Yarp Fro Em!

Here's my latest collaboration with Dan Piraro.

It took a while to arrive at this gag, but I like it a lot—it's brainy and smart-alecky at the same time. It does require a bit of work on the reader's part, and I have a feeling most people will just be baffled and move on to "Classic Peanuts."




Here's what I submitted to Mister P. This barely qualifies as a sketch, but once again Dan worked his artistic magic to bring it to life.


Late last year, I submitted an earlier version of the joke:



Dan decided not to use this one, although he did tell me it made him laugh. Apparently, cartoons that mention dyslexia in any way get certain people riled up, and they start sending angry letters and emails.

After being rejected, I didn't want to give up on this one. The idea of an organized group based on non-belief is inherently funny, even if it is a simplification. I kept playing around with it and eventually came up with the anagram angle, so it all worked out (by which I mean I got another joke published).

I think the original idea is still pretty funny, but in comparison it seems rather lazy and obvious—not much more than a pun or a t-shirt line. The final version is richer and more surprising, with a layer of humor that wasn't there in the dyslexia gag.

If you missed our earlier collaborations, you can find them all on Dan's blog.

Stay tuned for more in the near future, including a good old non-intellectual poop joke!

As always, your comments are welcomed.

Keeping it Cool

Just in time for picnic season, my pal Scott Smith at East End Brewing Company will offer insulated "Growler Suits" at the warehouse. They should be available around late May.

Designing this item was an unusual and challenging project for me, and it was fun to venture beyond my usual cartoon/illustration cocoon.

Scott gave me digital versions of existing art from labels and tap handles (including the excellent Fat Gary design, by Mario Zucca), and we jointly came up with the idea of using them as travel stickers on a piece of luggage. Fortunately, he had a wonderfully beat-up old tweed suitcase on hand, which I scanned in pieces and digitally reassembled to use as the background.

These shots of a prototype came courtesy of Brewsuit.com. They're busy right now at their facility in Hawaii, preparing a shipment for thirsty Pittsburgh beer lovers.

Bizarro meets Wayno in the Jungle

Today's Bizarro comic features another gag written by yours truly. This is the sixth one so far, and we have at least four more in the pipeline.

Here's the sketch as I submitted it to Dan Piraro. The original is very small, about 2 inches square, with the caption pasted on top of the art. Dan's final version is nearly identical to my sketch, which is flattering because he usually makes changes that greatly improve the composition and get the gag across much more effectively.


Some of the ideas I submit are not much more than scribbles. As subsequent comics appear, I'll post the published versions alongside my sketches to show how Mister P turns barely coherent doodles into cartoon gold.

Speaking of Bizarro, I highly recommend the Bizarro iPhone app.

Get 'em while they're hot!

The limited edition Hell with the Lid Off posters mentioned in my previous post are now available.

They're 11"x 17" full color offset prints, in a signed and numbered edition of 30, and are priced to sell at $20 each (plus postage/packing).

Order yours from my new Big Cartel shop.

By the way, if you're in Pittsburgh on February 20th or 21st, do not miss the actual event. It's sure to sell out, and it'd be a shame to miss the sampling of magnificent barleywines, plus Kelly's legendary mac & cheese (and other tasty accompaniments).

Hell With the Lid Off!

The good folks at Kelly's Bar & Lounge here in Pittsburgh have commissioned me to create an image to advertise their sixth annual barleywine festival. A black & white version will begin appearing on lampposts and in local dives in the near future, and will, I hope, be promptly stolen by connoisseurs of lowbrow ephemera.

Kelly's will also have a two-color tee shirt available during the festival.

On top of all that, I'm producing a signed & numbered limited-edition 11" x 17" full-color offset poster, which will be available soon. Details to follow. In the meantime, here's a preview:

It turned out looking like a vintage firecracker label, which was sort of a happy accident.

I attended last year's HWTLO and it certainly lived up to the name. With Kelly's justly-famous bar food, multiple flights of craft-brewed barleywine (including the luscious and heady Gratitude from East End Brewing), and a capacity crowd of revelers, this is an event not to be missed.

Newave!: The Underground Mini Comix of the 1980s

This February, Fantagraphics Books will release a compilation of 1980s minicomic art in their anthology Newave!: The Underground Mini Comix of the 1980s, edited by Michael Dowers. The hardcover volume contains nearly 900 pages of self-published work from dozens of artists who formed a loose underground network in the pre-Internet days. Planning for Newave! began well over a year ago.

