Tom's Mad Blog
February 25th, 2013 | Posted in On the Drawing Board
Clicky to Embiggen… Super swamped right now: MAD– Five page movie parody, actually a franchise parody. Workplace Poster– My usual monthly assignment UTNE Reader cover– This will be my 4th cover for them. WB Product Illustration– Another “Alfred E. Neuman as…” for use on merchandise WB Animation/Cartoon Network– Designs for another episode segment The image above was for a promotional poster/publication cover I did over a year ago that I don’t think was ever used. That was way before Howard was traded to the Lakers, so now it’s probably in the round file somewhere. I’m sharing it here for the first time, but I won’t… READ MORE
February 24th, 2013 | Posted in General
Q: How do I submit work to MAD? A: I get this one a lot. The answer is it depends. If you are going to submit really excellent work in an effort to steal my job, please submit it to: MAD Magazine C/O:¬¨‚Ć Dr. Op Dedd 43 Skidoo Ave. Suite 0 Nowheresville, NY 0U812 However if you are looking to submit less dangerous work, either writing or art, you are in luck! MAD just put up a web page where you can upload samples for them to peruse at their leisure! Here’s some of what they say on that page about what they are looking… READ MORE
February 22nd, 2013 | Posted in General
Clicky any of these images to embiggen… and I mean EMBIGGEN! The Lovely Anna gets very annoyed with me over one thing…okay, over many things, but this one thing in particular…I’m very impatient when it comes to things I want to have. I tend to get them right away and leave her nothing to buy me for gifts on my birthday or Christmas. Well, here’s another thing she won’t be able to get me for my birthday: the enormous new book Tales Calculated to Drive You MAD: Artist’s Edition. I saw an unboxing video of this book some weeks ago and blogged about it being… READ MORE
February 21st, 2013 | Posted in News
The National Cartoonists Society’s Reuben Award for “Outstanding Cartoonist of the Year” is arguably the top honor a professional cartoonist can receive. The NCS first gave out the honor in 1946 to Milton Caniff, and in the 67 intervening years some of the greatest cartoonists in the history of the art form have received “The Reuben” (with the exception of a stumble last year, when they gave it to this clown.) This year’s nominees for the 2012 Reuben Award for “Cartoonist of the Year” were just announced by the NCS. They are: Brian Crane Rick Kirkman Stephan Pastis From the NCS Website: Brian Crane is… READ MORE
February 20th, 2013 | Posted in Sketch O'The Week
Have to cheat this week as I am swamped. This is an old sketch of Steven Spielberg I ran across recently cleaning out a flat file drawer, circa 2002. It was the original sketch for the theme park caricature sample below. As you can see I decided to widen and shorten his lower face a bit, and give him a “cheekier” look. The color sample is a better likeness. READ MORE
February 19th, 2013 | Posted in MAD Magazine
Clicky to Embiggen… My piece in MAD #520 was a departure from my typical work for the magazine, which when it happens is always interesting and challenging. This project was particularly fun and personally enjoyable because I am good friends with Jeff Keane, son of The Family Circus creator Bil Keane. Jeff has been doing the strip since his dad’s retirement about a decade ago and continues to do it today. Bil passed away in November of 2011. I knew Jeff would enjoy this, and it was great fun doing it. I saw him this past weekend at the Success in Comics Seminar in Annapolis,… READ MORE
February 18th, 2013 | Posted in MAD Magazine
On news stands everywhere tomorrow, in comic book shops and subscriber’s mailboxes already and available digitally immediately via the MAD iPad app. MAD # 520 (April 2013) Cover (Chris Houghton) The Fundalini Pages (Jeff Kruse, Charles Akins, Jason Yungbluth, Rick Tulka, Desmond Devlin, Matt Lassen, Paul Coker, Ty Templeton, Evan Dorkin & Sarah Dyer, P.C. Vey, Kevin Pope, Tim Haggerty, Leonardo Rodriguez, Phil McAndrew) The 50 Worst Things About Cartoons (Writers: Desmond Devlin, Jeff Kruse and Scott Maiko; Artists: Peter Bagge, Anton Emdin, Adam Koford and Hermann Mejia) Honey Boo Boo’s Family Circus (Frank Santopadre, Tom Richmond) Planet TAD!!!!! (Tim Carvell) Spy vs Spy (Peter… READ MORE
February 17th, 2013 | Posted in Mailbag
Q: Can you explain what rights you give your clients for artwork most of the time?¬¨‚Ć Also, how does that affect pricing?¬¨‚Ć Are there any rules to follow to price work properly? I find that a lot of people expect full rights most of the time.¬¨‚Ć I always have a hard time pricing my illustration work because of this. A: I can’t discuss actual pricing with you as that violates U.S. Antitrust laws specifically “price fixing”, but I can give you plenty of general comments. Many people get confused about what an illustrator is actually selling to their client. Unless there is a separate agreement… READ MORE
