Saturday, August 29, 2026

Toad Away

 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 


The Saturday Bizarro recap is moving. As of next week (September 5), this post will become part of News from Wayno on Substack. If you're a regular visitor to this page, please head over to my 'Stack and subscribe (it's free!)

I'll probably post a link here next Saturday to catch anyone who might have missed the announcement.

I hope to streamline communications with readers by publishing the blog and the newsletter from one platform. We'll see how it works out.

Today's pipe pic has dual meanings for your cartoonist.

It's the cover of a 1977 LP by the Firesign Theatre, whose early comedy records greatly influenced my sense of humor, and the image parodies a 1955 oil painting by Bizarro's favorite surrealist, René Magritte.

Mysteries of the Horizon is one of Magritte's less familiar works. It features three men (or three views of one man) wearing bowler hats, a common motif in his paintings.

Just Folks... A Firesign Chat is less familiar to fans, and is not as well regarded as their earlier work. The group's ten-year contract with Columbia Records had been canceled, and they signed with Butterfly Records, primarily known as a disco label. They reworked bits from their 1970s radio program Let's Eat, but growing tensions within the quartet affected the performances, and the material was far from their best.

Groucho Marx and John Lennon both gave
permission to appear on the cover.

Their best work was very good indeed. Between 1969 and 1971, they released three classic albums: How Can You Be In Two Places At Once When You're Not Anywhere At All; Don't Crush That Dwarf, Hand Me The Pliers; and I Think We're All Bozos On This Bus.

Cover art by Robert Grossman 

Those three masterworks cement their place in history as comedy revolutionaries, and the Library of Congress added Dwarf to the National Recording Registry in 2005.

Pardon the nerdish digression. We'll return to normal business now.

Future comics scholars will have to decide how this batch of gags rates in the history of Bizarro.

Monday's panel imagines a failed restaurant promotion.

The officer may be highly decorated, but is he tastefully decorated?

I've done a handful of gags referencing karaoke, including three of these multi-panel "favorite numbers" comics. I may have exhausted this idea, but one never knows.

The time of year dictated that we run at least one back-to-school (or stool) gag.

M.C. Escher is another artist we admire. His work is more geometrical than surreal, but it's often just as fantastical.

Editing is perhaps the most important part of writing. Cartoonists will tweak dialogue or a caption to cut unnecessary words or even letters. I wondered how many drafts Poe messed with when composing "The Raven."

Thanks for dropping by for the weekly Bizarro recap. I hope you'll consider signing up for the new Substack version, which will be delivered to your email inbox, saving you a trip to Blogger.

Bonus Tracks

Farmer Jason: "Ode to a Toad"
rrom Rockin' in the Forest
Courageous Chickens CD, 2014


Farmer Jason is the children's music alter ego of Jason Ringenberg, who has fronted the rocked-up country band Jason & the Nashville Scorchers since 1981. They recorded a blistering version of a Bob Dylan song for their debut mini-album.

Jason & The Nashville Scorchers: "Absolutely Sweet Marie"
from Fervor 
Praxis Records, 1984


I hope "Sweet Marie" serves as a palate cleanser after "Ode to a Toad..."


 

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Saturday, August 22, 2026

I Am Just a Po' Boy

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 

Be witty. Be nasty. Be silly. Don’t be boring.

Bunny Matthews


Will Bunn "Bunny" Matthews III (1951–2021) was a cartoonist, musician, and writer based in New Orleans. I discovered his work the first time we visited the city, when I bought his paperback cartoon books F'Sure!: Actual Dialogue Heard on the Streets of New Orleans and Vic and Nat'ly.

As a journalist, Matthews interviewed many celebrities and legendary New Orleans musicians.

I mention him today to recommend a new book, Bunny Matthews: His Life, Art, and Obsessions, by Alison Fensterstock and Michael Tisserand. It's the first monograph of his work, includes a generous selection of art going back to his childhood, and is the fullest biography I've seen.

Alison Fensterstock is a New Orleans writer who contributes to NPR Music, and she has DJed for WWOZ FM.

Michael Tisserand is the award-winning author of Krazy: George Herriman, A Life in Black and White, about the cartoonist behind Krazy Kat.

