December 12th, 2018

Ask A Cartoonist: The Spirit of Giving

by Tea

‘Tis the season for giving! This week, our cartoonists shared some of the best gifts they’ve been given–or received– and their favorite comic strips about gifting to get you in the holiday mood!

Isabella Bannerman, Six Chix:

I recently got this nice book from Joe Wos

He traded it with me with one of my cartoon books at NY Comic Con this year.

And speaking of books as gifts, here is the cookbook that I have been looking for. If anyone sees it out there, please get it for me:

 

Bill Griffith, Zippy the Pinhead:

OK, you asked for it. Here’s my take on holiday gift-giving from way back in 1990, just a few months into Zippy’s life as a Sunday strip. Happy and jovial it isn’t—but isn’t there always a dark side to all this holiday merry-making?

 

Hilary Price, Rhymes With Orange:

My favorite comic related gift is getting things wrapped in the Sunday comics! Whenever we give my Dad a present wrapped in comics, it takes forever for him to unwrap it, peeling off the tape just so, so he can read everything later.

Alex Hallatt, Arctic Circle:

I still draw Arctic Circle with a dip pen, but the boyf gave me a non-clogging Noodler’s ink fountain pen that I love for my looser work (e.g.. Doodle Diary, Human Cull) and I’ll be taking that on our Christmas road trip.

 

Ron Ferdinand, Dennis the Menace:

There is NO shortage of ‘Christmas Gift Gags’ in the Ketcham Canon. lol!

 

Brian Walker, Hi & Lois:

A perfect gift for that hardcore Beetle Bailey fan. This PVC set is, in my opinion, the best collectible ever made. I have one in my studio. They were produced by Dark Horse for the 50th anniversary in 2000 and are extremely rare. Available now on eBay for $60 or best offer.

Bill Holbrook, On The Fastrack:

When I graduated from high school one of my teachers was a fan of comics (and one of the few who didn’t mind me drawing in my notebooks). I received a copy of Mort Walker’s “Backstage at the Strips,” which revealed what cartoonists do on a day to day basis in creating comic strips, and encouraged me to think of it as a career. It changed my life.

John Rose, Barney Google and Snuffy Smith:

Snuffy sure has a clever way of gift-giving (or is it gift-getting) this holiday season!