Mailbag
June 8th, 2014 | Posted in Mailbag
Q: A few issues ago you had two different pieces in the same issue of MAD. Has that ever happened before? A: The issue Richard is referring to is MAD #525, which included both the Arnie Kogen scribed parody of “The Following” I did the art for, and the “Abysmal House” piece (written by Jay Rath) I drew for the “MAD 20”. Having more than one piece is the same issue is a rare thing for me… for any illustrator really other than Sergio. More often than not these days I am doing “continuity” features for the magazine (i.e. the movie and TV parodies), and… READ MORE
June 1st, 2014 | Posted in Mailbag
Q: Hi Tom – I’ve been struggling with the following for over a year now, possibly without realizing it! But I now see we have 2 (or maybe 3 options!) when it comes to creating a caricature. 1. We can keep the head shape as an accurate representation with little or no exaggeration – after all, we are engaged in the quest for likeness (so this is the most important thing – when we see someone from a distance, we recognize them, without seeing their features in detail). We can THEN exaggerate the features – make the eyes smaller, the nose more bulbous, the ears… READ MORE
May 18th, 2014 | Posted in Mailbag
Q: I know you have a full schedule at the drawing board and a family to manage and cherish, but if you had a full day to use to just fill the well, gather inspiration for your art, how would you spend it? A: I’ve always subscribed to the philosophy that the best way to recharge your creative batteries is to do nothing creative at all for a while. My ideal day off is to go nowhere near my studio and completely disconnect from the drawing board. In fact, the less I can even think about work the better. Total escapism by going to the… READ MORE
May 11th, 2014 | Posted in Mailbag
Q: There are foreign editions of MAD, for instance in Germany. They often translate articles of MAD, but there are also contributions from local artists. Do you have any contact to these foreign artists? Is there something like a meeting of international MAD artist once and a while? A: There are still a number of foreign editions of MAD being published, although not as many as there once was. It’s my understanding that they license the MAD brand and a certain amount of the US edition’s material and then produce their own content using local creators and (presumably) more local topics to make fun of.… READ MORE
May 4th, 2014 | Posted in Mailbag
Q: I have to admit that I am a little disappointed because I thought that just maybe Mad would have done a satire of the movie “Gravity”.¬¨‚Ć The movie was a big hit and quite notable (notable enough to warrant a Sergio Aragones piece in #526) and certainly worthy of the satirical minds at Mad to shred to pieces.¬¨‚Ć A miss on the magazine’s part, I felt.¬¨‚Ć And that got me wondering.¬¨‚Ć Have you ever considered simply doing your own satire of a movie or TV show that Mad ignored to satisfy your own wish to see that movie or TV show skewered?¬¨‚Ć Nothing like… READ MORE
April 27th, 2014 | Posted in Mailbag
Q: Just curious what made you decide to start doing comic-cons, and do you find you get a lot of fans that come and find you? A: I saved this one for today seeing as how I am currently at C2E2 in Chicago doing a comic-con! MAD is the red-headed stepchild of comic books. It sort-of is a comic book but not really. In general it does not mix with the cape n’ tights fanboy crowd, but there is some crossover. I get a few people that come up and have actually seen my work in MAD, and have (usually) nice things to say, but… READ MORE
April 20th, 2014 | Posted in Mailbag
Q: Forgive me if this is posted somewhere in the blog, but I’d love to know more about this Marlin Workplace Poster that you do each month. How long have you been at this project? What kinds of things do they look for each month? Do they have specific requests or do you have full creative allowance? What do they use it for? Is there a different employee featured in each month’s installment or is it all fictional characters? I really enjoy seeing the humor in these posters and I’ve always wanted to know more about them! A: Those ‘workplace posters” I do are a… READ MORE
April 13th, 2014 | Posted in Mailbag
Q: Let’s say someone loves your rendition so much, they keep showing up for you to draw them. Does this affect your ability to produce a caricature, or do your drawings of them actually get better? A: How intimate familiarity with a subject affects your ability to caricature that subject is an interesting question. Specifically you are referring to live caricature work (I assume), and that is a little different of an animal. Unless your subject comes back to get a drawing several times a week, you really cannot get so familiar with their face that it affects your ability to draw them objectively. After… READ MORE
