The Daily Cartoonist

Industry news for the professional cartoonist

News Briefs for July 21, 2009

Alan Gardner52 mins

Animation

» Ted Rall and David Essman team up for another editorial animation.

Books

» Moonbase Press has announced that it has the fourteenth collection of cartoonist Bill Holbrook’s groundbreaking webcomic Kevin & Kell is now available. They’ve also released a treasury edition collection of the early years of cartoonist Bill’s webcomic Kevin & Kell.

Comic Strips

» Stephan Pastis takes faux offense to a very subtle poke at his comic strip inside The Family Circus. Then he posts 22 of his strips that he’s made that make fun of The Family Circus.

» The My Record Journal has a write up of a local event featuring Soup to Nutz creator Rick Stromoski teaching children how to draw at the Cheshire Public Library.

» Another write-up of Scott Adam’s career and his battle with focal dystonia a rare vocal condition that allowed him to speak in some situations, but not others.

Politics

» Last weekend, news broke that the Treasury Department wanted to hire a cartoonist to improve morale, but then had to cancel the job posting because of a North Dakota Senator thought it was a bad use of money. If money is the issue, Michael Kandalaft, creator of That Monkey Tune, says he’ll do it for free
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5 thoughts on “News Briefs for July 21, 2009”

  1. As the creator of the comic strip “That Monkey Tune,” I had previously contacted the Bureau of Public Debt (BPD) in response to their solicitation for a humorist. When I found out that it had been canceled on the grounds of finances, I sent the following communication to Sen. Dorgan’s office (who had initiated the compliant) and the BPD offering my services pro bono.

    Here is the entire letter to the Senator:

    “Dear Senator:

    I have been informed that the solicitation for Humorist was canceled after an objection on the grounds of finances.

    I had earlier responded to this solicitation to provide my cartooning services, and it was with great dismay that I have been informed of its cancellation.

    While I understand the concern, I would like to publicly propose a discussion of my services on a pro-bono basis, with only a stipend to cover transportation costs if possible. This is an important job at a critical time for those who would benefit greatly from such a presentation.

    Please contact me should you wish to discuss my offer further. I have contacted the BPD in this regards as well.

    Sincerely,
    Michael Kandalaft”

  2. Michael, is it your goal to draw cartoons for the Bureau of Public Debt for free and make an income off related T shirt sales?

  3. Jim, thanks for the comment. No, I just wanted to offer my services pro bono if they were having economic troubles, I would’ve been happy to do it and wasn’t expecting anything else other than to help them out with their workplace stress.

    I think comics are getting canned right and left for various reasons in various ways, so anything cartoonists can do to keep it alive is essential, and I’m sure there would be plenty others out there who would do the same.

  5. Michael, I think it was a nice gesture. it’s a shame they didn’t act on it.And by the way, I’ve done plenty of pro bono work with my cartoons and at the same time walked in with a plan to be creative with products where every one can make a couple of dollars. It’s smart fundraising!

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