Downsizing its syndicated comics and puzzles was a bad decision says The Laurel Leader-Call. You have spoken, and we have quickly answered. As loyal readers noticed in the Aug. 15 edition of the Leader-Call, we introduced a slimmed-down version of our comics and puzzles page. We did this to try to provide quality over quantity. […]
At the early morning hour I should have been blogging today, I was preparing to go work the polls at the New Hampshire Primaries. Fortunately, I am, in fact, the fellow in this vintage xkcd, and have an extensive collection of funny pictures on my hard drive.While they won’t serve as alternative currency — if […]
above: Blondie by Chic Young (1930)Chic Young’s Blondie comic strip first appeared on September 8, 1930.above: the debut of Blondie and DagwoodIn 2012 R. C. Harvey informed us of the history of the strip and it’s creator.The authorized Blondie backstory via The Wayback Machine. It took a walk down the aisle and a family […]
It’s Spring 1982 and The Legend of Bruce Lee by Sharman DiVono and Fran Matera has debuted on the comics pages.But five years earlier the legendary comic masters Milton Caniff and Noel Sickles had joined forces to prepare samples of their version of the comic strip Bruce Lee.Noel Sickles revolutionized daily black and white comic […]
Clearing out some bookmarked items.The Blount County Daily Times has a nice write-up about Dave and Doreen Dotson and their long-running (15 years?) weekly comic strip Outzkirts. Unfortunately we only get one look at the article and then it goes behind a paywall. So I am unable to quote from the article.But here’s a profile […]
Looking back at some comic strips from this past week.But first, since both Beetle Bailey and Stars and Stripes were in the news, here is this weekend’s Stars and Stripes’ comics section where the paper gets a mention in Sunday’s Beetle Bailey. Late add: I don’t know if Mike Peters pulled this one or not. […]
Kevin and Kell began 25 years ago as a five day a week online comic strip. The first daily was September 4, 1995 (below).But Bill Holbrook, being Bill Holbrook, began the strip with a Sunday page on September 3, 1995:Bill was, at the time, doing his On the Fastrack (1984) and Safe Havens (1988) when […]
Alex notes the slight easing of quarantine and, one hopes, the slight easing of tensions caused thereby.The element of holiday visitors is a lively one here, because, when NYC blew up in the pandemic, a lot of people with second homes in New England skedaddled up here. There was some resentment at first, on the […]
On today’s “Three-Word Answer” it’s Part 2 of our chat talking with social/political/pop-culture/jack-of-all-genres Ruben Bolling. Ruben is the cartoonist behind the weekly comic “Tom the Dancing Bug” that can be seen on such august sites as BoingBoing, Daily Kos, The Washington Post and GoComics.If you’ll remember the format of this Q&A, we ask, oh 20 […]
Jan Bosman in the Northwest Herald: The last several months, I have noticed obvious differences among [the Herald’s comic] strips. Some cartoonists frequently incorporate coronavirus references into their submissions, while others stay with their basic story lines. For example, Tom Thaves shows Frank & Ernest wearing masks when they’re out in public. And those amiable […]
The National Cartoonist Society has released its schedule for the September 12, 2020 NCSFest and Reuben Awards. Streaming broadcast begins at10am Saturday, September 12 at NCSFest.com Official Welcome to NCSFest 2020 from NCS President & thank you’s. From Panels to Publishing (90 mins)Guests: Mark Tatulli, Terri Libenson, Maria Scrivan, and Rob HarrellHosted by: Jason Chatfield 74th Annual Reuben AwardsJoin […]
Most comics historians, in writing about Jackie Ormes, note her Torchy Brown comic strip for which she is justly famous. But Ormes’ biographer Nancy Goldstein notes that “it is Patty-Jo that the readers of the Courier whom I talked to seem to remember most vividly.”Goldstein continues: That a girl child expressed wisdom, exposed folly, and […]
“That New Carl Smell” cartoonist Carl Skanberg was profiled in a feature story on MLB.com.From the Michael Clair piece:Skanberg is a lifelong White Sox fan who has a long history of covering the team’s exploits through his comics work. After losing his job right before the pandemic hit, the veteran cartoonist decided to devote his summer […]
Today (September 1) cartoonist Jackie Ormes is being honored with a Google Doodle slideshow. Jackie Ormes was born Zelda Mavin Jackson on August 1, 1911, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. She taught herself to draw at an early age and showcased her skills with a page of cartoons in her high school yearbook. After graduation, she entered […]
An established provocateur from an early age, John “Derf” Backderf is a renowned comics creator residing in Cleveland, Ohio. His work has garnered much critical acclaim and has earned such accolades as an Eisner Award (Trashed) and an Angoulême Prize (My Friend Dahmer). His latest work, Kent State (Abrams Comicarts) is an in-depth and critical […]