Comic Riffs

Remembering Comic-Con co-founder Shel Dorf

Sat, 07 Nov 2009 16:00:20 -0500

In this June 29, 2006 picture, Sheldon Dorf holds a Dick Tracy comic book in Ocean Beach, Calif. (AP Photo / San Diego Union Tribune) I met Shel Dorf just once, in the mid-'90s in San Diego, but boy, did his reputation precede him. Sheldon Dorf seemed to be within six degrees of separation -- and much of the time, just a single degree -- from all things comics in Southern California. Dorf, who died this past week of diabetes-related complications at age 76, devoted a life to promoting cartoons and comics culture. In the headlines, Dorf is most often hailed as the co-founder of the world-famous behemoth that is San Diego Comic-Con. Strangely, on the floor of this year's 40th Comic-Con, Shel's name went little mentioned. That was likely for two main reasons: (1) The Con was begun in 1970, as the Golden State Comic Con, by a

Henry Allen speaks: When the reader reaches a tipping point

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 13:10:55 -0500

When the Comics Reach the Readers' Tipping Point NOTE TO READERS: In the wake of recent newsroom events, more than a few readers have urged and encouraged Comic Riffs to re-post this rant, which was first published two weeks ago today. So, never one to refuse my readers, here's that re-post. All references to "shrinking patience" and "bout" are, quite seriously, coincidental. (I should also note: After Henry read this, he grinned a Cheshire grin, mulled in bemusement for a moment, then offered only two words: "That's. Good.") *Phew.* Henry Allen's patience is shrinking like a stamp-sized comic. Pica by evaporating pica, the funnypages are testing his will to read. He might find "Judge Parker" beautifully drawn, but it is Henry who will be rendering his decision to swear off the micro-funnies. "It's not worth it anymore. They're too damned small," he bemoans over the transom. Henry, who happens

Have a favorite cartoonist video? Show us your links

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 11:05:51 -0500

More and more, Comic Riffs is sent video. Or rather, video links. Here's a cartoonist peddling a book. Here's a cartoonist inking a panel. And oh look, here's a cartoonist inking a panel at a comic-con while telling amusing anecdotes between taking audience questions -- in order to peddle a book. Some of these videos, though, distinguish themselves in eye-catching ways. For instance, "MAD" cartoonist Tom Richmond -- whom we interviewed recently upon his return from his USO tour to the Mideast -- has posted this short clip from the trip. The comic-book panel effect is stylish enough that I wish the video were longer. Here's the travelogue taste that leaves me wanting more: TOM RICHMOND's USO TOUR: Another video link 'Riffs was recently sent is part of cartoonist Tom Gammill's continuing video series, done with a self-aware shtick. The grabber here is the piano of "Momma" and "Miss

Should 'Red and Rover' roll over? Time to Defend That 'Toon

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 14:24:43 -0500

'RED AND ROVER' (WPWG)Enlarge Image Ever since Comic Riffs asked readers the other day what strip they would move to KidsPost -- so "Frazz" could return to the daily comics page -- one of the most mentioned features after "Peanuts Classics" has been Brian Bassett's warm and fuzzy strip, "RED AND ROVER." "Red and Rover" was launched in 2000 by Basset, who was already drawing the strip "Adam@home" (Basset turned over the artistic duties of that latest strip to another cartoonist earlier this year). With its secretive boy-and-pet communication (Red can understand what Red's thinking) and its sweet nostalgia for childhood circa the '60s, "Red and Rover" emerged as a natural, some editors have said,to win some of the newspaper slots once held down by the retired "Calvin and Hobbes." Basset draws "Red" with a sure, simple line that befits the subject matter. Lines are literally, elegantly rendered as

RT This, Roland: 'Doonesbury' to Get a Major Change in The Post

Sun, 01 Nov 2009 09:00:12 -0500

src="http://media.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/politics/interactives/citizenkstreet/lightbox/js/scriptaculous.js?load=effects"> "Doonesbury": Back with flying colors. (UPS) Enlarge Comic First The Washington Post pulled a trick on loyal "DOONESBURY" readers. Now, for the second straight week, fans of Garry Trudeau's satirical strip get a welcome treat, especially in light of syndicated cartooning's general tough times. Starting Monday, The Post will run "Doonesbury" -- which now occupies Style's Page-2 -- in color. Vivid, eye-catching color -- from the camouflage greens and beiges of the strip's Iraq troops to Rick Redfern's rust-colored post-buyout beard and the precise tint of Zonker's man-'do -- a shade perhaps best dubbed Walden Blond. " 'Doonesbury' will now be in color daily," Style Editor Ned Martel confirms to Comic Riffs. Moving the strip to Page-2 amid the recent redesign has made that possible, Post management said. Upon discovering this news, Comic Riffs can't help but be struck by the thought: What a difference two weeks make.

Riffs' Picks: The five scariest Halloween links this minute...

