Funny Money

They say that history repeats itself. Well if I wasn't a firm believer of this theory before yesterday, I am now.

On Wednesday, former HOLLYWOULD president, Laura, took me to the beautiful and historic Morgan Library & Museum on 36th and Madison. The enormous collection of antique books is housed in J.P. Morgan's mansion from the 1800s. I've never seen a library quite as breathtaking as this one. But I'm not here to talk about books.

Laura and I visited the museum to view the current exhibition, "On The Money: Cartoons for The New Yorker." I admit, sometimes I pretend to be reading The New Yorker cover to cover; however, I am really just scanning for the cartoons. Since 1925 single panel cartoons have appeared throughout the magazine, and I'm thrilled this is one old tradition that still exists in modern madness.

This particular collection of cartoons all shared one common and very relevant theme: money. The theme of money-related cartoons dates to the magazine's founding amid the dizzy glamour of the Jazz Age, on the cusp of the Depression, and has thrived unabated through the successive periods of boom, bust and stagnation. The work of more than thirty artists is represented in this exhibition by drawings that range in date from 1927 to 2003.

We made our way around the room from the earliest cartoons, and as we went along chuckling at the one-liners, both Laura and I couldn't get over how frighteningly relevant these historic comics were to today's financial turmoil, scandal and anxiety.

A 1988 comic depicting a man in court for fraudulent accounting bears a striking resemblance of

Bernie Madoff. A 1995 setting of a woman at a bar telling a banker, "I wish I had known you when you had money." A 2002 picture shows three business men, as one says "Well, we've licked taxes -- that just leaves death." From the same year, a husband and wife are holding a jar, the man asking, "Do we have a place for our portfolio's ashes?"

Were these guys cartoonists or psychics?

The comics joke about recession, suffering real estate, unemployment, spending and other financial topics that continually haunt the news today.

1929, 1987, 2008... we are not in completely unfamiliar territory. While we are all praying that it doesn't get as bad as the era of food stamps, it is quite interesting to witness the cycle from the eyes of the past, present and possibly future.

These artists remind us to laugh no matter what. These comics help make light of a situation that is only portrayed as doomsday in the media. While our situation isn't funny, we certainly should keep our sense of humor, otherwise insanity is sure to follow. I'd rather be broke and laughing on my couch then strapped in a straight jacket, thankyouverymuch.

The exhibit is running through May 24 and it's totally worth going to. Go on a Friday from 7 - 9pm when admission is free!