1945.10.23 “Luff Me – Luff My Dog!”
by Ralph Lee (1906-1947)
14.7 x 23.3 in., ink on board
Coppola Collection
Ralph Lee was an editorial cartoonist for the Portland Oregonian. He died suddenly, at 41, in January 1947. His cousin, Art Bimrose, was the editorial cartoonist for the Oregonian for more than three decades. In 1937, the Oregonian hired him part-time to work on printing plates. Following Lee’s death, Bimrose was hired as the Sunday editorial cartoonist.
“Love me, love my dog”: acceptance of the person requires acceptance of their attachments, flaws, or baggage. The commentary transforms a cozy, tolerant saying into a moral trap.
Our femme fatale is German (luff for love), opportunistic, offering acceptance on her terms, and minimizing the moral cost of the attachment. There were widespread American anxieties in late 1945 about “former Nazis who were really harmless,” and collaborators reframing themselves as merely German. The dog is a blunt reminder and warning.
The soldier know exactly what she’s asking and he’s not having any of it.
