The Daily Cartoonist » web comics

News Briefs for August 26, 2008

Alan Gardner — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 18:46:15 +0000

» African cartoonist Jeremy Nell has been nominated for the Most Outstanding Cartoon in the South African Comedy Awards 2008.

» One of the two Tunisians arrested on charges of allegedly planning to kill Kurt Westergaard has voluntarily left the country. I guess that will show him not to plot to kill cartoonists.

» Chuckle Bros. co-creator Brian Boychuk is featured in The Guardian (Charlottetown, Canada)

» Tall Tale Features continue to interview themselves. This week it’s Scott Metzger, creator of web comic Stewart.

News Briefs for July 29, 2008

Alan Gardner — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 20:30:50 +0000

» Dan Reynold’s Reynolds Unwrapped is now back on gocomics.com after a year or so hiatus.

» You’ll Have That creator Wes Molebash has moved his strip to a new web site yhtcomic.com

» Brooke McEldowney, creator of 9 Chickweed Lane and webcomic Pibgorn is updating the latter strip five times a week now. The Pibgorn sketches that were used as filler between the strips installments was bumped with the increase in strips produced, but by fan demand, they have been given a new home on gocomics.com

Candidate draws webcomic to raise campaign funds

Alan Gardner — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 14:30:16 +0000

Sean Tevis is filing papers to run for the office of state representative in Kansas. The 39 year-old, first time politician was told he would need to raise nearly $26,000 to fund his campaign against the deeper pockets of his Republican competitor. After raising just over $1000 the traditional method of asking for donations from friends and family, he created a webcomic and solicited money through his web site. In two weeks, he raised over $95,000. His competitor, a semi-retired, 3-term incumbent has raised $12,000 the old fashion way and believes that’s best. “This is a race you win by getting out and walking, not sitting in front of a compute,” he told the L.A. Times. Most of Tevis’ money was raised by non-Kansas donors who learned of his comic and campaign through social media, which political analysts fear will hurt him in the end as they can’t vote for him.

News Briefs for July 9, 2008

Alan Gardner — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 20:13:09 +0000

» Washington Examiner editorial cartoonist Nate Beeler has been featured in American University’s magazine and also drew an illustration for the front cover.

» Deflocked creator Jeff Coriveau is profiled in The Republican.

» PBS’ NOW program is running an election season cartoon caption contest. The winner receives a NOW DVD (about $20 worth).

» The latest Tall Tell Features podcast features editorial cartoonist Lucas Turnbloom.

» Piers Baker’s Ollie and Quentin is now on available on ROK Comics.

» Mike Luckovich’s cartoons have a new URL.

‘Family Guy’ creater to produce animated cartoons online

Aaron Taylor — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 06:22:03 +0000

Seth MacFarlane, the creator of Fox Television’s “Family Guy”, will unveil a new project of animated cartoons that will appear exclusively on the Internet. The experimental project is called “Seth MacFarlane’s Cavalcade of Cartoon Comedy” and will debut in September.

The cartoons will be paired with advertisements placed on targeted Web sites, and will also be available on the Google-owned video-sharing site YouTube.com, Rubin said.

In an interview, MacFarlane described the installments as “animated versions of the one-frame cartoons you might see in The New Yorker, only edgier.”

Diesel Sweeties to end print run in August

Alan Gardner — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 00:56:39 +0000

Rich Stevens‘ Diesel Sweeties will come to an end, at least in newspapers on August 10, he has announced on his blog. In an interview over at Fleen, he suggests that the additional work to produce DS for family friendly newspaper standards and the lack of significant income contributed to the decision.

From the Fleen interview:

Fleen: What was the prime factor in deciding to quit?

Stevens: Not to sound like a jerk, but time and money. I was (currently still am) spending 12+ hours a day 5.5 days a week keeping my business afloat and doing 12 comics a week. My website and merch were a little over 90% of my gross income last year. When the workload starting making me sicker and fatter, it was pretty much a no-brainer which job had to go.

