On The Fastrack

Talking to Bill Holbrook feels a little strange at first. Not because he’s hard to talk to, the opposite actually. It’s just that you’re sitting across from someone who’s been doing three daily comic strips for decades, and he talks about it like it’s… normal. No big mythology around it. No “I can’t believe I pulled this off.” It’s just how his weeks are structured. That’s kind of the energy of this episode. It’s not a victory lap. It’s more like catching someone mid-process and realizing the process never really stopped. We get into On the Fastrack early on, and how it started versus what it became. The Dethany piece is the one that sticks. She wasn’t supposed to take over the strip. He thought maybe a few jokes, see where it goes. Then it just kept working. “The gags just kept coming.” ~Bill Holbrook And that was it. Audience picked up on it fast, and suddenly the center of the strip shifted. Not some long-term plan, just paying attention and not fighting it. Safe Havens goes in a completely different direction, which is part of the fun of hearing […]

Hi, all! I hope you are recovering from your Thanksgiving feasts if you celebrate! Today, Saturday, November 26, is a very important day for comics history: the 100th birthday of Charles “Sparky” Schulz, the creator of Peanuts, one of the most beloved comic strips of all time. Usually, we only post about birthdays related to King Features comics, but Mr. Schulz was such an inspiration and good friend to so many of our cartoonists and had so much influence on the direction of not just comics but pop culture in the 20th century that we wanted to celebrate his legacy. Patrick McDonnell, the creator of MUTTS, spearheaded this project in collaboration with the Charles M. Schulz Museum to celebrate this special birthday! As you look around Comics Kingdom today, you will see many of cartoonists have contributed to this celebration by honoring Mr. Schulz in their comic strips. Here is a collection where you can see them all together! Todd the Dinoaur by Patrick Roberts Crankshaft by Tom Batiuk and Dan Davis Rhymes With Orange by Hilary Price & Rina PIccolo The Lockhorns by Bunny Hoest and John Reiner Daddy […]