Category: Cartoon Caption Contests

Winner of Eli’s Cartoon Caption Contest No. 221

“Where is it written that a gun can’t be accidentally discharged seven times?”

(by Pat Foley)

 

My original caption: “And I want to remind the jury that no actual animals were injured by my client in the commission of his crime.”

 

Congratulations, Pat Foley, for this, your fourth victory. It’s been quite a while — your last win was back in May 2022, in Contest No. 186. But now you can once again let it be known to all and sundry that you are positively one of the funniest people around.

Here are the other caption entries that I was seriously considering for top honors:

“And then the defendant pointed the gun like so.” (by Rich Wolf)

“You are getting sleepy . . . very . . . very . . . sleepy . . . ” (by Lee Lacewell)

“Who among us hasn’t committed bank fraud?” (by Michael Lomazow)

“And a one, and a two . . . ” (by Scott Malcolm)

“You’re a jury of his peers, you’re all innocent, ergo my client is innocent.” (by Joe Ayella)

“Time to decide: Tastes Great or Less Filling?” (by Kelly Nagle)

By the way, a few days ago I noticed that Captioneer Scott Malcolm earned a Runner Up prize in Bob Mankoff’s latest CartoonStock Caption Contest. Congrats to you also, Scott Malcolm!

Be on the lookout for my next Contest, Captioneers, and many thanks for participating.

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Eli’s Cartoon Caption Contest No. 221

Contest No. 221 starts right now.

Here are the details: I’ll supply a drawing of one of my old cartoons that has never been published, leaving off my caption. You are invited to supply your funniest captions. To enter, simply (1) click on “See Comments and Add Your Own”. Then (2) scroll down past any other submitted captions and type your name and your caption in the spaces provided. Then (3) click “Save”. There is no charge to submit captions, and the only prize is the honor of being one of the funniest people around.

Your caption (or captions) will be posted after I review your submission. However, no captions at all will be posted for the first few days of each contest. This will give everybody a chance to submit their spontaneous, gut-instinct caption without fear of discovering that it was ripped off by somebody else’s similar spontaneous, gut-instinct caption. Every posted caption has a notation as to the date and time it was received. This is an equal opportunity contest!

There is no limit on the number of captions you may enter, but I will only post and consider the first 15 captions from any contestant. Entries will be accepted and posted for one week, after which the winning caption will be announced and printed and I will also reveal my original caption. I am the sole judge and the winning caption will be the one I deem to be the funniest one submitted (not necessarily the one that matches or comes closest to my original caption).

The cut-off time and date for you to send in your captions is midnight Wednesday, January 15, 2025.

Below is the drawing that needs your funny captions. Good luck, Captioneers!

See Comments and Add Your Own

Winner of Eli’s Cartoon Caption Contest No. 220

No Michelin rating, but we did get 5 stars from Bridgestone.”

(by Mark S.)

 

My original caption: “The entrees with asterisks are digitally enhanced.”

 

Congratulations, Mark S., on your second Caption Contest victory. Your first was not that long ago, in Contest No. 199. You have once again proved to be one of the funniest people around, and you are entitled to shout it from the rooftops. Keep up the good work!

As I was reading some of your submissions, Captioneers, I felt like I was receiving a real “French Lesson”, much like June Allyson sang to Peter Lawford in “Good News” (love that film!).

Here are the other captions that I was seriously considering for top honors:

“If you have to ask the price, sir, you are in the wrong restaurant.” (by Diane Weisman)

“Social Security number, please.” (by Michael Lomazow)

“You never know when prices may rise, so order fast.” (also by Michael Lomazow)

“If you have to ask the price of a special, you can’t afford it.” (by Joe Ayella)

“Might I interest you in something other than the company that printed the menu?” (by Scott Malcolm)

“Gluten-free, extra gluten, or gluten on the side?” (also by Joe Ayella)

“Everything is good here except your French.” (by Pat Foley)

“We have found that menus without prices reduce 911 calls.” (by Lee Lacewell)

“No, that description of the avocado toast was not meant to be a funny cartoon caption, Sir.” (by Sharon)

 

Don’t be discouraged, Captioneers — Contest No. 221 will be posted in due time and the title of “one of the funniest people around” will once again be up for grabs. Thanks for participating. Hope you all have a grand, festive holiday season and enjoy a Happy and Healthy 2025.

 

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Eli’s Cartoon Caption Contest No. 220

Contest No. 220 starts right now.

Here are the details: I’ll supply a drawing of one of my old cartoons that has never been published, leaving off my caption. You are invited to supply your funniest captions. To enter, simply (1) click on “See Comments and Add Your Own”. Then (2) scroll down past any other submitted captions and type your name and your caption in the spaces provided. Then (3) click “Save”. There is no charge to submit captions, and the only prize is the honor of being one of the funniest people around.

Your caption (or captions) will be posted after I review your submission. However, no captions at all will be posted for the first few days of each contest. This will give everybody a chance to submit their spontaneous, gut-instinct caption without fear of discovering that it was ripped off by somebody else’s similar spontaneous, gut-instinct caption. Every posted caption has a notation as to the date and time it was received. This is an equal opportunity contest!