Fri, 30 Oct 2009 13:15:00 -0500

THE FRIDAY LINE: From tee-offs to teed-off, here are today's most frightening cartoon links, culled from across the mighty mighty Web... 5. FROM CRADLE TO GRAVE -- AND BEYOND: On Thursday night's show, Stephen Colbert ran a terrifying -- if you consider an unyielding swarm of babbling and brain-dead TV pundits "terrifying," and I do -- montage of talking heads applying two-bit Halloween metaphors to healthcare-reform plans. The Blow-Dried Bunch should really leave it to Beeler. In his craftier hands, the Washington Examiner's NATE BEELER delivers a defter metaphor with a vividness that sends chills down our pre-existing condition of a spine. 4. BETWEEN IRAQ AND A HARD CLUB-FACE: When Comic Riffs sat with seven of the 10 USO-touring cartoonists last Friday, they spoke of driving golf balls into the man-made lake at Saddam Hussein's former palace. Never could we have imagined, however, just how bone-chilling the action got.

The next cartoon superstar? Pick your favorite NEW comic strip here

Thu, 29 Oct 2009 10:30:34 -0500

Ah, I love the smell of new talent in the morning. Word comes from Andrews McMeel Publishing, sponsoring a contest by Amazon, that the 10 finalists have been named in the Comic Strip Superstar contest. And I must say: I'm pleasantly surprised by just how high the overall quality of the candidates is. Or, to word it more glowingly: I'd swap out at least three of these for some of the current Post comic strips in a heartbeat. Seriously. If you'll recall, Comic Riffs wrote about the Superstar contest back in August, noting that the ultimate winner will receive an Andrews McMeel contract, a five-grand advance from Universal Uclick and "a monthly stipend for the development of 20 comic strips that will be considered for syndication." Now, readers will have the opportunity to vote on Amazon.com between now and Friday, Nov. 6. But I'm ALSO interested in comparing how

Calling all comics readers: To save 'Frazz,' what strip should we send to KidsPost?

Thu, 29 Oct 2009 08:05:19 -0500

'FRAZZ' (UFS)Enlarge Image The "FRAZZ" drumbeat swells in volume again. All this week, Jef Mallett's comic has been AWOL on the KidsPost page. And numerous readers want to know where the #$@! it is. Well, Riffsters, that's a #$&! good question. (The strip's absence this week even prompted commenter TinMD to post yesterday: "Please do not drop ['Curtis'], like you did 'Frazz.' ") First, the good news: "Frazz" WILL return next week. Second, the curiouser news: "Frazz" was not run in KidsPost this week -- drumroll and drumbeat, please -- because the content was deemed inappropriate for young readers. That's right. For you "Frazz" fans scoring along at home -- the ones who all along have questioned the wisdom-less decision to put an "intellectual" comic on a page for tween-and-younger readers -- your opinion has just been publicly validated, at least for this week. Tracy Grant, the Weekend and

The Post's 'Doonesbury' shrinkage: winning the Battle of Inch-On

Wed, 28 Oct 2009 14:15:02 -0500

'DOONESBURY' (UPS)Enlarge Image For the good of cartooning, we'll take even small victories. And by small, we mean a mere 7 picas wide. When The Post rolled out its print redesign this month, "Doonesbury" -- relocated to Style's Page-2 and untethered from the "Reliable Source" layout -- suddenly shrunk by more than a half-panel in width. As Comic Riffs noted here last week, the incredible shrinking strip had reached the visual tipping point for some readers: It was now too much of an eye-chart chore to read pleasurably, if at all. Immediately I wondered about the long-fabled "No Shrinking 'Doonesbury' " rule, and some readers did, too. Didn't Garry Trudeau have some kinda Shrinkage Limit Clause to protect against this sorta thing? So last week, Comic Riffs asked Post management about this. The reply: We're not likely to agree to such a condition, in this day and age. So

Do You Like Living With 'Curtis'? Time to Defend That 'Toon

Tue, 27 Oct 2009 15:20:08 -0500

Enlarge Comic On Monday night at the Kennedy Center, as a procession of performers spoke in tribute to Bill Cosby, they enumerated the reasons why "The Cosby Show" was every bit as groundbreaking as Cosby's "I Spy" was two decades earlier. Chris Rock to Jerry Seinfeld to Sinbad -- and of course to Phylicia Ayers Rashad to Malcolm Jamal Warner -- entertainers made reference to the '80s cultural landmark. And then Cosby himself strode onstage and waxed on about some of the challenges he faced trying to get "Cosby" on the air -- decades after working as a "Negro comic" (Dick Gregory's telling term Monday night) in Greenwich Village, after succeeding on Jack Paar's show and impressing Carl Reiner and winning over America as comic storyteller and TV star. As Cosby accepted the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor, the audience was reminded how much "The Cosby Show" helped

