Gene Deitch: The Animated WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE

Detail from the storyboard.

Animator Gene Deitch talks about the long process of making the WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE animated film. 

The production was long and arduous, five years of on-&-off start & stop, with Maurice demanding change after change, often contradictory. I still have boxes of letters, memos, notes, sketches, scribbled ideas, rejections, arguments, changes, changes, changes.  Was it worth it?  Well, yes, it’s my all-time best-selling film, and the royalties soothe my memories of pain. I’m posting here a few random samples, which can only give you a rough idea of the ups and downs and general angst we endured.

There are several amazing bits Mr. Deitch shares:

• the now-rare original soundtrack version of WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE,
  
• and an unseen 1984 film of Deitch and Maurice Sendak talking about their IN THE NIGHT KITCHEN film.

Go read the entire tale here.

Via wardomatic! Thanks, Ward!

TROUBLE ON THE ARK by Walt Kelly

The Hairy Green Eyeball Blog 3 shares a complete scan of an early Walt Kelly book titled TROUBLE ON THE ARK. Created under the pseudonym Tony Maclay, this rare item can be bought as a package of reprints from The POGO Fan Club.

Video: Tomi Ungerer

Tomi Ungerer may be best known as a children's book illustrator, but his work encompasses much more than that. Here's a clip from the upcoming documentary abut him. The title for the film, FAR OUT ISN'T FAR ENOUGH, is taken from his book about his time living a self-sufficient life in Nova Scotia from 1971 to 1975.



I've bought a couple of copies of that book -- and always given it away to friends. At the moment, I am without it. FAR OUT ISN'T FAR ENOUGH is worth finding, especially if you are living an urban life and wondering what it would be like to give that all up.

Big hat tip to Vintage Kids' Books My Kid Loves.

Norton Juster Interview

Writer Norton Juster is interviewed by The Onion's A.V. Club upon the fiftieth anniversary of the publication of THE PHANTOM TOLLBOOTH. This is an insightful interview covering Norton's early life and his major books.

I started writing children’s books when I was stationed in Newfoundland. We had things to do, but our time was never that full. I began to do some little stories and watercolor illustrations. And we were living on a barracks ship at the time, so I’d hang them up to dry, I’d hang them up on the bulkhead. After about a week or so, the commanding officer called me in and let me know that naval officers did not draw pictures of gremlins and palaces and castles and goblins, looking at me in a way like, “What are you, some kind of queer?” I had to stop it. He forbade me to do that. But I was hooked.

Just out of a 38 month Navy stint, he found he was sharing a Brooklyn Heights address with cartoonist Jules Feiffer. The two collaborated on TOLLBOOTH.

There are some things Jules likes to draw and some things he does not like to draw. I love maps, and I always wanted to do a book with map endpapers. Jules didn’t like to draw maps, didn’t know how to draw maps, and wasn’t interested in drawing maps. So I drew the map and he traced it over so it looked like part of all the other illustrations. At one point near the end where the armies of Wisdom appear to rescue them from the demons, when they’re rescuing Rhyme and Reason, he didn’t like to draw horses. The army was mounted on horses, so he asked me one day if he could put the army on cats. I said no, I didn’t think that was a terrific idea. So he drew one silhouette of a horse and then projected it back several times so that was all there was, and he put some people on it.

It's all here.

Below: Juster's THE DOT AND THE LINE, an Academy Award winning short animated by Chuck Jones:

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.

Crockett Johnson's High School Cartoons

I missed this until now.

Crockett Johnson (David Leisk), the guy who not only drew the HAROLD AND THE PURPLE CRAYON series of childrens books, but also BARKUS and a revered comic strip, BARNABY, has several rare examples of his high school drawings over at Philip Nel's Nine Kinds of Pie blog. These drawings are from the Newtown (Long Island) High School Lantern.

"Leisk wrote under the name 'Crockett Johnson' because, he said, 'Crockett is my childhood nickname. My real name is David Johnson Leisk. Leisk was too hard to pronounce -- so -- I am now Crockett Johnson!'"
- from Dr. Nel's Crockett Johnson bio page

Dr. Nel is a Professor of English at Kansas State University. He is also the director of their Program in Children's Literature. And he has the best site on Crockett Johnson ever.

