Tom Gill: How To Pace a Comic Strip Story

 

Found in an old box of papers and correspondence: Tom Gill's (1913-2005) "How To Pace a Comic Strip Story."

Tom was a friend and my co-Chair of the Berndt Toast Gang, the famous Long Island Chapter of the National Cartoonists Society. He was part of the NCS from pretty much the beginning of the group. Tom also taught cartooning at the School of Visual Arts for about fifty years, and he drew the Lone Ranger comic books for Dell.

Before Dell, for about two years, through the old Daily News Syndicate, Tom drew a daily strip about a boxer titled "Flower Potts." I know a lot of stories about Tom, but I do not know the context for these two "How To Pace a Comic Strip Story" pages. Maybe they were part of his reference for "Flower Potts," or for one of his classes at SVA. My guess is that this was for SVA.

Regardless, here's Plan A and Plan B of how to pace your daily adventure strip, all in Tom's hand. It's all about "building up" during the week, and reaching a reveal to readers by Thursday or Friday. Oh, and you gotta constantly recap.

About Tom:

Tom Gill: A Personal Remembrance