I entered the business of cartooning in March of 1997 having no idea what was to come. Before I embarked upon this mysterious venture, I decided it would be to my advantage to consult with top cartoonists around the country. I was surprised how many of them were open and available to speak with me were. Fortunately, I was both too young and naive to know NOT to bother the masters. So when Charles Schulz picked up his phone, I started asking the five journalistic Ws (Who, what, when, why, and where). His (and others) advice turned out to be just what the doctor ordered. I was starting to develop a philosophy of cartooning even though I had not even yet begun my amazing adventure into online cartoon merchandising.
Schulz went into cartooning because in his words "I tried a lot of other things and couldn't do them very well". I could easily identify. I asked him if there was a way to make a living in cartooning. There was a long pause. He assured me there was plenty, but not to expect it in newspapers. He told me that even if you do get syndicated, the money is still just pennies per newspaper and that the smart way to approach it, that is, to look at it as a career, is image merchandising, that is, reproducing images on such gifts and collectibles as coffee mugs, aprons, T-shirts and the like.
I told him I did not draw very well (which is true) and, that I wanted to try something very new and different. It was to be a color cartoon in which the artwork, for the most part was more fine art than cartoon art, and that I wanted a different look and feel to each cartoon, but a theme, focused on wordplay and picture-play in which, at times, the viewer might have to take a second or two to get it.
He told me that a large percentage cartoons are team efforts that is, an artist and writer, and that if I did not feel my own artwork was up to snuff, to recruit an artist to draw my concepts. He also encouraged me to read as much as I could about Walt Disney because what I was about to attempt was actually a Disney model without animation; he actually called it Disney meets Gary Larson. I was and still am flattered.
A few other major cartoonists were helpful as well; Leigh Rubin (Rubes), Dave Coverly (Speed Bump), and Jon McPherson (Close To Home). I was amazed, again, at how open and available they made themselves. In fact Leigh and I became good friends and talked regularly on the phone. He was already one of the worlds leading cartoonists, and I was just starting. That didnt matter to him. I will never forget that kind of generosity and his willingness to lead me in a direction that made it work for me. And of course the same is true for Charles Sparky Schulz (Sparky by the way was what he liked to be called. That was the name of his favorite dog. I have a tendency get along fellow animal lovers, and Schulz also had an unique wit about him, which was not revealed in his family-oriented "Peanuts", which was more family-oriented. On the phone, he he purveyed a more SNL-type sense of humor, always ready to talk and joke about current events.
A "common theme" persisted regarding the philosophy of cartooning, among all of the artists. That is, Sure, you must make a living in this world, but keep the day job. Cartooning is a labor of love, and, a few make a living at it. One must approach it with a very open mind and a love for making people laugh, and to be flexible, as the Internet at the time, was changing the whole nature of the comic strip biz.
Pragmatic advice is hard to find. How did "Sparky" know the Internet was changing? How did he know it would change how we perceived cartooning? I knew about "vision" and that some people "saw" things others could not, but could he be this brilliant? He was. Licensed merchandise became even more of the key to making it work than Sparky Schulz had felt; and he had seen it coming. Today, though my cartoons appear in publications worldwide; mostly trade magazines, college textbooks and on websites, the majority of my take is from the sales of funny gifts and collectibles. When I look back over the past twelve years it has all becomes a blur. I have had the opportunity to work with some of the world's top illustrators of cartoons. I wrote/they rendered.
Though I know it has been hard work, just as I was told it would be, I also have been very lucky. I became what might consider "a success" in a strange business, when told, chances were as good as winning the lottery, even less so if one was/is not such a great artist such as me. But I continue "the battle" as, in some small way, I figure if just one person laughs a little more in his or her day, due to something my team created, the world is just a little better as well.
Schulz went into cartooning because in his words "I tried a lot of other things and couldn't do them very well". I could easily identify. I asked him if there was a way to make a living in cartooning. There was a long pause. He assured me there was plenty, but not to expect it in newspapers. He told me that even if you do get syndicated, the money is still just pennies per newspaper and that the smart way to approach it, that is, to look at it as a career, is image merchandising, that is, reproducing images on such gifts and collectibles as coffee mugs, aprons, T-shirts and the like.
I told him I did not draw very well (which is true) and, that I wanted to try something very new and different. It was to be a color cartoon in which the artwork, for the most part was more fine art than cartoon art, and that I wanted a different look and feel to each cartoon, but a theme, focused on wordplay and picture-play in which, at times, the viewer might have to take a second or two to get it.
He told me that a large percentage cartoons are team efforts that is, an artist and writer, and that if I did not feel my own artwork was up to snuff, to recruit an artist to draw my concepts. He also encouraged me to read as much as I could about Walt Disney because what I was about to attempt was actually a Disney model without animation; he actually called it Disney meets Gary Larson. I was and still am flattered.
A few other major cartoonists were helpful as well; Leigh Rubin (Rubes), Dave Coverly (Speed Bump), and Jon McPherson (Close To Home). I was amazed, again, at how open and available they made themselves. In fact Leigh and I became good friends and talked regularly on the phone. He was already one of the worlds leading cartoonists, and I was just starting. That didnt matter to him. I will never forget that kind of generosity and his willingness to lead me in a direction that made it work for me. And of course the same is true for Charles Sparky Schulz (Sparky by the way was what he liked to be called. That was the name of his favorite dog. I have a tendency get along fellow animal lovers, and Schulz also had an unique wit about him, which was not revealed in his family-oriented "Peanuts", which was more family-oriented. On the phone, he he purveyed a more SNL-type sense of humor, always ready to talk and joke about current events.
A "common theme" persisted regarding the philosophy of cartooning, among all of the artists. That is, Sure, you must make a living in this world, but keep the day job. Cartooning is a labor of love, and, a few make a living at it. One must approach it with a very open mind and a love for making people laugh, and to be flexible, as the Internet at the time, was changing the whole nature of the comic strip biz.
Pragmatic advice is hard to find. How did "Sparky" know the Internet was changing? How did he know it would change how we perceived cartooning? I knew about "vision" and that some people "saw" things others could not, but could he be this brilliant? He was. Licensed merchandise became even more of the key to making it work than Sparky Schulz had felt; and he had seen it coming. Today, though my cartoons appear in publications worldwide; mostly trade magazines, college textbooks and on websites, the majority of my take is from the sales of funny gifts and collectibles. When I look back over the past twelve years it has all becomes a blur. I have had the opportunity to work with some of the world's top illustrators of cartoons. I wrote/they rendered.
Though I know it has been hard work, just as I was told it would be, I also have been very lucky. I became what might consider "a success" in a strange business, when told, chances were as good as winning the lottery, even less so if one was/is not such a great artist such as me. But I continue "the battle" as, in some small way, I figure if just one person laughs a little more in his or her day, due to something my team created, the world is just a little better as well.
About the Author:
Rick London Founded the Internet's #1 ranked Offbeat Cartoon, Londons Times & numerous peripheral stores featuring Funny Gifts
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