He's currently writing The Purple Crayon and a Hole to Dig: The Lives of Crockett Johnson and Ruth Krauss, which will be published in 2012.

CHARLOTTE'S WEB Original Art to Be Auctioned

Heritage Auctions will sell more than 40 pieces of original art by Garth Williams from E.B. White's classic CHARLOTTE'S WEB on October 15, 2010. Press release here. The seminal collection of drawings includes the iconic cover art. Click above for an amazingly large hi res image.

"'There are few people born after 1950, maybe even 1940, who are not intimately familiar with E.B. White’s timeless story,' said Barry Sandoval of Heritage Auctions, 'or with these amazing illustrations. The same cover image has been used for 58 years, and this may be the most-printed cover illustration of any book by an American author.'

"Now the Williams estate is making the art available to collectors for the first time. It was carefully preserved by the family in a bank vault since the artist's death.

"'When Garth started doing books in the 1940s, once he completed an illustration, those illustrations were forwarded to the publisher, used, and then returned to Garth,' says Williams’ friend and attorney Richard M. Ticktin, a spokesperson for the family."

RICHIE RICH Artist Collaborates on Book with Daughter

Cartoonist Sid Couchey looks at some of his illustrations with (from left) daughter Laura Abate and grandchildren Lucas and Christian Abate. Photo by Alvin Reiner.

RICHIE RICH comic book artist Sid Couchey, along with Laura Abate, his daughter, has put together a new book that introduces fine art to children. Titled A CARTOONIST'S INTRODUCTION TO THE MASTERS, the book features Mr. Couchey's drawings of "Champy," the local legendary Lake Champlain sea monster. Suzanne Moore, writing for the Press Republican, has more here.

It's an art history book in simple language for ages 4 through 10 or so inspired by Sid's "Champy by the Masters" series — she [Laura] has written the text, and Sid contributes the illustration, showing how he brought the style of various master artists to bear on whimsical interpretations of the Lake Champlain sea monster.

Shaenon Garrity on Jack Kent

Shaenon Garrity argues that a lot of children's books are great comics. She shares some great scans from Jack Kent's CINDY LOU AND THE WITCH'S DOG, including the above wonderful panel which, as she decribes, and I cannot argue, "is one of my favorite single panels in any comic ever."

"From Crockett Johnson onward, there’s a rich history of cartoonists moving back and forth between the comics industry and children’s publishing, reworking the same basic elements of graphic storytelling for another format, another audience."

SKETCHES FOR FRIENDS Edward Ardizzone

I don't know why, but I have always enjoyed looking at Edward Ardizzone's illustrations. Even when I was a wee tot, in the basement children's section of the Lawrence (KS) Public Library (before it got flooded in the 1970s and they built the new (now old) library), I would check out and re-check out his LITTLE TIM books.



I remember trying to figure out why I liked the drawings. Even though I was a little kid, I was still interested in what it was that made drawings "good." Maybe it was the easy, flowing ink line. Maybe it was his choice of colors. I had no idea that Ardizzone had been commissioned to paint a watercolor of the Queen's coronation or that, before that, he was Official War Artist during WWII. (During the years of the Blitz, he was once arrested as a suspected "enemy spy" by the Home Guard when caught sketching in the East End.)



In SKETCHES FOR FRIENDS, which was published in 2002, I learned that he was also a letter writer, and he adorned those letters with ink and, sometimes, watercolor.

The 2 letters above are to his granddaughter Susannah, lovingly preserved since the mid-1950s.



I now look at the letters like I did as a kid. There are the same lush watercolors and the inky characters, always in motion.



You can feel the weight in his drawings. His large caricature of himself leans a bit to the right, like a large vessel listing; while the doctor stands like a cheery martinet, tilting his head, while saying, "I pronounce you cured[.]"



The Gentleman's Lavatory, drawn in gray and yellow tones. So much action in this one! And the look on the faces -- from quietly desperate to becalmed.



Above from a 1973 letter. What a wonderful thank you note!

I urge you to seek out this book. All these years later, I still love to linger over his drawings.

Related: His MY UNCLE SILAS drawings.

Flat Stanley Visits New Hampshire

My nephew, who lives in North Carolina mailed me a Flat Stanley. I didn't know WHAT a Flat Stanley was or that there was something called the Flat Stanley Project.

