JUST PAST MIDNIGHT..

A Belated HAPPY HALLOWE’EN !!

They recently staged a "Hallowe'en" -themed Art Show at the studio I work at.. I decided to contribute a couple of old EC Fanzine illustrations that I did many years ago.. Sadly, I no longer own the pen-and-ink originals.. But I'd always wanted to color these; and the Art Show finally gave me the chance to do so!  Both images feature all 3 of EC Comics' famed "GhouLunatics" characters, along with a lot of other creepy and gory stuff!

20 years ago, I self-published my sketchbook: “Wang-Dang-Doodle!” This was the drawing I used for the cover art.. Recently, I agreed to sell the drawing to a local Original Art collector/friend.. So, I thought I’d better make some decent scans of it, first. Hard for me to believe how quickly all of that time has passed!

Digging through some old drawings last night, I found these.. After seeing a few examples of my Fan Art in the pages of AMAZING HEROES, I was approached by publisher Dave Goode to do cover art for his “SQUARED CIRCLE Comix”. I was very flattered, as the interior story was drawn by Bill Ward, a favorite artist of mine!

I was all of 25 years old in August of ‘88 when I drew this, so I can see a lot of things I’d definitely do differently now. I recall that Goode sent me a sampling of Steve Reeves photo reference for “Brad King”, the wrestler featured here.. I’m guessing I used a Marilyn Monroe photo book by Andre De Dienes, for the “Sugar Caine” bikini babe?

I was pretty obsessed (still am!) with Dave Stevens artwork, at this point. And while I like the Poses and Staging, the line weight on the inking is pretty sketchy. Even so, I recall mailing this and a number of other art samples to Dave Stevens. He wrote back a nice letter to me: “As for your drawing ability, you seem to have a good grasp on the Figure. So you shouldn’t have any trouble getting work. Based on the wrestling piece you did, I’d say you’re ready to try your stuff on a story..” 

You could have knocked me over with a feather, after that.

Re-familiarizing myself with a couple of old acquaintances.. Traditional drawing, pen-and-ink finish, and digital coloring.

Toon Talk Sessions - Rich Dannys

Welcome to the first episode of Toon Talk Sessions, a Toon Talk Weekly interview series!

Listen above of download the MP3 (67.4mb).

For some time now, we’ve wanted to sit down and interview the people that work behind the scenes on bringing our favorite cartoons to life. It’s no secret that animation is no small task and it requires a large team to create these awesome shows.

On this episode of Toon Talk Sessions Jake had the chance to talk with Canadian artist Rich Dannys about his work in cartoons.

Rich Dannys is a freelance illustrator and cartoonist, based in Oshawa, Ontario. He is an experienced Layout/Design artist, that has worked at many of Toronto’s finest animation studios. His style ranges from work featuring: animated cartoon & comic-book sensibilities – to vintage/retro motifs, with occasional ‘classical’ overtones.

Here are some of the topics covered in this episode:

How he got into the cartoon industry

His early work on Beetlejuice and the time he fired himself

Stories and the coolest scene from the Cadillacs and Dinosaurs series

Rich’s education and teaching experience in Canada

The extraordinary pipeline on his latest project, Welcome to the Wayne

His love of comics and where he finds inspiration

His advice for getting into the cartoon industry and improving your art

For more about Rich Dannys and his work you can find him at the following:

Tumblr - richdannys.tumblr.com/ Instagram - www.instagram.com/richdannys/ Portfolio - www.coroflot.com/Attezarf IMDb - www.imdb.com/name/nm2147403/

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Was surprised to see this animated gif from the “Jim Lee’s WildC.A.T.S” cartoon series.. This was an old Nelvana show I did design work on, back in 1994 or so. All of the pre-production was done in-studio. With the animation work farmed out overseas.. I remember being disappointed that the production schedule and budget were roughly half the size of the “Cadillacs & Dinosaurs” cartoon, we’d all worked on a year earlier. Small surprise that it didn’t get past it’s initial season of 13 shows!

Two years ago today, we lost a local legend.. RIP Darwyn Cooke.

Sorry,-- this is another pen and ink illo that I did from a few years ago.. While browsing my Tumblr dash, I stumbled across the photo reference I'd based this (see sidebar) on.. Kinda surprised me! hah  It was an "illustration friday" based on the word: "Launch", if I recall..

Christmas card from just last year.. I was up so late at night finishing this, that I mistakenly signed "2013", after my signature. Nobody seemed to notice it, though..

I was up ‘til about 3am coloring an OLD pen-and-ink drawing for the upcoming “Summer Art Show”, held at the studio I work at.. Today, I’m physically wiped, as a result. I tried to use a color palette that conjures up the feeling of an old 50′s-era comic-book cover.. Perhaps a nod to the ‘MARS ATTACKS’ cards, too? It still feels rushed, but I do like the way his leather boots turned out!