Thank You, Presidents, For Being Our Leaders

For the latest installment of the collaborative Buddy System series, I created a patriotic template and asked my friends to draw their favorite president for Presidents Day. I received eleven incredibly diverse responses. Here they are in full glory:

The first submission is from Morit G, who found inspiration in Grover Cleveland's working-class taste buds. Cleveland thought the fancy food they served at the White House was gross. 

Fun fact: At the age of 49, Cleveland married an opportunistic 21-year old, marking the only marriage of a sitting US President in history. 

 

The next submission is my own. I drew the only five presidents in American history to sport beards. From upper left going clockwise, you have Benjamin Harrison (perhaps the longest beard); James Garfield (scraggliest); Rutherford B. Hayes (wispiest); Abraham Lincoln (neck beard); and Ulysses S. Grant (shortest). The era of bearded presidents started with Lincoln in 1861 and ended with Benjamin Harrison in 1893. Sadly, America has never had a bearded president since. (Although, Al Gore came close.)

The next submission comes from world-renowned blogger, "14", creator of Gallery of the Absurd and Resplendent Chaos. For this assignment, 14 reworked a sketch that was inspired by an article she read that included a claim by former president George W. Bush that he cried in the White House on a daily basis.

 

Another Bush-inspired piece came from Angela B and her son Magnus who worked together on a Curious George coloring page. The purple and yellow squiggly lines represent the challenges faced by Bush during his eight years in office.

Fun Fact: All of America's current economic troubles are the result of policies put in place by Bill Clinton and Barney Frank, not Bush.

 

Jake C, a distant relative of President Calvin Coolidge, sent in a portrait of Barack Obama that he created on his iPhone.

Fun Fact: President Barack Obama is America's first president of Kenyan descent.

 

Seth L drew an ink portrait of Don Duff, President of the Northwest Allen County School Board. 

Fun Fact: Before becoming school board president, Don Duff was also the president of a life insurance company and an international insurance marketing company.  

 

Julia W drew a unique portrait that morphs together Teddy Roosevelt and Franklin Roosevelt. 

Fun Fact: Teddy Roosevelt came up with the idea for the Teddy Bear after he had visions of tiny bears in a polio-induced fever dream.

 

David S, a first time contributor, sent in a portrait of a president he would like to see. He explains: 

Dreams are important, they inspire us and drive us onward in the face of a miserable unforgiving world full of casual cruelty. That's why I drew my dream president, former attorney general Janet Reno. Did you know that JRe (as we call her) was the FIRST female federal attorney general ever? That is why I know she would also be a great first lady President! I've drawn her in a tie because she is not concerned with conforming to societies' antiquated gender roles. 

Fun Fact: Janet Reno originally wanted to call Ted Kaczynski the "Mailman of Death", but she was overruled by President Clinton who favored "Unabomber".

 

My sister, Anna U, drew a picture of a bat president.

Fun Fact: Bats sleep while hanging upside down in caves.

 

Nico C was inspired by the Star Wars movies. He thought Boba Fett, the notorious outer space bounty hunter, would make a pretty cool president.

Fun Fact: Harrison Ford, the actor who played Han Solo, is the adopted son of former-President Gerald Ford.

And last, but certainly not least, is Carl W's thought-provoking Super Bowl-inspired take on patriotism and cosmetic surgery. Carl envisions an America ruled by the E*Trade baby.

Fun Fact: Carl is an attorney who works for the Federal government, just like U.S. Presidents.

 

I hope you all learned some new things about presidents this Presidents Day, I know I did. Many thanks to all who participated and God Bless America!

Comments

[Carl W]

I'll be thinking about Presidents on Presidents Day -- thanks to your blog!!!

;)

[Carl W]

The woman in the upper-right-hand corner represents Hillary Clinton.

[Nico C]

We should all stop and shake the hand of a president. Take a second and remember what they've given up for their country. Wait, this is Veteran's Day right?

[NohWoman]

Here's a nice tribute to George Washington (and it has hippopotamus teeth, to boot!): http://kalman.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/12/31/by-george/

[ben]

Was that "Fun Fact" about Harrison Ford really a fact or was that inserted to see if people were really reading your excellent "Fun Facts?"

Fun Fact:
An anagram of 'president' is 'spider net'. This is the reason that Franklin Pierce refused to use the term 'spider web' during his 4 years in office, preferring instead, 'spider net'.

[John U]

Cousin Ben, sorry for the slow reply. No, Harrison Ford isn't Gerald Ford's adopted son. Most of the other Fun Facts are true. however.

The "spider net" information is incredible.