A lot of people know about it. But I had never heard of it.

Flat Stanley is a character from a children's book titled FLAT STANLEY by Jeff Brown and illustrated by the one and only Tomi Ungerer. The plot in the book is that Stanley has a mishap and is rendered flat. Stanley is fine, but is now 2 dimensional and is able to slip under doors, etc.

As for the real-life Flat Stanley Project: thankfully, the semi-reliable Wikipedia had the goods on this:

"The Flat Stanley Project was started in 1995 by Dale Hubert, a third grade schoolteacher in London, Ontario, Canada. It is meant to facilitate letter-writing by schoolchildren to each other as they document where Flat Stanley has gone with them. Dale Hubert received the Prime Minister's Award for Teaching Excellence in 2001 for the Flat Stanley Project."

So, back to my nephew: he mails me a hand colored Flat Stanley doll, with instructions that I should take photos of him up here in New Hampshire and then mail him back. And so I did.

This is Flat Stanley's Adventure in New Hampshire.


My thanks to Holy Rosary Credit Union, Tri-City Energy Products, Hair Excitement and Jetpack Comics for their enthusiastic participation.

Interview: Trade Loeffler

I remember seeing Trade Loeffler's ZIP & LI'L BIT "The Upside Down Me" and being impressed with the story and art. I sent him an email and told him point blank: I am a fan.

We emailed back and forth about his comics and cartoons in general, and slowly found out that we both lived in Brooklyn at the time. After a couple more emails, we realized we lived within a couple of blocks of each other. Since then, we've gotten together for beers and burgers, and become pals.

ZIP & LI'L BIT, the Web comic that he created, began in 2006. They are a series of all-ages friendly adventures of a brother and sister.

2010 brings us his new ZIP & LI'L BIT story, "The Captain's Quest," which began last Sunday. And Trade's first work in print, ZIG AND WIKKI IN "SOMETHING ATE MY HOMEWORK," has just been published by Toon Books.


Above and the below 2 panels: the beginning of the mystery of "The Upside Down Me."

Your ZIP & LI'L BIT stories seem inspired by McCay and Sendak (and maybe a wee bit of Lewis Carroll), who dealt with kids in strange dreams and having to use their wits to resolve their situation. This latest one promises to maybe have some hints of Segar. What cartoonists do you think of when producing ZIP & LI'L BIT?

I've definitely been inspired by all the artists you just mentioned. I would also list all the artists who worked on the old Disney cartoons and movies as having a tremendous influence on Zip and Li'l Bit.

How far ahead do you work? Is the story finished as of now or do you still have to write the ending? What percentage of the art is done before you post the first page on average?

The written portion of The Captain's Quest is finished. Other than the thumbnails I'll draw out as I'm writing, I won't do any artwork until I've got the story figured out. I find that I usually have to re-work my stories quite a few times before I'm happy with them. As far as the artwork goes, now that I've started posting the strip, I'm about ten pages ahead. Hopefully, I'll be able to keep that buffer there for the whole run of the story, but it's tough to keep up sometimes with a job and a kid.

What part is your favorite: the writing or the drawing?

The writing is definitely my favorite. I've always got a good idea of what's going to happen, or what needs to happen in a story, but I never know how it's going to happen. Figuring that out is always surprising to me and that's the funnest part of the whole process I think.


What is your workspace like?

Well, since I live in the city, my workspace is small and cramped. I've got my computer set up in our living room, and my drawing table is actually a dresser from IKEA. It's kind of silly because the surface of the dresser isn't even particularly smooth, so when I'm drawing or inking and I need a line to be nice and clean, I'll have to move the paper so it's over the smooth parts of the dresser. That probably doesn't sound too professional, does it?

What tools do you use when you draw?

I use markers. When I started drawing comics, I tried using those because they were nice and quick and I always told myself that as I got better, I'd switch over to a brush and ink, but those dang pens are so nice and quick for me, I haven't made the switch yet. Someday…

What cartoonists' work do you enjoy buying and reading now?

John Stanley's Thirteen Going on Eighteen is hands down the best comic book I've read lately. Richard Thompson's Cul de Sac strip is awesome! I've gotten my whole family hooked on that one.