(And before there is any argument from the Peanuts-worshipping gallery, this was my experience. It is not true for all newspaper strips or print cartoonists, but I lived it and have the debt and carpal tunnel to prove it.)

…

Fleen: What positive things are you taking away from all this?

Stevens: It was grad school. Med school. Boot camp. The editorial help I got working with Ted was awesome. Having another pair of eyes questioning my writing was incredibly helpful. Would never have gotten that anywhere else.

The perspective of going from moderately well-known on the internet to an absolute nobody in the outside world was really useful as well. Working for a completely new audience who couldn’t give a shit about obscure band lyrics and computer in-jokes forced me to grow a whole lot of new comedy muscles. Hopefully I can still move my neck.

The other positive thing is the joy that I dodged a bullet. You know the bullet where a loved project becomes a fifty year millstone one never gets to put down until one drops dead.

Harvey Awards nominees announced

Alan Gardner — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 12:48:14 +0000

This year’s Harvey Award nominees have been released. in the category of Best Syndicated Strip or Panel, the nominees are: Doonesbury (Garry Trudeau), Get Fuzzy (Darby Conley), The K Chronicles (Keith Knight), The Mighty Motor-Sapiens, (Mark Wheatley, Daniel Krall, Robert Tinnell, MJ Butler, Craig Taillerfer, Matthew Plog, and Jerry Carr), and Mutts (Patrick McDonnell).

In the category of Best Online Comic, the nominees are: Diary of a Wimpy Kid (Jeff Kinney), EZ Street (Robert Tinnell and Mark Wheatley), Penny Arcade (Jerry Holkins and Mike Krahulik), Perry Bible Fellowship (Nicholas Gurewitch), and Surreal Adventures of Edgar Allan Poo (Dwight L. Macpherson, Thomas Boatwright and Thomas Mauer).

The other categories are listed below:

BEST WRITER

Ed Brubaker, Captain America, Marvel Comics
Jeff Kinney, Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Amulet Books
Grant Morrison, All Star Superman, DC Comics
William Van Horn, Walt Disney’s Comics and Stories, Gemstone
Brian K. Vaughan, Y: The Last Man, Vertigo/DC Comics

BEST ARTIST

Gabriel Ba, Umbrella Academy, Dark Horse Comics
John Cassaday, Astonishing X-Men, Marvel Comics
Guy Davis, BPRD, Dark Horse Comics
Frank Quitely, All Star Superman, DC Comics
William Van Horn, Walt Disney’s Comics and Stories, Gemstone

BEST CARTOONIST

Darwyn Cooke, The Spirit, DC Comics
Matt Kindt, Super Spy, Top Shelf
Jeff Kinney, Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Amulet Books
Bryan Lee O’Malley, Scott Pilgrim Gets It Together, Oni Press
Vasilis Lolos, Last Call, Oni Press
William Van Horn, Walt Disney’s Comics and Stories, Gemstone

BEST GRAPHIC ALBUM - ORIGINAL

The Arrival, Scholastic Books
Donald Duck: The Case of the Missing Mummy, Gemstone
Exit Wounds, Drawn & Quarterly
Laika, First Second
Scott Pilgrim Gets It Together, Oni Press

BEST GRAPHIC ALBUM - PREVIOUSLY PUBLISHED

The Annotated Northwest Passage, Oni Press
Antiques, Volume 1, Gemstone
Captain America Omnibus, Volume 1, Marvel Comics
Damned, Volume 1, Oni Press
Dark Tower: The Gunslinger Born, Marvel Comics

BEST DOMESTIC REPRINT PROJECT

Complete Peanuts, Fantagraphics Books
Complete Terry and the Pirates, IDW
EC Archives, Gemstone
Popeye, Fantagraphics Books
Walt and Skeezix, Drawn & Quarterly

