Ride 'Em Cowboy!
Artifact ID1966.64.19
Object Type
Cartoon Drawing
Artist
Douglas Borgstedt
(United States, born 1911)
Publisher
King Features Syndicate
(founded 1915)
Gifter
Douglas Borgstedt
Date
1965
Date DescribedMarch 7, 1965
Medium
Ink on drawing paper, mounted
DimensionsOverall H 10 5/8 in x W 8 1/4 in (27 cm x 21 cm )
Other (Matted) H 32 3/8 cm x W 24 7/16 cm (12.7 in x 9.6 in )
Physical DescriptionOther (Matted) H 32 3/8 cm x W 24 7/16 cm (12.7 in x 9.6 in )
Physical DescriptionOriginal cartoon drawing. LBJ dressed as a cowboy is riding steeplechase on a horse ("Congress") over a hedge ("Selma") and a water jump ("Vietnam"). Caption reads: "Ride 'Em Cowboy!" Artist signature upper right: "Borgstedt". Additional text at lower right: "King Features Syndicate, Inc., 1965." Artist letterhead is attached at bottom left.
Inscriptions and MarkingsHandwritten across bottom: "To Pres. Lyndon Johnson...with admiration for his efforts in leadership -" "...and hoping we may have your support for a national cartoon center -" "From Doug Borgstedt King Features Syndicate".
Historical NoteIn early 1965, Martin Luther King Jr. helped organize a drive to register Black residents of Selma, Alabama to vote. In February, demonstrators faced police violence, leading to the murder of Jimmie Lee Jackson in the nearby town of Marion. A march from Selma to Montgomery was planned in response on March 7, but state troopers attacked the demonstrators, leading to the event being known as Bloody Sunday. This was heavily covered by the news media and King called on the support of religious leaders, leading to hundreds of clergy and other activists coming to Selma to march with the demonstrators. After the murder of James Reeb, a white minister, Lyndon Johnson pressured Alabama governor George Wallace to protect the protestors when they marched a second time from Selma to Montgomery on March 21. This also led to Lyndon Johnson sending the Voting Rights Bill to congress, which would be signed on August 6. Meanwhile, in 1965, Lyndon Johnson escalated the war in Vietnam. In February 1965, Johnson authorized Operation Rolling Thunder to bomb North Vietnam and in March, 3500 Marines were deployed in Vietnam. Over 1965, the year this cartoon was made, President Johnson escalated the conflict to a full-scale war with 175,000 American troops. In the inscription on this cartoon is a letter requesting the creation of a National Cartoon Center, a museum of political cartoons, comic books, newspaper comics, animation, and other cartoons. No permanent museum was ever established, but a few exhibits were produced by a Museum of Graphic Arts in New York City in 1968.Additional Details
Custodial History NoteThe item was a gift from the general public to President Johnson during his term in office. It was received by President Johnson personally, until the President donated it to the Lyndon Baines Johnson Library and Museum in 1970.
Credit LineGift of Lyndon Baines Johnson
National Archives Catalog CollectionLyndon B. Johnson Library Museum Collection (National Archives Identifier 192413)
National Archives Catalog SeriesGifts from the General Public (National Archives Identifier 189698395)
Use Restriction StatusRestricted - Fully
Use Restriction NoteCopyright or other proprietary rights are held by individuals or entities other than the Lyndon Johnson Presidential Library and Museum. The Lyndon Johnson Presidential Library and Museum does not warrant that the use of these materials will not infringe on the rights of third parties holding the rights to these works, or make any representations or warranties with respect to the application or terms of any international agreement, treaty, or protections that may apply. It is your responsibility to determine and satisfy any copyright or other use restrictions. Pertinent regulations can be found at 36 C.F.R 1254.62.
Person Referenced
Lyndon Baines Johnson
(United States, 1908 - 1973)
In Collection(s)
Historical Dates
- March 7, 1965
Not on view
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