These little eight-page Xeroxed books were sold and traded through the mail and were rarely published in editions of more than a hundred or so copies.

Two of my efforts, Festive Desperation and Mondo Howie #5, are included in their entirety. I may have one or two additional pages somewhere in this monster.

There's also an exhibit of original art from many of the book's artists to open at the Fantagraphics Bookstore and Gallery in Seattle around the book's publication date.

I'll have two pieces in exhibit, previewed below.

We’re Number 1
approx. 4.28” x 5.6”
Ink on Paper, 1987
Originally published in Festive Desperation

Slobbering Monster Howie
approx. 5.68” x 7.38”
Ink on Paper, 1989
by “William Bunch” (pseud.)
Originally published in Mondo Howie #5

Ralph on the Loose!

Everyone should buy the new CD by Ralph Carney's Serious Jass Project.

Ralph is a fantastic musician, and an all-around great guy who's been mentioned here before. He's currently touring as a featured soloist with They Might Be Giants.

M Squad

Last year a friend spoke with me about commissioning a portrait of Lee Marvin (1924-1987). This request fit right in with what is becoming an ongoing series of interpretations of famous tough guys. I've done portraits of Robert Mitchum, James Coburn, William Bendix, and a triple portrait of Clint Eastwood, Lee Van Cleef and Eli Wallach as they appeared in The Good, The Bad and The Ugly.

I gathered about a dozen photos of the hard-boiled actor, and roughed out a first attempt in a little sketchbook:


At this point I'm just figuring out the overall shapes, and what I want to emphasize as distinguishing features. I posted this version without identifying the subject, to see if it was recognizable as Marvin. I thought it looked more like Tommy Lee Jones, but a few people pegged it.

I use a scanner and Photoshop to make additional sketches. I'll scan the art, then lighten it until it's very faint, print it, and sketch in pencil on top of the printout. I continue this process until I'm happy with the sketch.

Here's the second version, penciled over a lightened-up scan of the drawing from the sketchbook:


Now we're getting closer. I added a cigarette, because what's a tough guy without tobacco? After it was done, I compared it to the reference photos and made some editorial notes on changes I thought were needed.

I repeated the scanning/lightening/printing/pencilling steps, and came up with the latest version:



At this point, I'm pretty satisfied with the likeness, and figure that messing with it any more is a bad idea.

When I'm ready to lay out the painting, I'll scan this, adjust the size, and maybe reposition the eyeballs just a little.

Once again, when looking at a finished caricature, I see a huge Mort Drucker influence.

Baby Wants Music!

I recently reconnected with old friends Jad and David Fair, of the fiercely independent band Half Japanese. Twenty years ago, I did a comix adaptation of the song "Baby Wants Music," from their album Loud. Here's the two-page spread:


"Baby Wants Music" first ran in Chicken Slacks, a minicomic series published by my good pal Mary Fleener. I reprinted the strip in my solo book Beer Nutz, with the following "bonus track" running underneath.



I also did interpretations of "Trashpickin'" by Ben Vaughn, and The Residents' "Easter Woman," with permission from the recording artists.

Petrochemical Heaven

Robin McConnell, who's responsible for the Inkstuds radio show on Vancouver's CiTR, recently asked me to assemble a digital mixtape for a special all-music podcast. Most of these are unusual items that I pulled from my little box of choice records (see Figure 1, below) and digitized myself.

Figure 1: The artist's case of "bulletproof" records

Here's a complete track listing with a comment or two about each selection.

1. The Out Crowd :: The Squares
A 1964 novelty on the Roulette label, performed by Kenny Young, who co-wrote the song with his partner Arthur Resnick. Young & Resnick's most famous composition is "Under The Boardwalk," but it can scarcely compete with "The Out Crowd."

2. Phonograph Records :: Scott-Textor Productions
This is one of ten vinyl-praising jingles from "Spark Plugs," a Columbia EP.

3. Sentimental Journey :: Esquivel
John Zorn once described Juan Garcia Esquivel as "a genius arranger who created a beautiful pop mutation." I could not have said it better.

