Tom's Mad Blog
January 20th, 2014 | Posted in Monday MADness
Last week I posted about some unique advertising inserts MAD did back in 2007 and 2008, which I did some artwork for. The first one was for Ballpark Franks in MAD #480. The second and last was in MAD #486 (and other DC Comics titles that same month). This was was not promoting a product, but rather a comedy troupe called The Whitest Kids U Know. The “WKUK” had a sketch comedy television show on the FUSE Network in 2007, which had moved to the Independent Film Channel for season two and beyond until 2011. IFC is uncensored so, unlike on FUSE, their sketches aired… READ MORE
January 19th, 2014 | Posted in Mailbag
Q: My question is how does one get into freelance illustration without a formal art school education and when is it too late? Okay it’s a long winded two part question… A little back story on myself. I always liked to draw as long as I can remember, and I was pretty good at it. I remember getting in trouble in middle school for not paying attention in class and doodling in my notebook. My guidance counselor looked through the pictures I drew told me he could offer me a scholarship to art school then and there if I would just do my real school… READ MORE
January 17th, 2014 | Posted in General
It’s been a while since we saw this guy… READ MORE
January 16th, 2014 | Posted in News
Comic book super-legend Russ Heath will receive the Milton Caniff Lifetime Achievement award from the National Cartoonists Society at their annual Reuben Award Weekend this May in San Diego. It is a great honor going to one of the most influential and versatile comic artists of all time… a true giant of our industry. Congratulations, Russ! From the NCS Website: The National Cartoonists Society is very pleased to announce that legendary comic book artist Russ Heath will receive The Milton Caniff Lifetime Achievement Award at the annual NCS Reuben Awards banquet in San Diego, California on May 24th, 2014. The award, named for Terry and… READ MORE
January 15th, 2014 | Posted in Sketch O'The Week
Sorry but I have to cop-out on this week’s SotW as I am frantically trying to finish up a big MAD job, among other things. Therefore this week’s sketch is a rough of a recent illustration from Penthouse, one of my ongoing series for the header of rocker Dave Navarro‘s advice column in the magazine. READ MORE
January 14th, 2014 | Posted in General
I got this email the other day from caricaturist Mike Giblin: I’ve been reading extensively on your blog (and other sources) about Caricature and the Right of Publicity, and though a lot of it still has my brain in knots I’m beginning to see the distinction in what’s advisable and what’s not. My question is to do with subject matter, specifically citing your Secret Agent Man artwork as an example. I understand that by offering the illustration as original artwork AND a limited edition print run, you’ve made a solid case for the fine art angle – and as such, there are no likely legal… READ MORE
January 13th, 2014 | Posted in Monday MADness
Back in 2001, much to the chagrin of many long-time fans, MAD began running advertisements in the magazine. Economic realities had to be faced, and the MAD team felt the magazine needed to be updated to color and better paper if they were to interest young readers. They needed revenues to do that and ads were the simplest solution. The concerns people had that MAD‘s ability to be impartial in it’s skewering of corporate America were proven to be unfounded… they went on doing what they’d always done with the same gleeful zeal no matter who was paying to put an ad in the magazine.… READ MORE
January 12th, 2014 | Posted in General
Q: You write in your book and on your blog how important it is that everything in an illustration has the same style, look, and feel, for instance background people. How do you make something part of your universe, when you’ve never drawn it before? For instance a camel or a horse (like on the splash page of The Hunger Pains)? Do you need a lot of extra sketches or can you just draw everything right away with the help of some photo references? A: That’s a good question, I hadn’t ever really thought about it before. First off, the oft-given advice referred to above… READ MORE