BEST AMERICAN EDITION OF FOREIGN MATERIAL

Eduardo Risso’s Tales of Terror, Dynamite Entertainment
Exit Wounds, Drawn & Quarterly
Manga Shakespeare: Romeo and Juliet, Abrams
Moomin, Volume 2, Drawn & Quarterly
Witchblade Manga, Top Cow/Image

SPECIAL AWARD FOR HUMOR

Chris Eliopoulos, Franklin Richards series, Marvel Comics
Nicholas Gurewitch, Perry Bible Fellowship, www.pbfcomics.com
Jeff Kinney, Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Amulet Books
Bryan Lee O’Malley, Scott Pilgrim Gets It Together, Oni Press
William Van Horn, Walt Disney’s Comics and Stories, Gemstone

SPECIAL AWARD FOR EXCELLENCE IN PRESENTATION

The Annotated Northwest Passage, Scott Chantler, Oni Press
Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Jeff Kinney, Amulet Books
EC Archives, Various, edited by John Clark, Gemstone
Postcards: True Stories That Never Happened, edited by Jason Rodriguez, Villard
Super Spy, Matt Kindt, Top Shelf

BEST SINGLE ISSUE OR STORY

Alice in Sunderland, Dark Horse Comics
All Star Superman # 8, DC Comics
Captain America # 25, Marvel Comics
Donald Duck: The Case of the Missing Mummy, Gemstone
I Killed Adolf Hitler, Fantagraphics Books
Immortal Iron Fist # 7, Marvel Comics
Stephen Colbert’s Tek Jansen # 1, Oni Press

BEST BIOGRAPHICAL, HISTORICAL OR JOURNALISTIC PRESENTATION

Blah Blah Blog, Tom Brevoort, http://www.marvel.com/blogs/Tom%20Brevoort/
The Comics Journal, edited by Gary Groth and Michael Dean, Fantagraphics Books
Meanwhile…Comics!, John, Jason and Scott, http://www.meanwhilecomics.com
The Naked Artist: Comic Book Legends, Bryan Talbot and Hunt Emerson,
Moonstone Books
Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide, edited by J.C. Vaughn, Gemstone
Reading Comics: How Graphic Albums Work and What They Mean, Douglas Wolk,
Da Capo Press

BEST COVER ARTIST

John Cassaday, Astonishing X-Men, Marvel Comics
Marko Djurdjevic, Daredevil, Marvel Comics
James Jean, Fables, Vertigo/DC Comics
Mike Mignola, Hellboy, Dark Horse Comics
William Van Horn, Walt Disney’s Comics and Stories, Gemstone

BEST LETTERER

Chris Eliopoulos, Daredevil, Marvel Comics
Jared K. Fletcher, The Spirit, DC Comics
Willie Schubert, Walt Disney’s Comics and Stories, Gemstone
Douglas E. Sherwood, Local, Oni Books
Chris Ware, Acme Novelty Library, Acme Novelty

BEST COLORIST

Susan Daigle-Leach, Uncle Scrooge, Gemstone
Jamie Grant, All Star Superman, DC Comics
Matt Hollingsworth, Daredevil, Marvel Comics
Matt Kindt, Super Spy, Top Shelf
Laura Martin, Thor, Marvel Comics

BEST INKER

Stefano Gaudiano, Daredevil, Marvel Comics
Jeff Kinney, Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Amulet Books
Steve Leialoha, Fables, DC Comics
Mark Morales, Thor, Marvel Comics
Kevin Nowlan, Witchblade, Top Cow/Image

BEST CONTINUING OR LIMITED SERIES

All Star Superman, DC Comics
Captain America, Marvel Comics
Damned, Oni Press
Daredevil, Marvel Comics
Umbrella Academy, Dark Horse Comics
Uncle Scrooge, Gemstone Comics

BEST NEW SERIES

Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Amulet Books
The Order, Marvel Comics
Resurrection, Oni Press
Thor, Marvel Comics
Umbrella Academy, Dark Horse Comics