4. Iena Sequence :: Roberto Pregadio
A delightful, breezy tune from the deep well of wonderful Italian soundtrack music.

5. Relax-Ay-Voo :: Dean Martin & Line Renaud
Dino duets with a long-forgotten chanteuse (who also recorded a version of "Louie, Louie!")

6. Take Me Out To The Ball Game :: Stuart McKay and his Woods
A 1955 Time Magazine review described Stuart McKay and his Woods as "A happy nonet, basically a saxophone quartet plus rhythm section, but more likely to be heard playing bassoon, English horn, flute, clarinet, oboe, with a discreet French horn on hand as well. Leader McKay plays nifty bassoon, fast and, when necessary, dirty. The rest of the crew has shrieking fun with sound effects…"

7. Got a Match? :: Frank Gallop
Gallop was a radio and TV personality whose record "The Ballad of Irving" was a favorite of Doctor Demento. I searched for this record for years after hearing a college friend's description of it.

8. On Her Doorstep Last Night :: Roger Ruskin Spear
A selection from Unusual, the second and final solo LP by RRS, of the Bonzo Dog Band.

9. Laisse Tomber Les Filles :: France Gall
France Gall's 1964 single was one of many Serge Gainsbourg tunes recorded by the comely yé-yé singer.

10. Powerhouse :: Ernie Felice Quartet
Raymond Scott's magnum opus, as interpreted by Ernie Felice's accordion-fueled quartet.

11. Witch Doctor :: Werner Hass
Wild German version of Ross ("David Seville") Bagdasarian's hit.

12. The Pirate’s Poop :: Cliff Ferré
Ferré made many naughty "party records," loaded with puns and double-entendres. On this selection he sounds like a scatological Tom Lehrer.

13. What’s A Nice Kid Like You Doing In A Place Like This :: Scatman Crothers
Scatman as the Cheshire Cat, from Hanna-Barbera's 1966 television special, "The New Alice in Wonderland." The cartoon also featured Bill (Jose Jimenez) Dana as the White Knight, Mel Blanc as the March Hare, Daws Butler as the Mad Hatter, and Don Messick as the White Rabbit.

14. A Really Big Show Tonight :: Kirby Stone Four (with “boy singer” Ed Sullivan)
The Museum of Television and Radio in New York has video footage of the KS4 performing this onstage with Ed Sullivan. Big Ed seemed to be quite game for a little self-parody. A classic.

15. Mr. Dante Fontana :: Piero Piccioni (featuring Alberto Sordi)
Piero Piccioni's theme for the 1966 film "Fumo di Londra," directed by and starring Alberto Sordi as an Italian who dreams of living in Swinging London. I never get tired of hearing this.

16. Hey Barmaid! :: Jerry Colonna
A bravura performance by Bob Hope's bug-eyed sidekick, who was often caricatured in Warner Brothers cartoons. WFMU has a nice Colonna tribute page, with additional music to download, on their blog.

17. Hawaiian Ungawa :: Homer Henderson and the Dalworthington Garden Boys
A wonderfully entertaining record from the mysterious artist and musician Jay Cotton. Jay collaborated with Gary Panter on the infamous Pee Dog comic book. "Hawaiian Ungawa" is the B-side of their single "Lee Harvey Was a Friend of Mine."

18. Hooray, They’re Hanging Father :: The Joy Buzzards
The Joy Buzzards are a California band featuring the great cartoonist and musician Robert Armstrong.

19. Bedazzled :: Peter Cook
From the soundtrack record. An amazing performance by Peter Cook.

20. Eefin’ Alvin :: The Chipmunks
David Seville and the boys, cashing in on the eefin' craze.

21. Ballad Of Thunder Road (1968 version) :: Robert Mitchum
The second version of this tune that Mitchum recorded. They're both terrific.

22. That’s How You Got Killed Before :: Dave Bartholomew
One of my favorites by this New Orleans legend. At nearly 90 years old, he's still active, and occasionally sits in on trumpet at Preservation Hall.

23. Diddy Wah Diddy :: Captain Beefheart & The Magic Band
One of Beefheart's earlier records, a spiffy cover of the Bo Diddley classic.

24. Washingtron :: Tru Fax and the Insaniacs
According to the band's website, Washingtonian Magazine named TFI "worst band" in 1980 without ever hearing them.