This is the weekly dispatch from Bizarro Studios North, where I have been writing and drawing the Monday through Saturday Bizarro comics since 2018. My partner and friend Dan Piraro created Bizarro in the late twentieth century and continues to do the Sunday comic from Rancho Bizarro in Mexico.
Wayno
Greetings from Bizarro Studios North, where the cartoon sausage is made. Recently, I put in some longer hours to get extra distance between myself and our neverending deadlines, and I have had some success.
I'm using the breathing room to prepare for a rare side gig later this month: I'm scheduled to give a talk for the Pittsburgh Society of Illustrators about my prior illustration career and discuss how I ended up doing Bizarro. I've written my script and am starting to assemble a PowerPoint deck. After that, I'll review them and try to make the presentation as non-boring as possible. Wish me luck. You know how I can ramble on about cartooning...
Who knows, there may be some material I can share in the blog or newsletter.
Today's pipe pic comes to you courtesy of Bizarro reader Grieg T.
Grieg writes:
I found these at a local auction. "Fun for all ages." These kiddies look dazed: the girl—and the boy—with far away eyes. But they look happy!
Big Bizarro thanks to Grieg for this relic from the good old days, when the young ones had toys to model adult addictive behaviors.
I'll include a few recent cartoons in my presentation to the illustrators' group, based partly on their Instagram popularity. If you have any particular favorites from the year so far, let me know what they are.
Meanwhile, here's the latest batch of words & pictures.
Health-conscious ghosts avoid sugary cereals such as Boo-Berry.
Did you know that Oscar Wilde's gothic horror novel was based on an ancestor of his who was a marotte carver?
If the customer had requested "ranch dressing on the side," Henri would have pulled up a chair.
For our international readers, ranch dressing is an odd American item developed in the 1950s, and some citizens consider it a staple.
In early 2024, while enjoying a wonderful Lunar New Year dinner at our favorite Chinese restaurant, we overheard patrons at a nearby table express disappointment that ranch dressing wasn't available to go with their menu items. The inevitable follow-up question? "How about ketchup?"
Friday's panel takes place in a lab that conducts some major league research.
According to Urban Dictionary, hyberdating describes "a situation in which two people date so exclusively that you rarely see them."
That wraps up Week 20 of the year 2025. We'll return next Saturday with more of this material if that interests you.
Bonus Track
Dave Bartholomew: "The Monkey"
Imperial Records 78/45, 1957
Dave Bartholomew, who lived to be 100, was a major figure in New Orleans music and American popular music in general. He was a bandleader, composer, musician, vocalist, producer and arranger. Bartholomew co-wrote, arranged, and produced many of Fats Domino's big hits, and his band backed Domino on records and onstage.
Scads of Bizarro Stuff
If you like what we do and appreciate that it's free, we encourage you to explore the following links.
I hope the other 99 passengers in the clown car escaped serious injury!
ReplyDeleteHow did you know it was a subcompact?
DeleteI don't care for Ranch dressing but I thoroughly enjoyed Wednesday panel!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Judi!
Deleteany chance your upcoming talk about your "prior illustration career and discuss how you ended up doing Bizarro" will be videotaped and made available here to your readers? Sounds interesting!
ReplyDeleteIt might be possible, but I'll definitely find a way to recycle at least parts of it.
DeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteShould have used evaporated milk! Silly ghost...
ReplyDeleteOoh, of course!
DeleteBack in the '90's, Ranch Dressing was considered a beverage by some of my friends. They got better.
ReplyDeleteYikes!
DeleteI know that your readers are smarter than the average bear, but I’m curious as to how many people got your Dorian Gray cartoon. Considering that approximately 50% of your population voted for trump, I’m guessing that they didn’t get it. Of the remaining population I’ll guess that maybe 50% didn’t get it (just because the story was as popular as Mutiny on the Bounty-which I also loved). I’ve seen a number of different movie adaptations of the Dorian Gray book (which I haven’t read) and they were all great. PS I’m not trying to sound high handed or snotish, I guess that I’m trying to say that your cartoons are made for those that read them. Keep up the great work and good luck on winning another award.
ReplyDeleteThank you kindly! I give our readers credit for knowing things.
DeleteI can't speak about that portion of the voting population you mention...
Impressive! You did it without even trying!
Delete