The Bunny Matthews book will be released on September 18, and can be pre-ordered now from the Historic New Orleans Collection. I highly recommend it.

Photo by Wayno, New Orleans, 2009

Today's historical pipe pic features two icons of slapstick comedy.

Aspiring Vaudevillians Moe and Shemp Howard, as part of the Marguerite Bryant Players, circa 1919, from A Tour de Farce: The Complete History of the Three Stooges on the Road by Gary Lassin; a comprehensive, 765-page book documenting the live, on-the-road performances of the Three Stooges from the 1920s to the 1970s.
I found the photo and caption on Farcebook, which goes to show that it's not a completely useless platform.

Please do let me know if the latest Bizarro panels are witty, nasty, silly, boring, or otherwise.

Monday's gag had a few readers scratching their heads, and I think it's because of the way I drew it. Some thought the character on the right was stuck to the wall, and I can see how it could be read that way. He's supposed to be waiting to submit a patent application for whatever he invented that enables levitation.

Apologies for any confusion.

If owls had lips and teeth, the question might be "WTF?"

Cartoonists don't draw walls like this out of laziness. It's because of strict regulations.

I suppose this one lands in the "silly" category. Once I thought of it, I simply had to draw it. I tried not to. Honest!

In this literary crossover, we're reminded that Goldilocks has strong, centrist opinions on everything.

We finish off with a back-to-school scene, since it's that time of year.

Thanks for following along with the weekly recap.

Communications Consolidation Coming Soon

Every Saturday, I publish a cartoon recap/commentary here on Blogger in addition to a Substack newsletter. In the coming weeks, I'll start using Substack for both. The cartoon review will be sent on Saturday or Sunday, and all other stuff (previews, old art, etc.) will arrive separately. 

Substack isn’t perfect, but Blogger behaves unpredictably and it randomly changes text formatting. Also, it has no blocking feature, so I spend time every week deleting spam comments from persistent bots.

I want to focus my creative energy on making comics while staying in touch with our community of readers, and this change should help. It will certainly cut down on time spent on cross-posting and linking.

If you enjoy the blog, please subscribe to the newsletter here. When I make the transition, the newsletter will be delivered to your inbox every weekend.

I haven't turned on paid Substack subscriptions, but when I eventually do, free subscribers will always get the weekly recap and comments, just like they do now in the blog.

Thanks for your indulgence.


Bonus Track

James Booker: "Goodnight Irene"
from Junco Partner
Island Records LP, 1976


Bunny Matthews was a close friend of the eccentric piano genius James Booker, whose music you might enjoy.


 

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Saturday, August 15, 2026

Pin the Tail on the Salaryman

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 

You cannot tell a cartoonist not to do something and expect them not to try to do it.

Lynn Johnston


I spent last weekend among my colleagues at the 80th annual National Cartoonists Society's Reuben Awards, in Columbus, Ohio. Once a year, the reclusive loners who make your daily cartoons bust out of their workspaces, put on shoes, and get together to celebrate each other and the odd line of work we share. I came home exhausted and energized, if that makes any sense.

I received a nomination for Best in Newspaper Panels, and although I didn't win it, I was thrilled to congratulate my Philadelphia compadre, Dave Blazek of Loose Parts. 

Friendly rivals Dave Blazek and Wayno

Bill Whitehead, who creates the daily comic panel Free Range, was also nominated, so I was in fine company.

Over the past several years, an influx of new and younger members from all corners of the cartooning world has revitalized the venerable organization. I saw many new faces with "first-timer" ribbons attached to their badge. It's a tradition to look for them and welcome them to the group. Next year, they'll do the same.

I was able to hang with old and new friends and thank the King Features crew who support your cartoonists every day, especially our hardworking editors who correct our boo-boos before the comics are published.

I've been attending these annual gatherings since 2013, and while I've enjoyed every one, this may have been the best one yet.

The NCS is a welcoming and inclusive family of misfits, and I wouldn't have it any other way.

My buddy Jeff B., of Fairmont, WV, found this smoking skeleton image online, though I haven't turned up any information about it.