Are there any plans for ZIP & LI'L BIT stuff to buy: books, t-shirts?

I wish I could say yes to that, but sadly the answer at this point in time is no.

You illustrated the book ZIG AND WIKKI IN "SOMETHING ATE MY HOMEWORK," which will be out soon from TOON Books. How did you get the gig?

The editor at RAW Junior, Francoise Mouly, had seen Zip and Li'l Bit online and contacted me about doing a book for her TOON Books series, which is a series of comic books created for early readers. The lineup of artists and writers that have created books for the series is amazing, and the books are fantastic. My son who's six years old reads them over and over and over, which is the best endorsement you can give for a kids' book. Can I give a shameless plug for the TOON Books site? Go to: http://www.toonbooks.com/



Was it more challenging working with a writer and editor (Francoise Mouly) on ZIG AND WIKKI than doing your Web comic by yourself?

The big challenge for me was that it was the first time I'd done a lot of things. It was the first book I'd done for print. It was my first time working with an editor. It was my first time collaborating with a writer on a comic. The writer of the ZIG AND WIKKI book is Nadja Spiegelman (who is Francoise and Art's daughter), and the characters she came up with for the story were awesome, which was also challenging because then I had to come up with illustrations that could do justice to Nadja's characters. Overall, I think everyone was really happy with the finished product. I'm definitely proud of how the book turned out. I hope that kids will dig it.

What did it feel like when you saw it on the shelf at your local Rocketship Comic Book Store in Brooklyn?

I don't know if I should say this, but I wasn't as excited as I'd expected. I had finished work on the book awhile ago and had advance copies and all, so when I saw the book in the store, it didn't seem like that big of a deal. Now, if they're all sold out next time I go in the store, I'll be ecstatic.

Above: some behind the scenes images from Trade Loeffler's "Storytelling 101" series.

Your wife is a successful working actress. Do you show her your work in progress?

Yes, I make my wife look at my comics as I'm working on them. Thankfully, she puts up with it and just gives me encouragement.

Will there a fourth ZIP & LI'L BIT? What future projects will there be?

There will definitely be a fourth Zip and Li'l Bit. I started writing it a while back, hit a wall with it, and have now started getting back into it. It's got some great characters that I'm really excited about. I don't know what projects other than that I'll have going on in the future. I've got a really fun twenty page story that doesn't star Zip and Li'l Bit that I've got written, I just don't know when I'll get a chance to do the artwork. If I could quit my job, that'd leave me more time to spend drawing and I could post more comics. Pray for me to win the lottery, will you?

Bob Staake: From Sketch to Finish

Here is Bob Staake's "How I do a Spread."

Above is, as you can see, is his rough for WE PLANTED A TREE by Diane Muldrow, which is coming from Random House this spring.

You can also appreciate how much actual, physical pencil-on-paper drawing goes into the heart of the rough before Bob works his PhotoShop magic.

I love learning the working methods of illustrators of Bob's caliber. And I'm grateful that from time to time he will share some of his behind-the-scenes process.

Jim Benton Video

Here's a short video interview of Jim (Happy Bunny, Franny K. Stein, Dear Dumb Diary, etc.) Benton from Simon & Schuster.

A Tale of Two Cartoonists by Hugh Turley

Above: ©2001 Skippy, Inc. Joan Crosby Tibbetts

One of the truths of the cartooning business is that you don't get to choose what you'll be remembered for. Your fate is handed, first, to a series of editorial gatekeepers. If you can find someone who likes what you do then maybe jut maybe you'll get a buy. And, second, it's then up to people out there in the real world who consume your work. They will determine if you have value and meaning. They will either give a shrug, or demand more.

"A Tale of Two Cartoonists," is an April 8th column by Hugh Turley, from The Hyattsville Life and Times. The piece recounts the fortunes of two of the best cartoonists in the 20th century: Theodore Geisel (Dr. Seuss) and Percy Crosby (SKIPPY).

DC Dave has a link to the article (The Hyattsville Life and Times has no Web presence that I can Google up and may be, apparently, the little newspaper at the end of time.)

