Richmond Illustration Inc.

Tom's Mad Blog

Merry Christmas!

December 25th, 2011 | Posted in General

No mailbag today. A very Merry Christmas and blessings to all in whatever season or faith you celebrate this time of year. READ MORE

MADe in China

December 23rd, 2011 | Posted in MAD Magazine

This was posted in the Wisenhiemer Cartoonist’s Forum yesterday: I couldn’t find a link to the Heritage auction these reportedly came from, but this was posted with the images: Mad Chinese Edition (EC, 1990) Condition: VF-. Published for 6 issues in 1990. Some regard the Chinese (or Taiwan) Mad as the most valuable and hard to find. An issue of the Chinese Mad recently sold on eBay for $1400+. Includes certificate signed by Mad writer Dick DeBartolo. Not currently listed in Overstreet. From the Dick DeBartolo Collection. Most foreign editions of MAD have a certain amount of content from the US version in it. It… READ MORE

More Animated Character Design

December 22nd, 2011 | Posted in Freelancing

Click either above image for a closer look… I’ve blogged before about some of the work I’ve done for filmmaker Ray Griggs of RG Entertainment, including the title credits and some (sort of) animated segments in the movie Super Capers and 3D character design, storyboarding and other work for his film I Want Your Money. I’ve been doing a bit more work for him lately on a series of animated commercials he has produced for a gold investment company called SwissAmerica. Ostenibly, the commericals are to promote investment in gold with SwissAmerica, but they double as conservative criticism of the Obama administration’s economic policies. He… READ MORE

Sketch o’the Week

December 21st, 2011 | Posted in Sketch O'The Week

A little late today, but here is the Sketch o’the Week, American Horror Story star Connie Britton. A few friends of mine who know my tastes in TV and films, including my wife The Lovely Anna, suggested I give¬¨‚Ä†American Horror Story a look. I did, having seen the entire run over the last few weeks via iTunes and my DVR. I have to say my mind is still not made up on the show. Some aspects of it are very engaging and cool, and it is extremely creepy, but for some reason it just hasn’t hooked me all the way. Maybe tonight’s season finale will… READ MORE

Kim Jong More Than Just IL

December 20th, 2011 | Posted in News

Not sure the world is not more than a bit better off right now. Of course the reviews of successor Kim Jong Un are not very encouraging… although his name is funnier. The above from MAD #473. READ MORE

Amazonian Frustration and other Book News

December 20th, 2011 | Posted in News

I am finding that the Amazon.com search engine is not a very well-functioning tool. At the very least it seems to be doing a disservice to customers looking for real results for search terms. According to Amazon, the results of a search for any terms or phrase are weighted by relevance of the search, sales on Amazon thus far and a few other factors. After listing my book on Amazon early last month, it is currently sitting at #85 in results for a search of “How to Draw Caricatures”. That means the Amazon search engine thinks that 84 other books are more relevant to someone… READ MORE

2011 Directory of Illustration Page

December 19th, 2011 | Posted in Freelancing

The 28th addition of the Directory of Illustration is out and has been arriving on the desks of prospective buyers of illustration for the last few week. Above is my page in this year’s addition. The Directory is a large sourcebook of illustrators, containing the purchased advertisements of over five hundred artists. I get many inquiries about marketing one’s self as a freelancer, and especially about efforts like the Directory. My basic feeling on it is that, while expensive (about $2400 for a single page), it is a worthwhile addition to other forms of direct marketing for many. One thing I’ve found true is that… READ MORE