Mailbag
July 11th, 2010 | Posted in Mailbag
Q: I usually assume most artists are skinny or out of shape guys like computer nerds… but when I saw your picture you looked like a WWF wrestler. I workout myself and I was wondering if you could share with us your regiment and more importantly your diet and/or supplements. For instance I stick to a complex carbohydrate diet and I take creatine. I lift weights every 3 days yet I go all out. My main exercises are bicep curls and dips with a weighted belt. Also, I was wondering if you could share with us people’s reaction (such as fans or industry professionals) to… READ MORE
July 4th, 2010 | Posted in Mailbag
Q: Are there any people, either friends or celebrities, you’ve drawn so many times you could do a pretty good job of drawing them purely from memory without using any sort of reference? A: My first real job in published cartooning (if you can call working for the infamous NOW Comics a “real job”) was drawing a comic book called Married… with Children. I drew somewhere around 600 pages of that comic from 1991-1995. Even though it’s been 15 years since I did my last drawing of Ed O’Neill and Katie Segal as Al and Peg Bundy, I can still do pretty respectable caricature of… READ MORE
June 27th, 2010 | Posted in Mailbag
Q: I was reading through your blog and came across a post about doing magazine illustration where you mentioned something called a “kill fee”. What is that, and have you ever had to deal with it? A: A “Kill Fee” or “Reject Fee” is a clause in an illustration agreement between a publication and an illustrator that specifies a set amount of pay if the final illustration is rejected (i.e. “killed”). The kill fee clause used to be a standard part of any independent contractor agreement, but I see it less and less these days. Most old school publications still have the kill fee in… READ MORE
June 20th, 2010 | Posted in Mailbag
Q: I would think drawing caricatures in a theme park would be stressful simply because many times you have people – often friends or family of whoever is being drawn – looking over your shoulder, watching, and telling the person how much it does or doesn’t look like them. What happens when you realize you’ve started off on the wrong foot? Do you just plow through and try to correct it, or have you ever torn off the sheet, crumpled it up, and said, “OK, let’s try this again”? A: I very seldom ever start over. Likeness in caricature can be achieved in a variety… READ MORE
June 13th, 2010 | Posted in Mailbag
Uh oh! Looks like the mailbag is empty! Actually I have several mailbag questions that deal with drawing hair, but that is more suited for a tutorial and not really for the mailbag. My apologies to those who sent the hair inquiries… I hope to get to that as a tutorial one of these days. Otherwise I am fresh out of questions. When I get some fresh questions concerning cartooning, illustration, freelancing, MAD Magazine or other similar subjects I’ll be happy to answer them as best I can. E-mail me your questions and I’ll try and answer them here! READ MORE
June 6th, 2010 | Posted in Mailbag
Q: I live in St. Louis and I used to frequent Union Station quite a bit. I would always make a point to stop at your caricature stand and watch the artist. I was wondering if you may go over the types of materials that you use at your stands? A: For those readers who may not know I own several caricature concession operations in a few different states including at Six Flags St. Louis in Eureka, MO. I used to own a stand at St. Louis Union Station in downtown St. Louis but sold the business to my manager at the end of 2009.… READ MORE
May 23rd, 2010 | Posted in Mailbag
Q: If I have just begun working as a cartoonist/illustrator what should I include in my portfolio since I never gotten published before? I know I should include my best work but what’s the subject for me to illustrate? Finally, how to get my work noticed? A: These days a “portfolio”, meaning a little case that contains samples of your illustration work, is almost a thing of the past. It’s the electronic age, and websites have taken the place of the traditional leather portfolio. Website porfolios have so many benefits over thier physical counterparts… they are accessible 24/7. They do not need to be dropped… READ MORE
May 16th, 2010 | Posted in Mailbag
Q: I started to simply add this as a comment on your post, but after a second thought I felt it may be better served as a “Sunday Mailbag” question. Regarding your “Sketch O’ The Week” on Wednesday, May 12, you posted the following comments: “I debated whether to even post this caricature of LOST’s Elizabeth Mitchell as Dr. Juliet Burke, since I lost the likeness somewhere along the way between the rough sketch and the final washes. However, seeing as how I didn’t post one at all last week I’d better get something up today.” Does this happen often with your sketches? I ask… READ MORE