Percy Crosby, whose work I personally put at the top of the heaps of great cartoonists, was a huge name in the 1930s. Schulz cited his SKIPPY comic strip as an influence. If you get a chance, please visit Skippy.com, which is run by his daughter, Joan Crosby Tibbetts, President, Skippy, Inc., and Administratrix of the Percy Crosby Estate.

Once you browse the site, you'll see some great cartoon work, as well as the details of Unilever's theft of the character's name; "... they remain willfully blind when it comes to stealing the SKIPPY name and character that Percy Crosby created and made world famous."

SKIPPY didn't play by the rules. SKIPPY shredded hypocrisy with a bit of humor and whimsy, along with Percy Crosby's signature bold pen line. His work resonates, and deserves to be remembered. I'm thankful to Joan, whom I call a dear friend of my family, for showcasing her Father's work on the SKIPPY site.

Thank you, Joan!

Bill Woodman

I want to tell you a bit about Bill Woodman, who is one of my favorite cartoonists. The best introduction to Bill is to show one of my favorite cartoons. I like a lot of his cartoons. They are sketchy, loose and very expressive.

Above: The man, impatiently looking at his watch, as his self-obsessed dog tries on a variety of hats is funny. What puts it over the top for me -- what made me love this cartoon -- was the smile of the dog. It's just a short line -- but very expressive. The dog is delighted with his hats and this is a fun decision.


Bill is a Mainer, which means he was born in Maine. After a stint in the navy, he went to New York City. From his bio:

Upon discharge, he took the next bus to New York, knowing that that was the place to start his cartooning career. He says he didn't know how bad he was so he began submitting his work.

He worked for years in New York City, drawing cartoons and children's books. He is still working, and has returned to Maine. Bill just had a couple of cartoons in recent issues of Playboy. Cartoonists never retire.

I can attest to the above winds along Casco Bay, where John Klossner and I have visited Bill for lunch a couple times.

Above: click to supersize this one. A great gag.


Above: there used to be days like this in NYC, but milder winters have been the norm in recent years.


The amazing thing about those subway girders is that, yes, in real life, you COULD put shelves in them.

I hope that Bill doesn't mind me posting just a few cartoons from his site Bill Woodman Art. Take a look at some of his paintings as well. A multi-talent, this guy is.

Video: Shaun Tan THE LOST THING

Above: a screenshot from the video of Shaun Tan's studio.

Even if you do not know who Shaun Tan is, please take a look at inFrame.TV's 5 minute documentary on Mr. Tan and his work on animating his book THE LOST THING.

I forget how much I admire his work, and enjoyed seeing him for the first time on video. The short animation looks like a labor of love. I agree with him regarding creativity: it's a difficult process.

A big hat tip to Journalista!

Quentin Blake

Above: a screenshot of one of Mr. Blake's videos.

Illustrator Quentin Blake is one of those quiet fellows who has been around (over 300 books so far) and influenced a generation. Best known as the fellow who draws the pictures in the Roald Dahl books, his latest project is THE BOY IN THE DRESS written by Little Britain's co-star Richard Walliams.

BBC has a profile of Quentin Blake here.

And Mr. Blake's site has a couple of wonderful videos, that take us into his studio where he shows us his process. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED even if you don't know who this Blake guy is. Just look at his organization (over 200 books' worth of originals, all neatly cubby-holed by title in their own portfolios) and we get to watch his drawing and redrawing process -- in real time. This is really good stuff and worth the clicking and watching time to do.

A big hat tip to the Forbidden Planet blog.

Video: Dr. Seuss Documentary

From The History Channel, here is a Dr. Seuss documentary via YouTube. It looks as if it was a companion bit of hype to accompany the big screen CAT IN THE HAT (2003) movie. Aside from the sizzle of the "go and see the movie" aspect, there is some substance regarding Ted Geisel, including footage from a 1950s game show appearance and some juvenilia (doodles in the margins of his school notes). Worth a peek.

Below is Part One, with links to the other parts:



Part Two

Part Three

Part Four

Part Five

Part Six

Part Seven

Part Eight

Part Nine

Video: Jeff Kinney on his DIARY OF A WIMPY KID Series

From the corporate media division at Borders:

Jeff Kinney Talks Diary of a Wimpy Kid:



Jeff Kinney Explains Writing Diary of a Wimpy Kid: