Archive for April, 2009
Poncho’s Travels!
Wednesday, April 29th, 2009NASHVILLE
Grand ole Poncho does Grand ole Nashville. Here’s the little honky-tonk looking out toward downtown Nashville at Union Station; inside the “Bat Building”; at the Country Music Hall of Fame; at the Parthenon, (built for Tennessee’s Centennial Exposition in 1897); at the Ryman Auditorium, (Mother Church of Country Music and original home of the Grand Ole Opry); outside Bellsouth’s “Bat Building”; and fading into the sunset at the Tennessee State Capital Building. Yee-haw!
Meetings At Sony
Monday, April 27th, 2009Last week I flew to Hollywood for some meetings at Sony. I stayed in a hotel right next to the building Fox filmed Die Hard in (turns out they didn’t really blow it up). On the first day I got to meet some of the great people I’ve been speaking and working with on the treatment thus far. Then I was taken around the studio and got to peek at some of the animators at work. The latest Sony Animation release is called Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs, and it looks sensational.
On the second day we discussed some more ideas for the Pooch storyline. After seeing some of the amazing character design of the animators at Sony I can’t help but dream of the magic they could breath into the PC regulars. But first, we’ve got to think up the story. (Takes conjuring baton in hand, leans back and cuts the air with three gentle, respectful arcs, lowers eyelids, dozes…)
Pooch Ringtales Animations!
Thursday, April 23rd, 2009
There are 4 Pooch Cafe animations now up on YouTube for viewing. The original plan called for lots more, so hopefully the recessiony woes that have slowed production will be circumvented soon and we’ll get to see Ponch and pals play out more strips. For now, observe the awesome talents of the fellows at Ringtales and Powerhouse Animation:
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Jet Plane Poncho
Wednesday, April 22nd, 2009
On my second last day in Melbourne I had lunch with Arctic Circle’s Alex Hallatt who I got buddy buddy with while in town, and she gave me this little going away card featuring what would doubtlessly be the most nightmarish pet-travel scene in airport history. One evening the week before Alex — who is on “peguin watch” from time to time at the pier — enticed us to come with her to “watch the penguins” as they came ashore for the night. We did manage to catch a brief hazy glimpse of something in the darkness, but had to satisfy oursleves watching possums being fed by a couple of elderly ladies who were “trying to save them” (guess they wanted to back a winner for a change). Alex, thanks for finally delievering on the peguins!
Character Design
Monday, April 20th, 2009
I do some freelance character design work from time to time. This is a character from a show Nelvanna was developing a while back called “Fusers”.
Pipe-Cleaner Poncho
Saturday, April 18th, 2009
This is strictly awesome, worthy of a modern art gallery in my opinion. Poncho, captured in the medium of pipe cleaner, by Wendy Loreti. Says Wendy:
“Last year, I attended a course on usability. At each place at the table were pipe cleaners and other things. The instructor explained that it’s been shown that when your hands are busy, you are able to focus your mind better. I created two things while there: One was little Poncho here, and the other was a brown pipe cleaner in the shape of a pipe, under which I wrote “This is not a pipe cleaner” in homage to the Rene Magritte painting.”
Eat your heart out, Magritte, this IS a dog.
Reuben Entry 2008
Tuesday, April 14th, 2009Below are the 12 strips that were entered for this year’s Reuben Awards (work published in 2008). Nominations this year went to the inimitable Stephan Pastis, Richard Thompson, and Mark Tatulli for “Pearls Before Swine” “Cul de Sac” and “Lio” respectively, three strips I greatly, greatly admire, by fellows I greatly, greatly enjoy drinking with. (To see them larger, click on the image, then click again with magnify tool).
Arctic Circle Pooch
Monday, April 13th, 2009
Today’s Arcitc Circle comic strip features guest appearances from not one but two Pooch Cafe regulars, Poncho and his Plank Of Wood (a.k.a. “Plankie”). Arctic Circle is a most excellent King Features comic drawn by my talented pal — and drinking mate over the last few months here in Melbourne (both coffee and stronger fare) Alex Hallatt. Thanks from both myself and the Earth, Alex! (Alex also has a blog here.)
First 2 Pooch Collections Are Back!
