Tom's Mad Blog
June 17th, 2011 | Posted in On the Drawing Board
Sport Illustrated Kids has quickly become one of my regular clients, much to my delight. That publication was always one of those I’d wanted to do work for, and after doing a project for them back in March I am already working on my third job for the magazine. The current issue just came out with some art I did for an article on funny “trophy mishaps”, infamous stories about how various sports trophies have been dropped, broken or in one case run over by a bus. Here are a few of the spot illustrations I did for the article: The Real Madrid team drops… READ MORE
June 16th, 2011 | Posted in General
From The Life Magazine 2011 Photo Blog Award Winners: MAD magazine has been called revolutionary, subversive, surreal, hilarious, and a total waste of time. (The latter by its own editors). That a single publication could fill all of those roles for millions of readers, and thrive, across six decades says a lot about both the human appetite for satire and the unique vision of MAD‘s founder, William Gaines. Here, on the occasion of MAD launching its first-ever blog, Theidiotical.com, MAD‘s editor for the past 25 years, John Ficarra, shares some personal photographs of — and lively stories about — Bill Gaines; the magazine’s happily chaotic… READ MORE
June 15th, 2011 | Posted in Sketch O'The Week
This week’s subject is karma victim LeBron James. I’m not a guy who wishes ill will on anybody, but I must say I was happy to see Dallas win the NBA championship rather than have to hear about this jackass getting a ring. James is the poster boy for super-egotistical, narcissistic, spoiled brat athletes. I have to laugh out loud when I read comments by him and his (small) group of supporters wondering why all the hate and saying he doesn’t deserve it. He deserves it. Every bit of it. His one hour TV special “The Decision” (note the caps in the title, like the… READ MORE
June 14th, 2011 | Posted in MAD Magazine
I knew this set was on the way, now it’s officially announced and available for pre-order. The complete collection of Al Jaffee fold-ins from 1964 through 2010. He’s still going strong, so it’s already missing the latest 2011 fold-ins, but would you rather wait until Al kicks the bucket?? He’s probably going to outlive me, so I’m excited about the books! READ MORE
June 13th, 2011 | Posted in General
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B_fBTJaWfrc[/youtube] Okay… this isn’t really a Ken Burns documentary. This is one of several brilliant videos shot for the NCS Reuben Awards show by Tom Gammill. This one had me in tears… Tom is one funny guy. Hopefully R.C. got a chuckle out of it. If you haven’t seen any of Tom’s “How to Draw” series of videos, get ready for a real treat. READ MORE
June 12th, 2011 | Posted in Mailbag
Q: Is drawing/painting on an iPad anything like drawing on a Cintiq (other than screen size)?¬¨‚Ć I’m weighing my options, as a Cintiq is clearly more expensive than an iPad, but I don’t want to be frustrated by going the cheaper route. A: There is no comparison. The Wacom Cintiq or any pressure-sensitive tablet or tablet-style computer is FAR more capable for drawing and painting digitally than an iPad. The drawing capabilities of the iPad or similar devices (for simplicity’s sake, I’ll use the term “iPad” to mean all such tablet devices) are distant secondary thoughts to the functionality of their multi-touch screens. iPads have… READ MORE
June 10th, 2011 | Posted in MAD Magazine
Those MAD guys never tell me anything. I just learned via Big Shiny Robot that MAD not only has an official blog where they will be posting original content, but it’s been up and running since the beginning of May! According to MAD Magazine Editor John Ficarra: “Most blogs are written by ill-informed, untalented blowhards. Given those standards, it’s a perfect vehicle for us!” The blog is really not officially official yet, it’s in a kind of “soft launch” mode, but it is live and operational. MAD takes another step onto the information superhighway . . . and still hasn’t been run down by some… READ MORE
June 9th, 2011 | Posted in General
Author Mark Arnold just released his two volume history of Cracked Magazine, If You’re Cracked You’re Happy! The books detail the history of the magazine from its beginnings in 1958 through its final days of multiple owners, changes and eventual demise. It’s definitely not a softball celebration of the perpetual second-fiddle-to-MAD humor magazine. There are candid interviews with former editors, contributors, and staff where punches are not pulled. There is particular venom directed at those who helmed what was left of the publication when American Media International (publisher of tabloids the National Enquirer, The Weekly World News and other things) acquired it as part of… READ MORE