There is no limit on the number of captions you may enter for each drawing, but I will only post and consider the first 15 captions from any contestant. Entries will be accepted and posted for one week, after which the winning caption will be announced and printed and I will also reveal my original caption. I am the sole judge and the winning caption will be the one I deem to be the funniest one submitted (not necessarily the one that matches or comes closest to my original caption).

The cut-off time and date for you to send in your captions is midnight Wednesday, December 18, 2024.

Below is the drawing that needs your funny captions. Good luck, Captioneers!

See Comments and Add Your Own

Winner of Eli’s Cartoon Caption Contest No. 219

“I can’t believe they’re stopping the love advice column.”

(by Diane Weisman)

 

My original caption: “I’m firing my bevy of lawyers and getting me a phalanx of lawyers!”

 

Congratulations, Diane Weisman, on your tenth victory. It looks like you’re being pretty consistent here — your last win was not too long ago, in Contest No. 209, and before that it was in Contest No. 204. Keep up the good work, and don’t forget to remind everybody that you are once again one of the funniest people around.

These are the other caption submissions that came close, in my judgement, but just didn’t make it:

“Think we can score front row seats to the Lawrence Welk tribute show tonight?” (by Jennifer Lawson)

“Did you take my Comics section again?!” (by Rich Wolf)

“This is no time for cutting back on the comics section.” (by Joe Ayella)

“This must be a mis-quote. It says I have the shareholder’s interests at heart.” (by Brendan F. Gannon)

“On a positive note my stocks weren’t listed in the Obituary Section today?” (by Lee Lacewell)

“Now I know the world is really ending. Not a single cartoon in here!” (by sharon)

“Butch, they still have no clue that Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid are alive and well.” (by Michael Lomazow)

“White collar criminals are allowed to win elections — now they tell us!” (by Marc Eliot Stein)

“It’s ironic that the obits are included in the late edition.” (by Pat Foley)

 

Contest No. 220 will be posted before you know it, Captioneers. Keep on the lookout for it and thanks for participating!

 

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Eli’s Cartoon Caption Contest No. 219

Contest No. 219 starts right now.

Here are the details: I’ll supply a drawing of one of my old cartoons that has never been published, leaving off my caption. You are invited to supply your funniest captions. To enter, simply (1) click on “See Comments and Add Your Own”. Then (2) scroll down past any other submitted captions and type your name and your caption in the spaces provided. Then (3) click “Save”. There is no charge to submit captions, and the only prize is the honor of being one of the funniest people around.

Your caption (or captions) will be posted after I review your submission. However, no captions at all will be posted for the first few days of each contest. This will give everybody a chance to submit their spontaneous, gut-instinct caption without fear of discovering that it was ripped off by somebody else’s similar spontaneous, gut-instinct caption. Every posted caption has a notation as to the date and time it was received. This is an equal opportunity contest!

There is no limit on the number of captions you may enter for each drawing, but I will only post and consider the first 15 captions from any contestant. Entries will be accepted and posted for one week, after which a winner will be announced and the winning caption will be printed. Below that I will also reveal my original caption. I am the sole judge and the winning caption will be the one I deem to be the funniest one submitted (not necessarily the one that matches or comes closest to my original caption).

The cut-off time and date for you to send in your captions is midnight Wednesday, November 20, 2024.

Below is the drawing that needs your funny captions. I hope you can improve on my original caption, which you will be able to see in a week’s time. Good luck, Captioneers!

See Comments and Add Your Own

Winner of Eli’s Cartoon Caption Contest No. 218

“He’s one of those tech CEOs. “

(by Anya)

 

My original caption: “What’s the rate of exchange on pieces of eight?”

 

Congratulations, Anya, on your second victory. Once again, you can shout it to the world — you are definitely one of the funniest people around!

Here are the other captions that I was seriously considering for top honors:

“My first trick or treat.” (by Diane Weisman)

“He doesn’t want a free toaster. He wants a ham sandwich.” (by Michael Lomazow)

“I want to do what he does.” (also by Diane Weisman)

“Did you hang the ‘NO Shirt — NO Shoes — NO Service’ sign on the door?” (by Scott Malcolm)

“Hey, do we take doubloons?” (by Joe Ayella)

“Do we take wooden nickels?” (by Kelasher)

“What is a doubloon worth today?” (by Pat Foley)

“Rob Crusoe . . . why does that name sound familiar?” (by Lee Lacewell)

“It’s from an offshore account. ” (by Mark S.)

 

Also, a couple of side notes:

1) Congrats to Joe Ayella, who I noticed was a prize-winning runner-up this week in Bob Mankoff’s “Cartoon Stock” Caption Contest (it wasn’t Joe Ayella’s first triumph over there — he’s been a pretty consistent winner or runner-up).  Way to go!

2) Lee Lacewell, I was intrigued by your spelling of Dabloon in a couple of your captions. I had to look it up and found that Dabloon is a somewhat imaginary crypto-currency that received a lot of attention on TikTok. I still don’t know if you meant to spell it that way, but thanks for educating me on “Dabloons”.