Playing the Palace: Hours back from Iraq, top cartoonists share tales of a USO tour

Sat, 24 Oct 2009 09:00:52 -0500

I'm sitting in a hotel bar-and-grille that's so close to Virginia's Dulles International Airport, the hotel's walls have flight-time boards that flicker like mood lighting in the lobby. The mood at my table is a bit more subdued. Until, that is, talk turns to two things: golfing in Iraq and "Mother Goose and Grimm" cartoonist Mike Peters. The seven men I'm surrounded by are all cartoonists. Most of them say they're jet-lagged from their roughly 14-hour flight from Kuwait the night before. But as they recount stories of visiting Saddam Hussein's former palace (which makes for a swell impromptu driving range, it turns out) and of traveling over Iraq by Blackhawk helicopter and of staring into the resolute and upbeat eyes of wounded soldiers in places like Landstuhl medical center, the cartoonists' own faces are energized and at-attention, flush with the still-fresh memories. And in recounting their adventures from

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Sat, 24 Oct 2009 09:00:52 -0500

A salute to Monty Python animation? This blogpost most assuredly is SPAM

Fri, 23 Oct 2009 09:05:32 -0500

The joy in celebrating Monty Python's brilliant high-jinks is not dead yet. All this week, IFC has been saluting the comedy troupe's 40th anniversary by airing the swell new six-part docuseries, "Monty Python: Almost the Truth (The Lawyer's Cut)" (the channel's "Python-a-thon" concludes tonight). Beginning with such influences as "The Goon Show" and "Beyond the Fringe," the film goes on to spotlight contemporary comedians who have been influenced by Python. Watching this series as a cartoonist, I'm struck anew by just how mind-bendingly fresh TERRY GILLIAM's animation remains. Some of the imagery seems entirely born of '50s and '60s underground art, and yet so much of it -- crafted long before the JibJab guys and the current generation could animate similar effects digitally -- springs eternally inspired, and inspiring. Gilliam, of course, is the only member of Python not born in Britain (although he gained British citzenship and in

'Riffs Picks: From the Washington Dreadskins cartoon to Comics Volunteerism week, today's top contenders

Wed, 21 Oct 2009 09:05:09 -0500

Do not adjust your set, your settings or your funnypages. As you've probably noticed by now, volunteerism is running rampant in the comics this week -- and by that, we don't just mean the meddlesome Keane kids "drawing" "Family Circus" for poor pooped Pops for a coupla days. Last Friday marked the 20th anniversary of former president George H..W. Bush's call for community service in full "thousand points of light" fashion. To commemorate the occasion (as you may well have read), Bush and President Obama on Friday renewed the call for volunteerism via a Points of Light Institute event in Texas. Now, this week brings the entertainment field's stepping-up to answer the call: The Hollywood charity Entertainment Industry Foundation, working through the iParticipate initiative, is devoting major time to "giving back" all this week. ALSO answering the call this week: National cartoonists who are filling their strips with themes

'Riffs Picks: From iPhone art to the 'Addams Family' obit, today's eye-catching images

Tue, 20 Oct 2009 09:35:17 -0500

THE RIFF: Taking care of cartooning's breakout hits... In comics, the '80s are remembered by many with a halycyon glow, thanks especially to a trio of beacons: the brilliant creative lights who launched the masterworks "Calvin and Hobbes," "Bloom County" and "The Far Side." Largely because of them, the '80s are often cited as a golden age of comics. And then in the '90s, such strips as "Dilbert," "Zits," "Mutts" and "The Boondocks" lent plenty of creative heft to that decade. Now, in these shifting times for comics strips, the industry especially needs its beacons -- its cartoonists whose voices connect with a large audience. And that's the reason I solicited opinions yesterday about "Pearls Before Swine." Stephan Pastis's popular and hilarious comic is often cited -- frequently in the same company as "Get Fuzzy" and "Cul de Sac," to name two -- as proof that comics are still fresh,

Should 'Pearls' be cast before swine? Time to Defend That 'Toon

Mon, 19 Oct 2009 11:45:53 -0500

PEARLS BEFORE SWINE: Oh, Rat leaves his mark all right. (UFS)Enlarge Comic. Now that cartoonist Stephan Pastis is out of the country and otherwise preoccupied, haha -- something about visiting troops in the Persian Gulf and whatnot -- the coast is clear for us to make like crocs and eye his "PEARLS BEFORE SWINE" like so much "zeeba" meat. "Pearls," of course, is the poorly drawn "Dilbert" derivative that often relies on self-reflexive gags that break the fourth wall. Or at least that's how Pastis HIMSELF has described his strip to Comic Riffs. I, of course, would claim that Pastis is off the mark and that his self-deprecating characterization fails to note that "Pearls" has become, like so many great strips, also derivative of "Get Fuzzy." No, no, of course we jest. We "keeed" the Zeebas because "Pearls" is one of the few true breakout strips of the past