Eye Eye, Captain

The Bizarro comic for Sunday, July 8 depicts a leader who refuses to take halfway measures.

Pirates appear regularly* in Bizarro, almost as often as psychiatrists, bartenders, and clowns, so I was pleased to come up with a new variation on the theme.

Here's my sketchbook version of this gag:

My submission is laid out for the daily panel format, and I was very happy to see that Dan Piraro chose to use it as a Sunday comic, giving him room to do a nice panoramic view of the deck with a bit of background scenery to top it off. I just noticed that Dan one-upped me by giving the captain twin beard-braids. A very amusing touch! If only we'd given him a spyglass...

We have many more new laffs in the hopper for your enjoyment. In the meantime, please browse the Piraro/Wayno Collaboration Archive.

*In fact, the first time I met Dan there was swordplay involved.

Time to Pull the Cork

Today's Bizarro comic plays with the use of the word "breathing" to describe the process of allowing wines to aerate before drinking. In this case, the wine needed a little help from medical science. Wine merchants offer plenty of products to quickly aerate wines to improve flavor, though they haven't quite taken such heroic measures yet.

Here's the sketch I submitted to Bizarro's creator, Dan Piraro.

 

Dan made a few changes to the composition of the panel, which, as always, proved to be educational. The most obvious revision was to draw the bottle at a realistic scale relative to the characters. This further emphasizes the absurdity of the respirator, since the bottle is not cartoonishly out of proportion. Bizarro's humor works best when there's an odd element in an otherwise normal situation. The super large bottle as shown in my sketch introduced an unnecessary element of absurdity. (At least I didn't draw arms, legs and a face on my bottle.)

Another change Dan made was to show the secondary character from behind. This is a subtle but very effective compositional choice, and one that I hadn't thought of when drawing my panel. It gives the reader a sense of eavesdropping on something that's happening, rather than being presented with a staged situation. Again, this adds to the overall realism of the scene, emphasizing the strangeness of a lifesaving medical device attached to an inanimate object.

I'm not certain if it was Dan's intent to include me as a character, but I the observer in the published comic bears some resemblance.

Upcoming Piraro/Wayno collaborations will drop on Sunday, July 8, Wednesday, July 18, and Thursday, July 26. Beyond that, we've got at least six more in the chute, ready to be scheduled. In the meantime, you're invited to spend some time reading our previous joint efforts here.

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In other, more commercial news, I've added two new fine art prints to my online store.

First up is a drawing of The Residents, the venerable mystery band from San Francisco. This piece originally appeared on the cover of Cool & Strange Music Magazine around 2001.

The second is a label design I did recently for my good friends at Pittsburgh's East End Brewing Company.

The beer was named after a song by the late great Captain Beefheart. I described the genesis of this label in an earlier blog post. We received several requests for label prints after the image appeared on Radar Station, a Beefheart fan site that seeks to document every twist and turn of the Captain's long, varied and unusual career.

The beer is only available locally, but the label prints can be shipped worldwide.

Textbook Case

Today's Bizarro comic introduces a condition that hasn't yet appeared in the American Psychiatric Association's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, but will surely make it into the next edition.

My original sketchbook scribble of this idea was a little too rough to submit. Of course, nothing's too crappy to fill up space on a blog post.

Although one could say this doodle has a certain primitive charm, I wanted to convince a big-time cartoonist that the gag would work in his comic, so, I stole repurposed the art from one of Dan Piraro's previous patient/psychiatrist gags, and digitally manipulated it to look exactly like an actual Bizarro panel.

This devious ruse did the trick, and Dan decided to use the gag. I just noticed that the distraught patient in the published version bears a slight resemblance to Mister Piraro, or at least he's sporting similar facial hair. However, it would be odd to see Dan in such a bland shirt.

Two more of my gags will appear in Bizarro on July 2 and July 8, and, unlike the most recent two, neither has anything to do with Twitter. As always, the entire history of my collaborations with Master P are viewable in this blog's Bizarro Archive.

The More You Tweet...

Today's Bizarro cartoon adds a nautical twist to a riff on the pervasiveness of Twitter:

Here's the minimalist sketch I submitted to Dan Piraro for consideration:

I have absolutely no recollection of the development of today's gag. It was one of the very rare occasions where the idea seems to have arrived in its complete and final form. I can't imagine any reason I'd be thinking about what it would be called if tugboats were sentient and used Twitter. There must have been something that suggested the connection, and I suppose my subconscious chewed on the idea and pushed it through the chute to a sketchbook page. Although it's a simple joke, I quite like the cartoon--it's quick and surprising. Besides, "toot" is a funny word.

My next Bizarro gag will appear on June 27. Oddly enough, it's also a commentary on Twitter. Maybe I should get out more.

Please enjoy my previous collaborations with Bizarro's Dan Piraro in this blog's archive. Comments are always welcome.

Bonus Track

Nearly two years ago, I submitted this doctor/patient gag as a Bizarro candidate:

Bizarro's creator, Dan Piraro, occasionally publishes cartoons in Parade, the Sunday newspaper supplement, and included his version (below) in a group of submissions. They accepted it in August of 2010.

I've been waiting ever since to post it, but we never knew when (or if) Parade ever actually ran it. Fortunately, Google came through today, and I discovered that it was in fact published in the August 21, 2011 issue, although it was severely cropped to fit into a single column.

Finding evidence of this cartoon's publication is certainly a relief, and removes one item from my list of nagging obsessions. Consider this an unreleased outtake for the eventual Piraro/Wayno cartoon box set. 

As always, please feel free to browse all of our previous collaborations in this blog's Bizarro archive.

