New Yorker cartoonists coming to Beaver Creek

BEAVER CREEK - New York City and Beaver Creek may be about 1,900 miles and worlds apart, but a meeting of sorts will occur this January when the resort hosts the "Humor on the Slopes Cartooning Festival."

The event, slated for Jan. 6-8, will feature six cartoonists from The New Yorker magazine on a visit to Beaver Creek. The cartoonists are some of the magazine's best-known, including Harry Bliss, Matt Diffee, Ed Koren, Bob Mankoff, Victoria Roberts and Jack Zeigler.

During the festival, the cartoonists will be on hand to entertain guests with cartoon renderings, host a breakfast, do classes for children, appear at cocktail parties and more. There will also be a captioning contest Š similar to the one the magazine runs on its inside back page every week Š where people will have the chance to win prizes by suggesting the best caption.

To publicize the festival, Bliss has created two Beaver Creek-themed cartoons that are running as full-page ads in the The New Yorker. The first shows a skier flying off a cliff while being served hors d'oeuvres from a tuxedoed waiter on a snowboard. The second depicts a lift operator dressed as a typical New York City doorman playing the part of lift operator for a guest. Both are accompanied by the tagline: "Beaver Creek. Not exactly roughing it."

"It's kind of exciting," said John Garnsey, chief operating officer of Beaver Creek Resort. "The ads are very cool, and so different from anything else you see in The New Yorker."

Garnsey said there's a lot in common between the types of people who read The New Yorker and the guests the resort is seeking.

"The demographic is a great fit," he said. "New York is a key market for us, but the magazine is also read internationally and world-wide."

While The New Yorker often hosts events and festivals on its home turf in Manhattan, this is the only event it's doing outside the city, according to Ian Arthur, vice president of marketing for Vail and Beaver Creek.

"It's unique," Arthur said. "It's a big deal and I'm glad it's at Beaver Creek."

Arthur added that he hopes the event takes place every year in the future.

Alex Miller can be reached at 949-0555, ext. 14625, or amiller@vaildaily.com.



Vail Daily, Vail, Colorado