Tom's Mad Blog
September 26th, 2018 | Posted in Sketch O'The Week
I’m on an actual vacation right now, and all these posts were done in advance so the blog wouldn’t miss a beat while I am drinking wine and eating cheese in France. Here’s a flashback SotW of pop queen Katy Perry, originally done in 2010 in pencil but digital grays added for the book. -Tom is on vacation outside the country, so comment moderation and responses may not happen for a while. Je suis désolé!- READ MORE
September 25th, 2018 | Posted in Stuff from my Studio
Photo ©2012 Greg Preston This is one of my favorite pictures in the world. It was taken by photographer extraordinaire and author of the terrific books “The Artist Within” Volumes 1 and 2, Greg Preston. The 2012 National Cartoonists Society Reuben Award Weekend took place in Las Vegas, and we had both a MAD panel and a 60’s “MAD MEN” themed party to celebrate the magazine’s 60th birthday. I still pinch myself that I am included in this photo of serious legends of cartooning and comics (and a couple of models). This picture is hanging right above my drawing board to motivate me to work… READ MORE
September 24th, 2018 | Posted in MAD Magazine
Here’s another close-up sneak peek of a panel from the piece I did in the upcoming Halloween-themed MAD #4! You might be sensing a theme here as well. -Tom is on vacation outside the country, so comment moderation and responses may not happen for a while. Je suis désolé!- READ MORE
September 23rd, 2018 | Posted in Mailbag
Q: When you need to do a movie or TV parody for MAD, how much time do you spend researching the subject matter? Do you watch the movie just once, or a few times? Do you watch just an episode or two of the TV show or an entire season or more? A: There are big differences between movie parodies and TV show parodies with respect to the research I put in. Both have their advantages and disadvantages. Movie parodies are far less time consuming to research but usually require a lot more work to find actual references from the film and of the actors.… READ MORE
September 21st, 2018 | Posted in General
The internet can be a wonderful thing, but it does have a significantly ugly underbelly. One of the worst aspects of the internet is that it has trained a generation of users that anything they can find on the web is theirs to use as they wish, simply because no one is there to stop them from stealing it and using it. The result is that “intellectual property” i.e. stuff people create like art, writing, photography, etc. has become devalued. Far too many internet users think they everything on the web should (and is) free for the taking. People who would would never dream of… READ MORE
September 20th, 2018 | Posted in Illustration Throwback Thursday
I did this illustration back in 2007 for a series of audiobooks of the original Sir Conan Arthur Doyle Holmes stories called “The Consummate Holmes Canon”, narrated by the terrific David Ian Davies. It was not a caricature of anyone in particular, just my take on a caricature of Holmes. They used different color effects for the various audiobook collections: I believe the eight different collections are still available on Audible.com. If you love Holmes these are some of the most enjoyable audiobook versions you can find… David is like a full cast all in one. -Tom is on vacation outside the country, so comment… READ MORE
September 19th, 2018 | Posted in Sketch O'The Week
Pencil on drawing paper. Original available in the Studio Store. READ MORE
September 18th, 2018 | Posted in General
There’s yet another lively discussion at the International Society of Caricature Artists Facebook page going on, this time about street, fair, theme park, etc. (known collectively as “retail” caricaturists, meaning they sell their work directly to their subjects as opposed to “gig” caricaturists, who are paid by a client to draw the people at the client’s event) putting up work on their display boards that are not their art but caricatures by others stolen from the internet. You see it a lot in tourist trap areas like Times Square, Montmartre, Leicester Square, etc. I’ve blogged about this multiple times. Like here. And here. Oh, and… READ MORE
