Tom's Mad Blog
May 6th, 2009 | Posted in Sketch O'The Week
Okay, so after last week’s dismal failure to get a likeness of Amy Adams I had to take another crack this week. These two quick studies are much more successful. Part of the elusiveness of her face is her chin and jawline. Some angles make them seem very prominent and strong, but in reality she has a bit of a week chin and slight underbite. She has very large eyes and a sharply angled nose. This time I used several different pictures at various angles to compliment the two pics I used as the basis of these sketches. I officially wash my hands of Amy… READ MORE
May 5th, 2009 | Posted in On the Drawing Board
Here’s a 1/2 page spot I did for this month’s issue of Library Journal: Click for a closer look… The story it accompanies is about magazines that are popular with teenage kids. I likely got the job because MAD happens to be one of the magazines they list in the article. They wanted a teenage boy and girl reading these magazines. Here’s the initial pencil sketch: The consensus was they wanted a high impact statement, having the kids reading the magazines but surrounded by high tech toys and other things kids are known for spending their free time with, which they are ignoring in favor… READ MORE
May 4th, 2009 | Posted in General
We interrupt this blog for a brief note today to update anybody who might be interested (that’s you, mom!) about the progress of my recovery from rotator cuff surgery. Friday I met with my surgeon for the “six weeks after surgery” exam. The good news is that I finally got to ditch the sling my left arm has been languishing in for the last month and a half. The bad news is that my left arm no longer resembles the one in the above sketch, but looks more like the arm of a 12 year old girl. It’s amazing how fast 7 years of intense… READ MORE
May 3rd, 2009 | Posted in Mailbag
Q: You love to write and illustrate. Have you written any of your own books, if not when will you? A: No, I have never written a book. I am currently working (inbetween everything else) on a “How to Draw Caricatures” book, but every time I think I’ll have a little time to work on it some big job comes along and it’s shoved to the back burner. Currently the big job keeping me from working on the caricature book is, coincidentally, a book… written by someone else, however. This project will take me the entire month of May, but the end result I hope… READ MORE
May 2nd, 2009 | Posted in News
To be more accurate: I remember seeing this exact sign on a wire rotating rack at the Ben Franklin “five and dime” store when I was a really little kid. My dad would buy me Batman, Superman or Captain Marvel comics and I’d take them home, read them over and over, copy all the drawings and then draw my own adventures with kid versions of the characters. Great fun. Today is “Free Comic Book Day“, and I’ll be bringing my own son with me to the local comic shop to see what’s out there that’s cool and interesting. Free Comic Book Day is when participating… READ MORE
May 1st, 2009 | Posted in General
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle wrote 56 short stories and 4 novels starring his famous fictional detective Sherlock Holmes and his “Boswell” Dr. John Watson. They are collectively known as the “canon” to Sherlockians. These are his “official” adventures, treated as if they were his biography were he an actual person from history. Holmes’ adventures in fiction hardly stop there. It is said there have been more books written about Holmes and related characters than any other character in literary history. I have not been able to find even an estimate as to the number of non-canon works, but it certainly numbers near or over a… READ MORE
April 30th, 2009 | Posted in On the Drawing Board
I’m still staying remarkably busy considering the dire state of the economy. Here’s what I have on the board right now: MAD job– This one is still in the final pencil stage, as it sadly isn’t due for 6 weeks. Other stuff keeps cropping up preventing me from finishing it. Stay Tooned! Cover- This for John Read‘s fantastic magazine. I will have this done today. Book Job– Impossible deadline on a massive project I can’t talk about yet… so what else is new? I’m afraid you can expect to see the Dreaded Deadline Demon a few times in the next several weeks. Comic book– This… READ MORE
April 29th, 2009 | Posted in Sketch O'The Week
Here’s another quick study attempt at actress Amy Adams. I did one a few months ago I was not too happy with. This one is certainly less of an exaggeration and still not quite on target. This was from a small picture where she is in her role of Amelia Earhart from the “Night in the Museum” sequel. Update- Here’s a scan of the reference I used. My observations keyed in on her big, round eyes and small, thin mouth. Image from Entertainment Weekly used under Fair Use. READ MORE