BEST NEW TALENT

Jeff Kinney, Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Amulet Books
Jeff Lemire, Essex County, Top Shelf
Vasilis Lolos, Last Call, Oni Press
Robbi Rodriguez, Maintenance, Oni Press
Christian Slade, Korgi #1: Sprouting Wings, Top Shelf

BEST ANTHOLOGY

Flight Volume 4, edited by Kazu Kibuishi, Ballantine Books
Mome Volume 8, edited by Gary Groth and Eric Reynolds, Fantagraphics Books
Popgun Volume 1, edited by Joe Keatinge and Mark Andrew Smith, Image Books
Postcards: True Stories That Never Happened, edited by Jason Rodriquez, Villard
Walt Disney’s Comics and Stories, edited by John Clark, Gemstone

News Briefs for June 12, 2008

Alan Gardner — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 21:00:48 +0000

» Jeff Stahler has a new collection of his comic panel Moderately Confused out in book form. It’s entitled “21st Century Confusion: A Moderately Confused Collection” and can be had at Amazon.com or your nearest bookstore.

» Todd Clark also has a new book collection for his comic Lola. Check it out on Amazon.

» Arizona cartoonist Sean Hoy will be in Scottsdale for a couple of book signings to promote his book ” Out of the Cup” (coffee related cartoons). Naturally, the signings are at area coffee shops. See his website for more information.

» What the Duck creator Aaron Johnson is celebrating the upcoming 500th WTD strip. Fans can download a Go Duck Yourself cartoon then modify, color, accessorize it and send it back in. Best ones are featured on the site and get a WTD t-shirt.

» Rome News-Tribune editorial cartoonist Mike Lester was on Georgia Public Broadcasting yesterday and this morning.

» Editorial cartoonist Andrew Wahl was honored with 3rd place in the SPJ’s Excellence in Journalism Region 10. First and second place went to David Horsey of the Seattle Post-Intelligencer and Jack Ohman of The Oregonian.

» Hawaiian webcomickers Audra Furuichi and Scott Yoshinaga, who draw nemu nemu, will be part of The Teen Summer reading program presenting a the basics of webcartooning.

» Vlad Kolarov, who draws illustrations and cartoons for greeting cards, advertising, newspapers, etc. has launched a new web site to sell his single panel cartoons.

» Abell Smith, one of the cartoonists featured in Ted Rall’s “Attitude 3: The New Subversive Online Cartoonists” has posted his first animation.

» Mr. Media interviewed Cafe Con Leche creator Charlos Gary. During the live stream-cast Chris Browne who does the Hagar the Horrible calls in. A BlogTalkRadio player is below if you want to listen to the full program.

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Basketcase webcomic picked up by Alma Mater

Alan Gardner — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 15:30:45 +0000

Kelly Ferguson’s webocomic panel Basketcase has been picked up by his Alma Mater’s paper, the Mustang Daily. Perhaps more impressive is Kelly’s tenacity produce his strip after a construction accident left him a wheelchair with limited use of his hands.

“I used to work construction to help pay for tuition and books, and during the summer in between freshman and sophomore year while on the job, a board was wind-blown and struck me in the C5 vertebrae and here I am. I had to relearn everything from eating to drawing,” Ferguson said.

The accident left him with limited use of his arms. Ferguson can control his wrist for the most part, and uses his shoulder muscles to move his arm and hand.

“It’s like using a Ouija board to draw with,” Ferguson laughs.

Bleeker to appear in German newspaper

Alan Gardner — Fri, 30 May 2008 12:04:30 +0000

Jonathan Mahood’s Bleeker the Rechargeable Dog will begin appearing in Germany’s Die Zeit weekly newspaper for a 12 week run on their kid’ page. Die Zeit has a circulation of about 500,000 and an estimated readership of 2 million. Jonathan writes on his blog that “editors chose Bleeker because it appealed to both children and their adult readers.”