Friday, April 10th, 2009After selling out the first runs, the first two books collecting strips from Year One and Year Two respectively have been reprinted and are available again through Amazon.com.
They’re only $8.79 U.S. each (what a steal!). Order a few copies and get free shipping. The print runs are limited so act now, and get the books in time for Christmas, Hanukkah, United Nations Day….well, in time for any holiday if you order without delay! Joy!
No Cats Logo!
Wednesday, April 8th, 2009
This is the latest in anti-cat signage. Plaster it around at will. Viva la resistance! Created by trusted ally Dave Coates, (who also did the art for this cat catapult.)
Color-Alike
Tuesday, April 7th, 2009
Tucker submitted by Bob Alianiello
Tucker is a border collie from Baltimore. A little Poncho-y, colors anyway (and same charm-school affectations). The second shot is him as a baby, still figuring out the cute = kibble situation.
It Was a Picked Wallet
Monday, April 6th, 2009
This strip from last week doesn’t seem to have read completely clearly. It was a wallet Poncho picked from the parking meter dog’s pocket. Hard showing motion when it’s so tiny, those little motion-lines were barely squeezed in, and a wallet isn’t a particularly distinctive item. Add to this that dogs don’t normally have wallets, or pockets, (even in the Pooch world) and this was a tough gag to get across. Some seem to have discerned it, miraculously. Cudos to them, anti-cudos to me.
Creating A Pooch Strip
Sunday, April 5th, 2009From time to time I get asked for some details about how I create the strips. Here, then, is the process as it most often goes down.
Step #1: Pacing. I think up my strips while pacing. If I am not pacing, my mind wanders off into musings such as “Uh oh, did I pronounce “anthemia” correctly at last night’s dinner party?” or “I wonder if Judd Nelson is still getting any movie roles?” For some reason pacing keeps me focused.
Step #2 (Assuming Step #1 has produced results): Pencil layout. I now get to sit down. I use a technical pencil with .5 mm HB lead on a Strathmore 2 ply paper, thick enough to matter but thin enough to see through if put on a light-table. I don’t have a light-table, I use a window. So can only trace over something before sundown.
Step #3: Inking. I ink with Faber-Castell brush pens and Pilot DR drawing pens. I take a short break, ponder Judd Nelson, then it’s back to work.
Step #4: Lettering. For many years I hand-lettered the strips. I enjoyed the slight variations you could put into lettering, believing that it would shed additional subtle insights into the speaker’s mood. Then I realized that I only have a finite amount of time on this planet and the same results could be achieved with a typeface created from my lettering so it looked the same and could be altered at will when I misspelled words and misplaced commas. Oh, also, erase pencil lines here.
Step #5: Gray tones and details: For the first year or so I used good old fashioned Letratone which is the equivalent of using blocks of ice to keep your ‘fridge cold. In other words, outdated, and causes back problems. These days the grays are added in Photoshop and the file is then converted into halftone dots for printing.
Step #6: Colors added using color guides, also in Photoshop.
Every cartoonist has his own method of creating strips, these are by no means standard guidelines. As a matter of fact, whatever a cartoonist is most comfortable with is the right way for that cartoonist to cartoon. Unless the cartoonist is most comfortable drawing while supplying beer to minors. That’s illegal.
Advance Panel
Friday, April 3rd, 2009
Staring into the abyss…
“Pooch Cafe’s Poncho Stops By in Clarksville”
Wednesday, April 1st, 2009Intrepid reporter Stacy Smith Segovia of The Leaf-Chronicle came out to investigate Poncho’s visit to Clarksville recently and spoke to hosts Stuart and Peggy Bonnington while Poncho struck poses in front of local landmarks.
Above: shot of Peggy taking a picture of Poncho socializing with a bronze dog named Nettie. Nettie was the pet of Nora Witzel, a Clarksville photographer memorialized in bronze outside the Montgomery County Courts Center. And sitting in the lap of a statue of a man created by Scott Wise. The man is reading a copy of The Leaf-Chronicle printed the day after the Jan. 22, 1999, tornado that destroyed much of downtown Clarksville. (both shots by Stacy Smith Segovia/The Leaf-Chronicle).
Full story here.