Batman!!!

MAD #5 is on sale now! I have one piece included this month and thought it would be fun to share the uncropped image. Here's how my art appears in the issue--

And below is it my uncluttered art. (Well, I re-cluttered it a bit. I wanted to insure MAD is still represented.) The building color in the background has been changed. It probably blended in too much with the banner below.

I enjoyed drawing this particular Batman parody. Every time I've drawn him previously, it has been a riff on a specific era or established style. This is the first time I've created my interpretation of him. That was fun!

Animated Comic Cover-- Happy Halloween!

It's been a while since I've animated a comic cover. When I recently saw World's Finest #139, I knew I had to do it for Halloween!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!

The Part-Time Jobs of Super Heroes

It's been a while since I've posted art that wasn't my own. I don't know if that's a good or bad thing. Today I ran across a magazine in my basement that I didn't even realize I owned, Crazy #22.

Crazy was published by Marvel Comics starting in 1973 and ran for 10 years. It was obviously their answer to MAD magazine. 

As I flipped through the issue in my basement, I came across a four page article titled "The Part-Time Jobs of Super Heroes." That's probably why I had once bought it. I have always loved superheroes and humor featuring superheroes. I did a quick computer search to see if anyone had ever posted it online. I didn't find it, so I decided I should be the one!

The feature was written by Tom DeFalco and drawn by Murad Gumen. It's weird that all the characters are Marvel rip-offs except for a single Flash parody. It's also weird how some of the captions rhyme, while others don't. 

Anyhoot, for shines and giggles, The Part-Time Jobs of Super Heroes--

The Origin of Spidery-Man!

I've been silly busy this summer, but I wanted to post a peek (above) at a 3 page story I have in the current MAD magazine. I was fortunate enough to also do the main art for the "cover" of the Potrzebie Comics section--

I had a blast drawing these pages! I'm a huge Steve Ditko fan. This work was finished, and off to the printer, before the sad passing of Mr. Ditko, co-creator of Spider-Man (along with Stan Lee). I have nothing but respect for both men.

To read more of Spidery-Man, the next time you're anywhere magazines are displayed, look for MAD #3--!

(More) Captain Action art!

A couple of years ago, I was lucky enough to create some of the art for a newly released Captain Action card game. Now, I'm lucky again! I don't usually put press releases on my blog, but since this will be an exception, since it involves me. :)

Small Monster Games partners with Captain Action Enterprises on Attack on Mars! at San Diego Comic-Con 

For Immediate Release
Boston, MA and San Diego, CA

Small Monsters Games, the creators of the Captain Action Card Game and Takeout, are working with Captain Action Enterprises to expand the retro card game to include the new Attack on Mars! action suit created for the classic super-hero figure.

New card art will be added to the game to reflect the 1/6-scale space suit uniform set to be previewed at San Diego Comic-Con. The card will be introduced into the Card Game, with 3-in-1 game play,  as an additional matching pair to “Find Dr, Evil” game. The card is illustrated by Kerry Callen, creator of Halo & Sprocket and Super Antics and a contributor to the recent Mad magazine relaunch. "I’ve always been a Captain Action fan, so I was thrilled to draw him in his new Spacesuit. I love the sci-fi vibe that feels like it came straight out of an early sci-fi comic!" says Callen.

"We were thrilled to work on the Captain Action Card Game, and help share the Captain Action family with a new generation," says Meg Stivison, game designer and co-founder of Small Monsters Games. “The Attack on Mars! Expansion adds more of the retro art and family gameplay.” Small Monsters Games will have the new cards on display with the space suit prototype at San Diego Comic-Con. The add-on will be available later this year when the space suit becomes available to fans.

Meg Stivison and Harold Sipe, Co-Founder and Art Director of Small Monsters Games, will join the San Diego Captain Action panel at San Diego Comic-Con on July 19th at 4:00 PM in room 32AB to discuss the development of the game and the new Attack on Mars! expansion, and to meet fans.

Learn more about the Captain Action Card Game and all of Small Monsters Games titles at http://smallmonstersgames.com/

The Story of the Store

I'm lucky enough to work for a company (Hallmark) that allows it's creative community to take 5 days per year to pursue a creative endeavor that the person might not otherwise undertake. I decided to use a couple of #My5Days and create a very personal piece of art-- An important building from my childhood. As I started to draw it, it was feeling a little bland. So, I decided to add written memories into the art, as seen above. I, of course, had more stories than I did image space. Still, it was refreshing to create a piece that was a bit different than my normal work.

Since I worked from a couple of photos that were 40+ years old I decided to look up the building on Google Maps. There have been changes, but it's still there!

New "Super Antics"...

...in MAD magazine #1! If you didn't already know, MAD has been somewhat revamped. I've got a few pages in it! I can't shared them all here, but I can give you the first few panels--

I'm pretty excited about this. I grew up in the boonies of Arkansas, and the only "culture" I saw was that in comic books, Sunday comic strips, and MAD. I honestly think elements from each of these influences show up in everything I do. When I was bored as a young kid, I would fold paper in half, staple it, and draw my own "Mad magazines". I think I might be able to find them. If so, I'll probably post a few here.

Until then, go buy a MAD #1. ON SALE NOW!