Clearly, it's a bookplate for a Rud. Petersson. I don't know if their first name is/was Rudolph, Ruddigore, Rudd, or something else entirely. The mysterious Petersson may or may not have created the design.

Thanks be to Jeff for finding this delightfully creepy image, and for being a good pal and a swell human.

Perhaps I'll include something from this week's Bizarro gags in my Reuben Awards submission package next year.

My inner word nerd was pleased with this gag based on multiple meanings of "qualification."

© 2026 Dictionary Media Group


Cartoonists love to make jokes about Sisyphus, and it's gratifying to come up with (one hopes) a unique angle on the character.

See also: Gregor Samsa.

How many anxieties can one develop in such a brief lifespan?

One approach to writing a gag is to alter a familiar expression or illustrate an unexpected interpretation of it. "Business up front, party in the back" is used to describe a mullet haircut. For Friday's panel, we went with a literal interpretation of the phrase.

While procrastinating researching, I learned that Business Up Front/Party in the Back was the title of a 2006 album by Family Force 5, a Christian rock band from Atlanta.

I've had several jobs for which I was ill-suited, but no in-office experience instilled the dread of team-building activities. These were attempts to make the boss seem like one of the gang; a fool's game at best. When a supervisory person tells a subordinate, "Come on, it'll be fun," it's time to hide.

Thanks for following along with the weekly recap.

Bonus Track

Herbie Hancock: "Spider"
from Secrets
Columbia Records LP, 1976




 

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Saturday, August 08, 2026

Rounding the Cartoon Bases

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 

Summer's flying by, so today we'll jump into the deep end with a new pipe pic. It's a baseball-related photo of the late George Lee "Sparky" Anderson. 


Faithful Bizarro reader John C, of Nipomo, CA, sent it along with a brief note:
Forwarding the pipe pic below of Detroit Tigers Manager Sparky Anderson. I always remember seeing him trying to hide a cigarette he was smoking in the dugout. I think this gives him a more magisterial air.
A few years ago, John also contributed a splendid photo of soul singer Fontella Bass.

A respectful tip of the hat along with a dangerously-low bow of thanks to John C for his longtime readership and support of comics, his sharp eye for pipe pics, and his impressive vocabulary. Magisterial, indeed!

Here's what we found clogging the cartoon pool filter over the past week.

Readers of a certain age will recognize this sort of come-on as a regular part of their postal delivery.

Before anyone tells me that this isn't how snow peas work, I am aware. In the Land of Fairy Tales, where a single pea can be detected buried under twenty mattresses, a princess will literally feel cold when in contact with a snow pea. I know, it's a weird place.

This is the final cartoon from my recent cornucopia of crash test gags. There's also one more rejected sketch that will appear in my Substack newsletter.

The kid on the right recognizes the absurdity of the question, and just might grow up to be a Two-Dimensional Graphic Humor Technologist.

Our explorers should have stopped after a tiny sip, but engaging in risky behaviors is the strongest side effect of this beverage. A reminder to us all to drink responsibly.

You have to be a fast reader to get through an actual printed paper when underwater.

Bonus Track

Stuart McKay & His Woods: "Take Me Out to the Ball"
from Reap the Wild Winds
RCA Victor LP, 1955 


Nodding to the Sparky Anderson photo and Thursday's outfield cartoon, here's a quirky arrangement of an appropriate song.

Stuart McKay (born around 1915) was one of history's few jazz bassoonists, and Reap the Wild Winds was his sole album as a bandleader. He played on a small number of other recordings, including a dozen in a group led by a guitarist named Brick Fleagle (really!)

This version of "Take Me Out to the Ball" is off-kilter from beginning to end, with three instrumental runthroughs followed by an out-of-sync vocal chorus that starts a couple of notes too soon, resulting in an abrupt, unresolved finish.

The album includes three well-known compositions and nine originals composed by pianist John Saunders, with oddball titles such as "Those That Live by the Swordfish Die by the Swordfish," "You're Just a Cucumber," and "Newton the Fig."


A McKay composition, "Burping Bassoon," was recorded by Eddie Stone and his Orchestra in 1938.

Most of the above information came from Many Fantastic Colors, a scholarly music blog.


  

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