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
Let us encourage one another with visions of a shared future. And let us bring all the grit and openheartedness and creative spirit we can muster to gather together and build that future.
Norman Lear (1922-2023)
Last week, I spent a few days in Boston attending the National Cartoonists Society's annual meeting and the Reuben Awards. This was the 79th Reuben Awards (I've only attended ten or eleven, all in the current century).
The awards themselves are, of course, very nice (I received one last year), but they serve as a way of celebrating fellow artists rather than competing against them.
The real value of the two-day-plus-breakfast event is being among other people who typically spend all day hunched over a drawing table or squinting at a computer screen. It's a gathering of colleagues who are actually collegial, and so much more. New attendees wear a "first timer" ribbon attached to their name tag, and they're soon overwhelmed by an outpouring of welcoming and good cheer from regular attendees.
There are only about 500 NCS members worldwide, and nearly every one I know is supportive of their peers and accepting of each other, regardless of differences. We were all glad to catch up on each other's lives and accomplishments, and immerse ourselves in nerdy shop talk.
The organization also has a charitable arm, the NCS Foundation, which awards scholarships to young cartoonists and provides financial assistance to cartoonists in need, quietly and anonymously. (Very few members of our profession achieve Garfield-level financial independence.)
I've made many friends through the organization, some of whom were already longtime heroes.
I returned home this week energized and inspired, though with a touch of laryngitis from many hours of gabbing and laughing.
The event was a welcome change from the rancor and divisiveness consuming the country, and a reminder that kindness and goodwill still exist, as corny as that may sound. We experienced a bit of what Norman Lear was advocating for, and I hope you encounter it often as well.
Today's pipe pic model is William A. Rhodes (1916-2007), an inventor and astronomer who claimed to have photographed UFOs in 1947 and 1950.
I saw this photo of Rhoads in a documentary about UFO researchers and poked around online until I found a usable image for the blog. I wonder if either of the objects Rhoads sighted resembled Bizarro's Flying Saucer of Possibility.
Speaking of which, may I remind you that our new "Eye Heart" T-shirts are available in the Comics Kingdom Bizarro Shop?
Apologies for the commercial message, but with newspapers drying up and blowing away, we have to pan for pyrite wherever we can, so we're able to keep making comics for you all.
As a public service, we now present the latest sextet of humorous quadrilaterals to emerge from Bizarro Studios.
Secret Slug does what it takes to fight organized slime.
Who doesn't enjoy dining at a four %#$@ restaurant?
Since attending these meetings, he's become hooked on decaf coffee and artificial sweeteners.
One wrong click can spell disaster.
Here's a peek at an early draft, which I decided not to use.
A well-placed accent mark can turn a familiar name into a cartoon caption.
The visual composition called for a vertical strip layout.
A few would-be editors pointed out that "peso" isn't Spanish for "cash." The Spanish word "efectivo" isn't widely known to English speakers, and using it would have sidetracked the gag. Sometimes one takes linguistic license to make a cartoon work effectively.
Of course, I knew we weren't using a literal translation. I also knew not to engage with pedants looking for an argument. I have plenty of arguments with myself, thank you very much.
The patient also has recurring nightmares about Saint Patrick.
One wrong click can spell disaster.
Here's a peek at an early draft, which I decided not to use.
A well-placed accent mark can turn a familiar name into a cartoon caption.The visual composition called for a vertical strip layout.
A few would-be editors pointed out that "peso" isn't Spanish for "cash." The Spanish word "efectivo" isn't widely known to English speakers, and using it would have sidetracked the gag. Sometimes one takes linguistic license to make a cartoon work effectively.
Of course, I knew we weren't using a literal translation. I also knew not to engage with pedants looking for an argument. I have plenty of arguments with myself, thank you very much.
The patient also has recurring nightmares about Saint Patrick.
Be sure to peruse current and upcoming gags anytime at Comics Kingdom.
Bonus Track
Graham Parker & the Rumour:
Waiting for the UFOs
Waiting for the UFOs
From Squeezing Out Sparks
Arista Records LP, 1979
Arista Records LP, 1979
Graham Parker's Squeezing Out Sparks is one of those albums I always play from start to finish without skipping any tracks. At the time of its release, Arista also issued a promotional-only album called Live Sparks, which featured live versions of every song on the album plus "Mercury Poisoning," an indictment of his former label in the US, and a cover of the Jackson Five's "I Want You Back."
The 1996 compact disc release includes both the original studio album and Live Sparks.
The 1996 compact disc release includes both the original studio album and Live Sparks.
Great Gobs of Bizarro Goodness
If you enjoy what we do and appreciate that it's free, we encourage you to explore the following links.
No comments:
Post a Comment