Quotes

When I write the comic strip, it's like watching TV in my head. I put Garfield in a situation--on a diet, camping, something--and I watch him and ask myself, 'What would he do? Where would he go? What would the other characters do and say?' I watch Garfield until he does something funny, back up three frames and cut it off.

[on the 'diet week' Garfield strips] When I go on a diet, Garfield goes on one too.

[on the PAWS, Inc. studio dedicated to the craft of Garfield] If we take care of the cat, the cat will take care of us.

[on the huge worldwide "Garfield" phenomenon] I get to draw cartoons. That for me is the biggest thrill.

I always tell people Garfield is a human in a cat suit.

[on whether he owned a cat like Garfield] Lord no, I don't make THAT much money.

[on why people can identify with Garfield] Garfield is the one who makes you feel better about polishing off the leftover pizza at 3 in the morning.

Sometimes I wish I had made pizza Garfield's favorite food instead of lasagna its easier to draw.

People still ask me what ever happened to Lyman and I tell them: Don't look in Jon's basement!

Garfield is funny—pure and simple. He's a smart aleck and a lazy glutton. He's also a cat who has the upper hand; he knows it and so does everyone around him.

[on the merchandising of Garfield] I'm happy people want Garfield on their coffee cups, T-shirts, or posters. He's a character with many expressions and attitudes, and I think it's neat if someone can relate to the character enough to want to demonstrate that by owning something Garfield. It's flattering. Garfield's success has opened up many doors for me, allowed me to live a comfortable life, to travel and see things I might never have seen otherwise. It allows me to wear different hats on the job. I can be a cartoonist one minute, a designer the next minute, an advertising executive the next. I also happen to like the people I work with. If Garfield weren't a commercial success, I would never have had the opportunity to meet and work with so many nice, creative, talented, funny people.

To those who would say collecting Garfield stuff is a bad habit, I'd say there are a lot worse habits to have.

There are millions of Garfield fans all over the world with their own cool creations. I'd like to thank everyone for all the years of support. As Garfield would say—consider yourself appreciated!