 

Contest No. 219 will show up soon enough, as usual. Keep on the lookout for it, Captioneers, and thanks for participating.

 

 

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Eli’s Cartoon Caption Contest No. 218

Contest No. 218 starts right now.

Here are the details: I’ll supply a drawing of one of my old cartoons that has never been published, leaving off my caption. You are invited to supply your funniest captions. To enter, simply (1) click on “See Comments and Add Your Own”. Then (2) scroll down past any other submitted captions and type your name and your caption in the spaces provided. Then (3) click “Save”. There is no charge to submit captions, and the only prize is the honor of being one of the funniest people around.

Your caption (or captions) will be posted after I review your submission. However, no captions at all will be posted for the first few days of each contest. This will give everybody a chance to submit their spontaneous, gut-instinct caption without fear of discovering that it was ripped off by somebody else’s similar spontaneous, gut-instinct caption. Every posted caption has a notation as to the date and time it was received. This is an equal opportunity contest!

There is no limit on the number of captions you may enter for each drawing, but I will only post and consider the first 15 captions from any contestant. Entries will be accepted and posted for one week, after which a winner will be announced and the winning caption will be printed. Below that I will also reveal my original caption. I am the sole judge and the winning caption will be the one I deem to be the funniest one submitted (not necessarily the one that matches or comes closest to my original caption).

The cut-off time and date for you to send in your captions is midnight Wednesday, October 23, 2024.

Below is the drawing that needs your funny captions. As you can tell from the drawing, this is another very old cartoon of mine, probably going back more than 65 years. I hope you can improve on my original caption, which you will be able to see in a week’s time. Good luck, Captioneers!

 

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Winner of Eli’s Cartoon Caption Contest No. 217

“I’m sorry, madam, you’ve misread our terms — it’s guaranteed  for 99 days, not years.”

(by Ken Wilkinson)

 

My original caption: “It seems to me that this item has reached the point of no return.”

 

Congratulations on your sixth victory, Ken Wilkinson! Your first win was in Contest No. 118, back in 2017 (Wow! This contest has been going on for ages, hasn’t it?) Be that as it may, you can once again rest assured that you are currently one of the funniest people in the whole world (Mr. Wilkinson’s captions come all the way from the mother country, the United Kingdom).

Here are the other captions that I was seriously considering:

“I’m sure this worked in 1942 when you first purchased it.” (by Michael Lomazow)

“The use of hot water in this coffee/tea pot voids the warranty.” (by Lee Lacewell)

“That’s not a dash, it’s a minus sign. You may return this item but we have to subtract your refund.” (by Joe Ayella)

“That sign isn’t big enough for our third ‘R’: Restocking Fee.” (also by Joe Ayella)

“I’m sorry, but if you break it, you take it.” (by Diane Weisman)

“May I ask why it’s filled with ashes, madam?” (by Pat Foley)

“Please let me know if the next one you purchase is any better.” (by Scott Malcolm)

“I’m afraid, madam, no amount of rubbing will help — the Genie has retired.” (also by Ken Wilkinson)

 

Look for Contest No. 218 in just a little over a fortnight, Captioneers, and thanks for participating.

 

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Eli’s Cartoon Caption Contest No. 217

Contest No. 217 starts right now.

Here are the details: I’ll supply a drawing of one of my old cartoons that has never been published, leaving off my caption. You are invited to supply your funniest captions. To enter, simply (1) click on “See Comments and Add Your Own”. Then (2) scroll down past any other submitted captions and type your name and your caption in the spaces provided. Then (3) click “Save”. There is no charge to submit captions, and the only prize is the honor of being one of the funniest people around.

Your caption (or captions) will be posted after I review your submission. However, no captions at all will be posted for the first few days of each contest. This will give everybody a chance to submit their spontaneous, gut-instinct caption without fear of discovering that it was ripped off by somebody else’s similar spontaneous, gut-instinct caption. Every posted caption has a notation as to the date and time it was received. This is an equal opportunity contest!

There is no limit on the number of captions you may enter for each drawing, but I will only post and consider the first 15 captions from any contestant. Entries will be accepted and posted for one week, after which a winner will be announced and the winning caption will be printed. Below that I will also reveal my original caption. I am the sole judge and the winning caption will be the one I deem to be the funniest one submitted (not necessarily the one that matches or comes closest to my original caption).

The cut-off time and date for you to send in your captions is midnight Wednesday, September 25, 2024.

Below is the drawing that needs your funny captions. This is another very old drawing of mine, probably going back more than 60 years. One way you can tell its age is by noticing that I finished it off mostly by using a brush, instead of a pen. I hope you can improve on my old original caption, which you will be able to see in a week’s time. Good luck, Captioneers!

See Comments and Add Your Own

Foreword

Welcome to the Eli Stein Cartoon archive. To begin, read my introduction and personal notes, and then please look at the cartoons, which are categorized by either decade, publication name or topic. I’ve included some personal comments, memories and photos below many of the cartoons. I’ll be adding cartoons, memories and photos ad infinitum. Remember, your comments are appreciated (just click on the “comment” link at the bottom of each post).
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