For a short video (about 3 minutes, plus a damn 30 second advertisement in the beginning), this Star Tribune profile of Peter Gross (LUCIFER, CHOSEN, BOOKS OF MAGIC) packs a lot of information about who he is, what he does, and how he draws.
The article then focuses on the cartoonists in the Twin Cities area, with the prediction that most will be female in the coming years. Well worth a read, and it makes me consider dropping in for the next Minneapolis Indie Xpo.
Below: a fun & informative short video from the gang behind MIX about the 2011 Xpo, to be held November 5-6, 2011 at The Soap Factory in Minneapolis, MN:
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
1944 George Herriman Profile: "All House-painters Aren't Hitlers"
Yesterday's Papers transribes a heartfelt recap of George Herriman's career, six days after his death on April 26, 1944 by "non-alcoholic cirrhosis of the liver."
"All house-painters aren't Hitlers. George Herriman, who died in California the other day, was once a house painter, and a kindlier soul never lived. However, after falling off a ladder and spilling a bucket of paint over himself, he decided he’d rather be a cartoonist and deal with smaller quantities of coloring matter". - The Windsor (Ontario) Daily Star, 1 May 1944.The rest is here.
Related: Clizia Gussoni's bio of Mr. Herriman from GeorgeHerriman.com
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
Lots of Videos from the Society of Illustrators
From the Society of Illustrators:
New Lectures available to view online!
An Evening with Edel Rodriguez
Award-winning illustrator Edel Rodriguez will discuss his career as both a freelance illustrator and art director at TIME.
DRUNK STONED BRILLIANT DEAD: Or, another evening at the Society of Illustrators
Join Rick Meyerowitz as he interviews fellow National Lampoon illustrators Sam Gross, Ed Subitzky and Stan Mack on the release of his new book "Drunk Stoned Brilliant Dead: The Writers and Artists Who Made the National Lampoon Insanely Great".
The Folly, Flexibility and Fun of Five New Yorker Cartoonists
New Yorker cartoonist Liza Donnelly moderates a panel discussion with colleagues Roz Chast, Drew Dernavich, Zach Kanin and Barbara Smaller.
Illustrator Jules Feiffer discusses his career as a cartoonist, playwright, screenwriter and children's book author and illustrator.
Pioneering artist Gary Baseman talks about the work process behind his painting and his memorable characters and toys which have evolved into live performance.
Illustrating Bedtime Books with Stephen Savage
Known for his economical style of illustration that conveys complex ideas and emotion with simple line and color, Stephen Savage takes us through his career in children's book illustration with the release of his latest book The Fathers Are Coming Home.
A Gallery Talk with Tomer Hanuka, Yuko Shimizu and Sam Weber
Hanuka, Shimizu and Weber examine their new found artistic voices through personal mythologies, broken narratives and remixed identities.
Legendary designer and illustrator Milton Glaser comments on the opportunities for social intervention.
Lectures are free and available to view on the Society's website. Past lectures can be found in the Lecture Archive.
Podcast: The Legacy of Charles Schulz
The Legacy of Charles Schulz aired on Southern California Public Radio station KPCV yesterday, January 31, 2011. Featuring guests Jean Schulz, Nat Gertler and Kevin Drabble, the talk focused on the influence of Mr. Schulz' strip, and Mr. Gertler's new book THE PEANUTS COLLECTION.
STAR TREK: Lost and Rare ... and Silly
Not the Enterprise.
And -- get this -- Robert April was the Captain.
Way back in 1964, when Gene Roddenberry was pitching his "wagon train to the stars" concept, the original name for the Captain was to be Robert April. And the Enterprise was then named the SS Yorktown. If you knew this, then you are a TREK ubernerd. Like me.
TV shows go thru a lot of permutations before getting on air.
My friend Sean Kelly emailed me to let me know that there is a PDF of Gene Roddenberry's original pitch for STAR TREK. Also: an original series show bible is online - the booklet that would be handed to any would-be writer, explaining the show format. (And there's a lot more at this root directory.)
It's fascinating to look at that material and imagine what it was like back before we all knew what TREK was.
Here are a few great links to some rare and lost bits of TREK. Complete time wasting fun! OK, you've been warned.
Perhaps the best is STAR TREK HISTORY, a massive site about the series' production, with many includes rare behind-the-scenes photos, missing scenes, documents, and interviews. Above, Kirk's salute to the Romulan Commander from "Balance of Terror," cut from the final version of the episode.
Before THE NEXT GENERATION, there was gonna be PHASE II.In the late 1970s, Paramount greenlighted a new STAR TREK series. Sets were built, costumes designed, scripts commissioned. The cast, except for Leonard Nimoy, was contracted to return. Suddenly, STAR TREK PHASE II, was killed. Paramount, seeing 20th Century Fox's STAR WARS success, decided to do a movie instead. Above: a photo from a PHASE II screentest for the Vulcan Xon, who was to be portrayed by David Gautreaux.
Mr. Gautreaux, perhaps as consolation for not playing Nimoy's replacement Vulcan, was given a small role in STAR TREK THE MOTION PICTURE (see above). He gets clobbered, along with the Epsilon 9 Space Station, by V'Ger, early on in the movie. More info on the never-to-be PHASE II series (also called STAR TREK PHASE 2) here.
They aren't rare, but you may or may not know about some of the amateur takes on TOS. Take a look at the 2 teasers for these Web productions.
There are a number of fan-made films, the most prominent being STAR TREK PHASE 2, which imagines a fourth season of the original series (and taking the title of the proposed sequel series). Above: a teaser from one of their recent episodes. That's original series music in the background. James Cawley, the man behind the PHASE 2 Web series, continues to mount impressive looking shows with the blessing of Paramount - and the participation of some of the pros who have worked professionally on TREK.
My favorite fan-made series is STARSHIP EXETER, about another ship in the fleet during Kirk's time. Take a look teaser, above. Production appears to have halted, which is too bad.
A few more links. I could go on and on, but I have to stop sometime:
Steve Roby's informative Lost Books of STAR TREK page.
STAR TREK LOLCats-style parody here.
Related: a video round up of STAR TREK parodies.
Related: "Assignment Earth" TV show titles.
Related: STAR TREK NBC Previews & alternate pilot footage.
