At a convention of editorial cartoonists in Memphis, Rex Babin once watched as his colleagues from across the country flattered a Newsweek editor who picked which of their work would appear in the magazine.

Finally he could resist no longer and asked "So how does it feel to have every cartoonist in America sucking up to you?"

It was a classic Rex Babin moment. Honest, blunt and principled, Babin didn't hesitate to speak his mind, in print or in person. He wanted to be judged on his merits, not on how well he flattered you.

"The great thing about Rex is he just did not play that game," said Jack Ohman, cartoonist for the Oregonian and a close friend. "He knew a lot of the political cartoonist's game is based on those kinds of reprints. He was just an extremely principled person."

Babin, who served as the Times Union editorial cartoonist from 1989 to 1999, died Friday at age 49 after a two-year battle with cancer. For the past 13 years, he was the cartoonist for the Sacramento Bee. He is survived by his wife, Kathleen, and son, Sebastian, 10.

Though his job was to be humorous, Babin took it very seriously, said Mike Keefe, a Pulitzer Prize-winning cartoonist who left the Denver Post in December.

"I think he was one of the most thoughtful cartoonists in our small community," he said. "It's kind of ironic when you talk about a cartoonist as a serious person but he was."

His position as the cartoonist in state capitols on either side of the nation gave him great influence, Ohman said.

"He had his platform in the two most powerful capitols in one career," he said. "He was doing people like (Mario) Cuomo and Schwarzenegger in one career."

Before coming to Albany, Babin had spent a year substituting while Keefe was on a sabbatical.

"I talked to him yesterday. He just didn't sound good," Keefe said. "The last thing I got to say to him was 'I love you, brother' and I'm glad I did."

Scott Stantis, cartoonist at the Chicago Tribune, described Babin as passionate, strong in his opinions but unexpectedly thoughtful. After one particularly passionate argument, he said, he learned Babin had recommended him for the cartoonist's job at the Houston Chronicle.

Stantis said Babin was extremely close to his son Sebastian. Babin was saddened at thought of leaving his son behind because his own father died when he was a child.

"That kind of weighed heavily on his mind," Stantis said. "He was absolutely, positively dedicated to his wife and kid."

At the Times Union, Babin had succeeded Hy Rosen as cartoonist. Rosen, an expert caricaturist, belonged to an earlier era of cartooning, when the panels were thick with commentary. Babin strived to put as few words as possible into his cartoons.

"Rex signaled a transition," said John De Rosier, the current cartoonist who followed Babin into the role. "He brought editorial cartooning at this newspaper into its contemporary form. He has a legacy here, and he had an impact."

Editor Rex Smith recalled one cartoon where Babin depicted then-Senate Majority Leader Joseph L. Bruno as a doormat for then new governor George Pataki.

"He was both confident and humble, which is a great characteristic for a journalist," Smith said.

A finalist for the Pultizer Prize in 2003, Babin was well regarded by his peers. He had spent a year as president of the American Association of Editorial Cartoonists.

"I really believe he was one of the best craftsmen in American political cartooning," Ohman said. "He was probably the most artistically talented editorial cartoonist in the country. I think it's just tragic he didn't get the recognition he deserved. He is someone who should have been a multiple Pulitzer Prize winner."

But Smith said Babin might not have been much impressed if he was. When discussing the prize, Babin once joked there were so few cartoonists, everyone would win one sooner or later.

In a profession of loners, Ohman said, Babin's outgoing personality stood out. He also was a gifted athlete, a surfer and rower. At softball games while at the Times Union, he was known for never standing still on a base. He'd run until he either made it to home plate or was tossed out.

Jim McGrath, the Times Union's chief editorial writer, said he and the newspaper's former editorial page editor, Howard Healy, worked closely with Babin.

"The three of us, we had a wonderful banter," McGrath said. "We used to call it play time. Until he got sick, he was really just a guy who had it all."

Ohman agreed.

"Everyone was just hoping against hope, he was the guy who would beat something like this," he said.

tobrien@timesunion.com • 518-454-5092 • @timobrientu