Come an' get me...

Happiness is a Warm Roll

The story is, a fan at a 1974 ComiCon dinner didn't have a sheet of paper, so asked for Charles Schulz' autograph on a dinner roll.

San Diego Comicon 1975

When Comicon was actually a comics convention...

(From Stan Lee's Soapbox, 1976)

Okay, gang, it's name-dropping time again! Recently, I was guest of honor at the San Diego Comic Convention, and what a terrific Con it was. Let me just take a minute to thank Richard Butner and Shel Dorf for being the best hosts possible, and -- while we're at it -- I thought you'd like to know some of the really great guys I ran into out there.

First of all, there was Jerry Siegel, the creator of Superman, looking as young as he did when he used to toil her in the Bullpen. Then, there was artist-writer Don Rico, now teaching a course in comics at UCLA, and as much fun to bend an elbow with as when we were both teenage rookies in the early days of comics.

Sci-fix greats Ray Bradbury, Ted Sturgeon, and George Pal would have made the Con a success by themselves -- and next year I hope we can spend still more time together.

And what's a ComicCon without my ol' pal Will Eisner and me tryin' to upstage each other on the podium? And you should'a seen the great sketch that MAD's Sergio Aragones presented me with -- if I thought I looked that way I'd shoot myself! (Put the gun away, Forbush -- I'm only kiddin'!)

It was great seeing Mell ("Miss Peach" and "Moma") Lazarus again, even if I do envy the fact that he's moved to the West Coast! And, helping me judge a costume contest, was none other than Jim Steranko, who's really a great judge ('cause he agreed with all my choices!)

And let's not forget the mighty Marvel contingent! There was Marv Wolfman, all over the place, as budding artists and writers pursued 'im like mad with their samples. Also, it was a real treat running into Russ Heath, Jim Starlin, Ernie Chua, and not only Jack Kirby -- but the whole captivatin' Kirby clan -- son, daughter, grand-daughter, and Jack's lovely wife Roz.

Hey, I almost forgot -- Chuck Norris, one of the greatest martial arts experts of all, gave an exhibition I'll never forget -- and you'll be reading more about it in our own kung-fu mags.

Yep, it was a real classy Con -- and it'll give us something' to shoot at this Easter when we have our own Marvel Con in New York. (And those of you who attended our last Con don't haveta be told -- we're pretty good shooters!)

Two more things I've gotta say before we wrap this up. I also met Captain Sticky and Gabe Wisdom. Captain Sticky is a real, live, costumed superhero who's become a sensation on the West Coast. You'll be seeing him soon in some of our comicbook yarns, so I won't say much more 'cause I don't wanna kill the surprise. But I'll tell you this -- the guy is too much! As for Gabe Wisdom, he's a radio personality who's been doing a Thor act in Hawaii and on the Coast, and he's so great at it that I've gotta find a way to get him to our Con this Easter -- along with Captain Sticky.

Yep, there's a lot of fun and excitement coming your way, gang, so stay tuned to Marvel and, while you're waiting, never tickle a tousled tadpole, 'cause the eyes of Marveldom are ever upon thee!

Excelsior!

Fennec Fox

This is a recent poster design. I drew it in ArtRage and then worked on it some more in Photoshop. It was inspired by this awesome photograph of a fennec fox kit by In Cherl Kim, the PR Manager of Samsung Everland, a theme park in South Korea.

Hey!

Forgot His Helmet

Invisible Tea Pot

Girl in the Hat

I NEED MY OWN COUNTRY!

I had the privilege of working on the incredibly talented Rick Walton's "I NEED MY OWN COUNTRY".  The books came in last week and I couldn't be happier with how they turned out.  The team at Bloomsbury was just great.

I was invited in to some classrooms at my kids elementary school and blasted the book spreads across a huge screen with an overhead.  I love how they responded to it. It's such a fun read.

-W.

The Naughty Leprechaun Story book

Cover sketch

© Ted Dawson

A bit of everything.

Ted introduced me to Artrage a while back. A digital art program that simulates oils and acrylics amazingly well. See his amazing work here.

This is a closeup of a traditional piece I did below, but once it was scanned in I was able to keep throwing strokes down here and there when I saw a need. It works well with photoshop if you export the file right.

Fun little addition to my tool collection.

-Wes

Interview with Stacy Curtis!

A great interview with our pal Stacy over at Tom Racine's Tall Tale Radio. Stacy began inking duties for Richard Thompson's "Cul de Sac" not long ago. I think John Glynn at Universal made a great choice in seeking out Stacy for one of the best strips going. Both Richard and Stacy have that scratchy zaniness in their lines that I just love.

I think the best part of this interview was learning how Dueling Banjo Pigs was started with Guy Francis.

-W.

Buddies

Sketches

You might not see it, but I felt a little of Wes's influence on this sketch of the chef.

Some faces.

Fun with creating a character for an upcoming book.

Jump rope

Sketch

Slowing down.

Wishing everyone a Happy Holiday. Arizona is usually beautiful this time of year. This year, not so much. So it's indoors for a while.

-W.

Pro tip maybe?

We've discussed the nuances of scanning watercolor paper quite a bit on this blog in the past. Ted observed that turning a watercolor paper 90 degrees helps at times if a scan is not showing up well. I have a trick I'd like to add

To get a "flat" scan on bigger pieces that might have a few visible bumps in your scans just turn the paper art side down on a towel and mist it with water, soak up any small pools with another towel and then repeat until the paper gives in and lays flat. Then just scan it in slightly wet.

Obviously, be careful to not get the art side wet in any way. It should feel dry.

-W.