Tom's Mad Blog
June 3rd, 2012 | Posted in General
I could not let today go by without reposting this tribute to Bill from a few years ago: William M. “Bill” Gaines, March 1, 1922 – June 3, 1992 Working for MAD is great. The people and staff there really respect the tradition and history of the magazine. However I will always feel that I missed out on something special in that I never met or knew Bill Gaines. I started for MAD about 8 years after Bill’s passing. While MAD has of course continued since his death a chapter of it’s history closed on June 3rd, 1992. In his time as publisher I’ve heard… READ MORE
June 3rd, 2012 | Posted in Mailbag
Q: I’d be interested to hear your thoughts on artists’ representatives, whether or not you think one should find an agent, and the pros, cons and pitfalls associated with an arrangement like that. A: This week’s mailbag question comes from the excellent Canadian illustrator Patrick LaMontage! In the interest of full disclosure, some of the answer below is from an similar mailbag question from several years ag0. For those who might not be familiar, an artist’s representative (or “rep”) is like a cross between an actor’s talent agent and a business manager.¬¨‚Ć In the traditional sense, their job is to go out and seek work… READ MORE
June 1st, 2012 | Posted in News
For those in the Twin Cities area, I will be interviewed tonight on the Twin Cities Public Television show Almanac, 7:00 pm local time. It will eventually be posted on the interwebby, and I may link to it here . . . depending on how stupid I sound. UPDATE: Here’s a link to the interview. READ MORE
May 31st, 2012 | Posted in General
One of the highlights of the NCS Reueben Weekend was that advanced copies of the soon-to-be-released Team Cul de Sac book were floating about for all to see. For those who are not familiar, the TCDS book is a collection of illustrations from hundreds of cartoonists honoring the work of the great Richard Thompson and his brilliant comic strip Cul de Sac, and raising mony for Parkinson’s disease research. Richard has Parkinson’s, and is an inspiration not only for his incredible cartooning but for his perseverance and refusal to let the disease stop him. Team Cul de Sac is the brainchild of Chris Sparks, who… READ MORE
May 30th, 2012 | Posted in Sketch O'The Week
Still recovering from Las Vegas, so this week’s SotW is another glimpse at the mystery project I posted a sneak peek at a few weeks ago. No, it’s not from a parody of “The Avengers” or anything else from MAD. It’s from the pencils for an extremely fun project that shall remain nameless until sometime this fall when it’s publication is announced. READ MORE
May 29th, 2012 | Posted in General
I’ve finally got a few minutes to breathe now that the 2012 NCS Reuben Awards Weekend is over and my duties as president and host for the event are (mostly) over. We are headed back home today . . . in fact I am writing this at 32,000 feet on my way back to Minnesota. It was a great weekend and I am proud of how it turned out. The Lovely Anna literally worked herself sick, had no voice left at all on Monday and was an incredible hostess. Actually winning the Reuben for “Outstanding Cartoonist of the Year”? Shocked, stunned, speechless, floored . .… READ MORE
May 28th, 2012 | Posted in General
Whew. What a weekend. The Reubens are always a great time, getting a chance meet and chat with both your long-time heroes in cartooning and cartoonists you’ve never met before. It was a thrill to see the great Stan Goldberg receive his Gold Key award as a new member of the NCS Hall of Fame. He is a true legend in the world of comics, and a great guy to boot. Steve McGarry‘s getting the Silver T-square for his incalculable efforts over the years to the NCS was also great to witness. Well deserved, both. Another high point was seeing the divisional award for “Online… READ MORE
May 27th, 2012 | Posted in Mailbag
Q: I have seen your caricature of Michael Jackson (this one here) on display at a number of caricature stands, mostly at theme parks (i.e.Hersheypark here in PA). I know that you work with and train people at a number of theme parks, so does the fact they have your drawing posted mean you work/have worked with that park? Do you feel it’s a bit of a cheat or false advertising to have examples of someone else’s work on display? A: There are different answers regarding this issue depending on the situation, including seeing actual copies of my artwork and another artist redrawing my artwork:… READ MORE
