Cartoonists in the News
Skip to comments
The news worthy cartoonists this round are Dan Martin, Dale Messick, Bret Juliano, and Alan Dunn.
Dan Martin Lecture on St. Louis Cartoon History & Weatherbird
By Tribune Staff • Join the Madison County Historical Society at 2 p.m. on Sunday, June 7 when cartoonist Dan Martin regales his audience with the intriguing history of Weatherbird and other St. Louis cartoons.
Weatherbird is the longest-running cartoon character in the country. It first appeared in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch in 1901 and Martin has drawn the famous bird since 1986.
Martin, a native of St. Louis, is only the sixth artist to draw the famous bird. He is the author of two books on illustrators and cartoonists from the St. Louis area.
Dale Messick, Brenda Starr and Margo the Marco Island Mermaid
Dale Messick used her new hometown as the backdrop for a Brenda Starr story in 1966. A post from a historical society prompted B.D. Green to investigate for The Fort Myers News-Press & Naples Daily News.
Thanks to a social media post from the Marco Island Historical Society in early May, today we’re talking about a once-famous fictional reporter, her creator and their connection to Southwest Florida.
The Historical Society says Messick purchased her Marco Island model home on Fourwinds Avenue in 1965, “after first visiting the island to draw a treasure-hunting episode for her comic strip? She would spend about four months out of the year here working on weekly submissions of Brenda Starr, Reporter.”
The Dust Bunny Mafia and Chicago History
Bret Juliano’s Dust Bunny Mafia Comics is a weekly webcomic that has been around for nearly five years. It covers Dust Bunny Mafia characters in a historical fiction manner. The note for the above strip is
Not all organized crime schemes involved gambling, extortion, or high-level rackets.
According to federal court records and contemporary newspaper reporting, Anthony Maggio of Maggio’s Lounge at 7635 West Roosevelt Road in Forest Park was convicted in 1965 for liquor tax violations after authorities discovered empty whiskey bottles were allegedly being refilled with cheaper spirits and resold as premium brands.
Even after that conviction—and separate gambling-related legal trouble—Maggio’s Lounge remained associated with Chicago Outfit figures, including Sam Giancana, according to the 1966 Chicago Crime Commission Report.
Apparently, some “top shelf” offerings were more aspirational than authentic.
The strip is currently spotlighting the Chicago Underworld and Michael Johnson and Ben Bradley of WGNTV has covered the strip that has been collected as an educational comic book.
With school letting out for the summer, a lot of parents are trying to find ways to get their kids to keep reading outside the classroom.
Cartoonist and author Bret Juliano has a cool and creative solution. He’s the creator of “Dust Bunny Mafia,” a series of books featuring menacing but adorable monsters. There’s also some Chicago history mixed in, because some of the books are based on true crime.
Gabriele Neri, Alan Dunn’s Biographer, Speaks Writes
This past week MIT Press published Alan Dunn The Cartoonist as Architectural Critic by Gabriele Neri.
The author and MIT Press Reader has released an excerpt of the book.
Despite some initial caution on the part of the editor of Architectural Record, Dunn’s cartoons made him a regular and not-to-be-missed contributor. Just months after his first illustration for the publication, one reader submitted a query:
Where did [Dunn] come from? Why does he pick on the building world so often? Is he an architect with his tongue permanently in his cheek? These, and other questions, are being asked. Maybe he won’t talk, but we’re going to work on him.
Comments