Tom's Mad Blog
July 20th, 2021 | Posted in General
I’m sure most of the followers of my blog know about the crowdfunded book project longtime MAD scribe Desmond Devlin and I are working on. If you don’t, briefly it’s called CLAPTRAP, and it will be a hardcover book featuring twelve original movie parodies in the MAD tradition (with a few of our own twists) plus some other film related goodies. It’s projected to be well over 100 pages, was funded via Indiegogo, and was projected for a 4th quarter 2021 release. All of that is still 100% accurate except for the last part. We have been working hard to try and meet that “before… READ MORE
July 19th, 2021 | Posted in MAD Magazine
I know you have all been waiting with breathless abandon for us to resume our look back through my work for MAD Magazine! This week’s episode features the very FIRST parody where I used a Wacom Cintiq for the digital coloring. It was a spoof of the movie “Van Helsing” written by Dick DeBartolo and first appearing in MAD #445, Sept 2004. I have the pencil roughs for this one! I remember this assignment, particularly the splash page, because it was set up differently than a typical splash. There was a column of panels on the right that delved into the actual parody, leaving only… READ MORE
July 18th, 2021 | Posted in Mailbag
Q: Congrats of your artwork for the CNN series! I’ve seen it everywhere. How did CNN find you to do that job? In fact, what’s the most effective way you market yourself to clients today? A: Thanks! I have been very surprised at how much CNN has used the art I did. It’s been fun to see it so many places. I try to remember to ask clients where they found me, just so I can track what is the most effective way potential clients run across my work. In CNN’s case, it was via Instragram. The art director searched for hashtags like #caricature and… READ MORE
July 15th, 2021 | Posted in General
It’s another fascinating look at some of the stuff from my studio! In this episode we have a gander at the two “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood” prop prints I have signed by director Quentin Tarantino! I have told this story in detail here before (visit here, here and here for the entire sordid affair), so here’s the short version: Back in 2018 I was hired to create two fake, 60’s era “Jack Davis flavored” magazine covers to be used as props in the film “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood”. I did both digital and traditional media versions. The real paintings I hand… READ MORE
July 14th, 2021 | Posted in Sketch O'The Week
I promised a pal of mine I’d do a sketch of Tom Brady for him back when the Bucs won the Superbowl… just getting around to it now. Love him or hate him, the guy has won seven Superbowls. READ MORE
July 13th, 2021 | Posted in General
I have been getting endless inquiries as to if my key art for CNN’s “History of the Sitcom” docu-series will be available in a print. I’ve answered individually in comments and via emails and DMs, so I thought I’d best do a post with the information. This work was done as a “work for hire” job for CNN, which means they own the rights to the image. I can only show it here on my website with their permission. I do not have the rights to reproduce the work. I did ask them for permission to make prints, but you must understand that they people… READ MORE
July 12th, 2021 | Posted in General
We interrupt our weekly journey through my MAD archives for this important announcement… my son-in-law Leif Sundberg aka “The Swedish Ninja” is competing for the 4th time tonight on “American Ninja Warrior” at 8/7c on NBC! Rumor has it he’s one of the early runners so tune in on time to watch all the action. You MIGHT even catch some of the Richmond clan cheering him on! Leif is a phenomenal athlete and his run is sure to be exciting! The above piece of art was a commission for a young MAD and Swedish Ninja fan. #americanninjawarrior #ninjawarrior READ MORE
July 11th, 2021 | Posted in Mailbag
Q: Hey Tom, What kind of art tools do you use for your work? Are you 100% digital or do you use any traditional media? Note: This was actually a question asked for our “Ask Des & Tom!” feature on our CLAPTRAP Indiegogo page, but I thought it would be good to also answer here. Before I answer this, if you are expecting a debate about which is better, traditional art or digital art, you are about to be disappointed. Neither is better or worse than the other, they are simply both tools for creating. Now, on to the answer: A: Ah. The age old… READ MORE