Emergency Braque

Today's Bizarro takes us on a visit to a cubist mechanic.

Here's the sketch I submitted to Bizarro's CEO, Dan Piraro:

There are countless improvements in Dan's finished version. The car itself is much better, in that it consists solely of rearranged car parts, whereas in my sketch I added elements from Picasso's paintings and sculpture. That extra stuff was unnecessary, and, really, where would a misguided mechanic get those things? Dan's art perfectly conveys Picasso's both-eyes-on-the-same-side-of-the-face style, without overselling the gag.

I also love the look of innocent enthusiasm on his Picasso, versus the artistic petulance of mine.

I still like the striped jersey under the blue mechanic's shirt in my sketch. Also, I'd prefer not to use the words "repair" and "repaired" in the same panel, but these are mere nits.

The inspiration for this gag came from an actual building we pass whenever we visit my dear friend, ace cartoonist/illustrator Mark Zingarelli and his lovely family:

I've often wondered whether a wrecked car would emerge from this place looking better or worse than when it entered.

That talented gentleman Dan Piraro and I currently have seven new gags waiting in the wings. Meanwhile, please enjoy all of our earlier collaborations here.

Jam Session

I recently had the opportunity to work with THIS IS RED and The Manchester Craftsmen's Guild, providing illustrations for the program for MCG's 2012-2013 concert season.

The smörgåsbord of musical offerings has been dubbed The Jazz Buffet, and we came up with a design recalling vintage cookbooks.

The program is being printed now, and MCG has released one of the interior spot illustrations in a banner on their site.

It's an honor to be associated with the Guild, one of Pittsburgh's educational and cultural jewels, and the folks at THIS IS RED were delightful collaborators.

Stay tuned for more images when the booklet is released. If you live in or are visiting Pittsburgh, you owe it to yourself to hear some music in the MCG's intimate auditorium.

A Mouse in Every Bowl

Today's Bizarro cartoon reminds us that it's still campaign season, and pandering to the crowds is the order of the day.

The humor here is fairly gentle, but I think it's a good gag. I was trying to pull it off with no text whatsoever, but the banner seemed to be required to make it clear that this was a campaign stop.

Here's my submission sketch:

The kitten's expression and body language in Dan's panel improved on the sketch quite a bit. He's captured a look of resigned reluctance that's absolutely terrific, whereas the sketch is rather cutesy, particularly those PJs. 

Also, the position and posture of the other characters make more sense in the final art. It's clearer that the mother cat is holding the kitten, and the politician is leaning in for the photo opportunity.

The outlandishly long tongue on the campaigner was initially a bit of a surprise. Bizarro often features weird or absurd elements as part of the gag, with the humor arising from a character's blase reaction (or non-reaction) to something that's weirdly impossible, but I thought it looked silly. Perhaps Dan determined that the long tongue was necessary to avoid placing the politician's head close enough to actually lick the kitten, which might have made it look as if he were trying to topple both mother and child.

Although the final drawing of the politician is perhaps a little goofy, the sketch version now appears to be a bit too realistic, almost evil looking. Overall, the finished version is still a winner, and avoids descending into cuteness.

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Speaking of the extremely talented and funny Dan Piraro, he'll be doing several  live performances later this week in celebration of Bizarro's 10,000th Anniversary (Since the feature began 25 years ago, he's produced over 10,000 daily cartoons!). There will be two shows in San Francisco on Thursday, April 26, which will also feature comedian and Bizarro contributor Michael Capozzola. These will be followed by appearances on Friday in Mill Valley, and a Saturday show at the Stumptown Comics Festival in Portland.

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As always, you are encouraged to read our prior collaborations here.

Somebody's Had Too Much To Think

The Federal authorities have approved my latest beer label for the good folks at East End Brewing Company:

The recipe was developed by Brendan at EEBC, who bears some resemblance the the young Captain Beefheart, and as this is a smoked lager, they chose to name it after one of the Captain's songs (the actual title is Blabber 'n Smoke).

This design presented a bit of a challenge. I wanted to give it a feel similar to album art of the era without imitating it. I'm a lifelong fan of Cal Schenkel's amazing art, graphics, and design, which graced many Zappa/Mothers albums. Cal was also responsible for the iconic cover of Beefheart's Trout Mask Replica, a decidedly "difficult" double LP released in 1969.

I first encountered Cal's art and design in this ad, which appeared in mainstream comic books in 1967:

For our beer label, I made direct reference to a fish-headed figure in a hat, and tried to capture the feel of cheap printing on scruffy newsprint. I hope that I was successful in paying tribute to a major influence, while incorporating my own identity and style.

Following are thumbnails from the sketchbook, beginning with several scrapped ideas and a tiny version of what became the finished art.

Many cartoonists also love Trout Mask Replica, often to the dismay of spouses, children and parents. Matt Groening often recommends it during public appearances, and Patrick McDonnell paid tribute to TRM with the title panel of his comic Mutts in December 2010.

The above-mentioned Mister Schenkel is a kind and gracious gentleman, who exhibits and sells art through his website, Galerie Ralf. His prices are very reasonable, and I recommend that you spend some time at the Galerie and order a giclée print or hand-painted original.

Sketch Fest 5 - Now with Extra Cheese

While I finish my third or fourth espresso of the morning, I sometimes make sketches based on photos in the newspaper. Here are a few recent ones.

His website says "While the debate continues, Pat has never condoned the use of, nor does he use, marijuana."

Proof that spending millions of dollars on negative ads can push you to the top in a field of crackpots.

What is it that makes this guy so hard to draw? I've tried over and over, and this is the only one that is barely recognizable.