Nicholas Galifianakis
Encyclopedia
Nick Galifianakis is an American
cartoonist
and artist
. Since 1997, he has drawn the cartoons for the nationally syndicated advice column Carolyn Hax, formerly, Tell Me About It – authored by ex-wife, writer and columnist for the Washington Post, Carolyn Hax
.
Galifianakis illustrated the book Tell Me About It: Lying, Sulking, Getting Fat ... and 56 Other Things NOT to Do While Looking for Love, authored by Hax in 2001. He has also illustrated a number of books by writer and novelist Andrew Postman – and was nominated by the National Cartoonists Society
for the 2006 Reuben Award for Outstanding Cartoonist of the Year in the Newspaper Illustration category. In 2010, he published the book If You Loved Me, You'd Think This Was Cute: Uncomfortably True Cartoons About You.
, North Carolina
, Galifianakis grew up in Falls Church
, Virginia
, where he currently lives, and attended the University of North Carolina
.
Though he has no formal art education, his father, Peter Galifianakis, is an accomplished sculptor and painter. His career as a cartoonist followed earlier work as an editorial cartoonist and illustrator for USA Today
and US News & World Report, and as a free-lance editorial cartoonist and illustrator with published illustrations in a variety of nationally distributed periodicals.
Galifianakis is a first cousin of comedian Zach Galifianakis
and nephew of former U. S. Representative Nick Galifianakis
. He and Hax married in 1994. Divorced in 2002, they continue to collaborate on the column.
, Zuzu, who died in August 2010. Zuzu had been named after a character in the film It's A Wonderful Life
, the daughter of George Bailey – who gave him the flower petals to carry in his pocket. In early 2011, Galifianakis said in an NPR
interview, "the reason the Zuzu cartoons are funny, or any cartoons that anthropomorphize
an animal like that, that place it in a human dynamic, is that relationships with animals are generally good." In an August 2010 Washington Post tribute to Zuzu, Galifianakis had written: "she died a week short of 13, rendering me more human than I had ever cared to be."
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
cartoonist
Cartoonist
A cartoonist is a person who specializes in drawing cartoons. This work is usually humorous, mainly created for entertainment, political commentary or advertising...
and artist
Artist
An artist is a person engaged in one or more of any of a broad spectrum of activities related to creating art, practicing the arts and/or demonstrating an art. The common usage in both everyday speech and academic discourse is a practitioner in the visual arts only...
. Since 1997, he has drawn the cartoons for the nationally syndicated advice column Carolyn Hax, formerly, Tell Me About It – authored by ex-wife, writer and columnist for the Washington Post, Carolyn Hax
Carolyn Hax
Carolyn Hax is a writer and columnist for the Washington Post and the author of the eponymous advice column Carolyn Hax — formerly titled Tell Me About It. The column debuted in 1997 and is published Sunday, Wednesday, and Friday – syndicated in more than 200 newspapers...
.
Galifianakis illustrated the book Tell Me About It: Lying, Sulking, Getting Fat ... and 56 Other Things NOT to Do While Looking for Love, authored by Hax in 2001. He has also illustrated a number of books by writer and novelist Andrew Postman – and was nominated by the National Cartoonists Society
National Cartoonists Society
The National Cartoonists Society is an organization of professional cartoonists in the United States. It presents the National Cartoonists Society Awards. The Society was born in 1946 when groups of cartoonists got together to entertain the troops...
for the 2006 Reuben Award for Outstanding Cartoonist of the Year in the Newspaper Illustration category. In 2010, he published the book If You Loved Me, You'd Think This Was Cute: Uncomfortably True Cartoons About You.
Background
Born in DurhamDurham, North Carolina
Durham is a city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. It is the county seat of Durham County and also extends into Wake County. It is the fifth-largest city in the state, and the 85th-largest in the United States by population, with 228,330 residents as of the 2010 United States census...
, North Carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
, Galifianakis grew up in Falls Church
Falls Church, Virginia
The City of Falls Church is an independent city in Virginia, United States, in the Washington Metropolitan Area. The city population was 12,332 in 2010, up from 10,377 in 2000. Taking its name from The Falls Church, an 18th-century Anglican parish, Falls Church gained township status within...
, Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
, where he currently lives, and attended the University of North Carolina
University of North Carolina
Chartered in 1789, the University of North Carolina was one of the first public universities in the United States and the only one to graduate students in the eighteenth century...
.
Though he has no formal art education, his father, Peter Galifianakis, is an accomplished sculptor and painter. His career as a cartoonist followed earlier work as an editorial cartoonist and illustrator for USA Today
USA Today
USA Today is a national American daily newspaper published by the Gannett Company. It was founded by Al Neuharth. The newspaper vies with The Wall Street Journal for the position of having the widest circulation of any newspaper in the United States, something it previously held since 2003...
and US News & World Report, and as a free-lance editorial cartoonist and illustrator with published illustrations in a variety of nationally distributed periodicals.
Galifianakis is a first cousin of comedian Zach Galifianakis
Zach Galifianakis
Zachary Knight "Zach" Galifianakis is an American stand-up comedian and actor known for his numerous film and television appearances including his own Comedy Central Presents special...
and nephew of former U. S. Representative Nick Galifianakis
Nick Galifianakis
Nick Galifianakis was a Democratic U.S. Congressman from North Carolina between 1967 and 1973.-Life and career:Galifianakis was born in Durham, North Carolina, the son of Greek immigrants Sophia and Mike Galifianakis. Galifianakis attended local public schools and then Duke University, earning a...
. He and Hax married in 1994. Divorced in 2002, they continue to collaborate on the column.
Zuzu
Galifianakis's work often featured his Pit BullPit bull
A Pit bull is any of several breeds of dog in the molosser breed group.Many jurisdictions that restrict pit bulls, including Ontario, Canada,, Miami, Florida, U.S...
, Zuzu, who died in August 2010. Zuzu had been named after a character in the film It's A Wonderful Life
It's a Wonderful Life
It's a Wonderful Life is a 1946 American Christmas drama film produced and directed by Frank Capra and based on the short story "The Greatest Gift" written by Philip Van Doren Stern....
, the daughter of George Bailey – who gave him the flower petals to carry in his pocket. In early 2011, Galifianakis said in an NPR
NPR
NPR, formerly National Public Radio, is a privately and publicly funded non-profit membership media organization that serves as a national syndicator to a network of 900 public radio stations in the United States. NPR was created in 1970, following congressional passage of the Public Broadcasting...
interview, "the reason the Zuzu cartoons are funny, or any cartoons that anthropomorphize
Anthropomorphism
Anthropomorphism is any attribution of human characteristics to animals, non-living things, phenomena, material states, objects or abstract concepts, such as organizations, governments, spirits or deities. The term was coined in the mid 1700s...
an animal like that, that place it in a human dynamic, is that relationships with animals are generally good." In an August 2010 Washington Post tribute to Zuzu, Galifianakis had written: "she died a week short of 13, rendering me more human than I had ever cared to be."