Crockett Johnson's BARNABY to be Reprinted

Breaking: Crockett Johnson's BARNABY comic strip will be reprinted in its entirety via Fantagraphics, beginning in the spring of 2012.

Please go to Tom Spurgeon's Comics Reporter for all the details.

NYC: Sandra Boynton's First Ever Art Show

New York City's Books of Wonder hosts Sandra Boynton's first art show. Sandra will be in NYC one day only, this Saturday from noon until 2pm, performing some songs (with Michael Ford, Keith Boynton, Graham Stone and Caitlin McEwan). She will then sign her new book, AMAZING COWS, an homage to old comic book superheroes ... and cows. So, come on in to Books of Wonder this Saturday if you are able.

Below: here she is on Fox Business, with host Robert Gray, previewing her gallery show, her timeless appeal, and talking about the future of her work.

Using an Unnamed Deceased Cartoonist to Sell

Is this shameless? Deceitful? Has another crime been committed against the above cartoonist in the photo?

Here's the background:

Bulldogs Biz, a company I have never heard of, sells business plans via eBay. Most of them sell for $40. One of the businesses is titled:

Home-Based CARTOONIST SBA Funding Complete

They tell you they are good at getting you money. They have, they tell you, a 94% success rate at getting an entrepreneur Small Business Administration funding.

Who is Bulldogs Biz? They are "retired business professionals, with more than 35+ years combined experience." No bricks-and-mortar address, no phone number, no email contact that I could find.

I ran across the listing by chance. The photo of the fellow with the large charcoal caricature looked familiar.

And then it occurred to me who he was.

Bulldogs Biz is using a photo of an unidentified deceased cartoonist to sell their plans.

The photo is Australian caricaturist Bill "Weg" Green (1923-2008) and he's showing a caricature of the man who broke into his home. A burglar that police caught quickly thanks to his cartooning ability.

There is no context for Mr. Green's photo in the above Bulldogs Biz ad. No ID. No nothing. It's a disgrace that they may have just carelessly trolled the Internet for some graphic. It's a crime. It's wrong.

There is a small "Contact Member" on the right hand side of their eBay store screen here. Join me in telling them to stop using Mr. Green's photo.




Above: my blog entry about Bill "Weg" Green, with the photo by Craig Abraham.

BACK TO BASICS

Kurtis Haiu came thru and locked down two days to get his backpiece...

A Virgil Partch Table-eating Frenzy

Over at Bhob Stewart's POTRZEBIE blog, he asks the question, "Why was Virgil Partch haunted by this image of table gnawing?"

I don't think there's an answer, but it sure is fun looking at all of those men-eating-table cartoons by one of the great gag cartoonists.

And, thanks, Bhob, for another great entry to your blog!

Sam Gross "Frog Legs" Original Cartoon for Sale

Originally published in the National Lampoon in 1970, Sam Gross' "Frog Legs" original drawing is up for sale on eBay. The bids start at $20,000.

This is a seminal drawing. A perennial favorite, it's a classic gag cartoon that defines Gross and this is a unique opportunity to own it.

Hat tip to Gregory Kogan.

UPDATE December 10, 2010: it sold! One bid, for $20,000.

LACED UP