: You also say in your book that when the job market and economy are good, that’s bad for you as a cartoonist – that’s when your (corporate) snitches dry up. So given recent economic doings, can we look forward to “Dilbert” being as funny as ever?
A.: “Yeah, I think it may be another boom time for ‘Dilbert’ – and I’m not happy about that. My investments have been hurt. … But if the bus goes into the ravine, as they say, it’s good for the undertaker.”
The birthday bunch
Actress Elaine Stritch is 84. Comedian Tom Smothers is 72. Singer Graham Nash is 67. Actor Bo Hopkins is 67. Singer Howard Bellamy is 63. Actress Farrah Fawcett is 62. Actor Brent Spiner is 60. Model Christie Brinkley is 55. Actor Michael Talbott is 54. Actress Kim Zimmer is 54. Singer Shakira is 32.