Monday, November 21, 2011

Monday Night Facts


 
Fact: My first professional work was for Jerry B. Jenkins. At that time he was the editor of Freeway Magazine, a large newspaper size supplement for Sunday Schools published by Scripture Press. I submitted a three-page illustrated piece on the doctrine of Kenosis. He wrote back and asked for one extra page to finish it out. I was paid a whopping $100 for four pages of art, comic book style. I could have been paid $10,000 - I was so thrilled to see it in print.

Fact: I used to keep a pocket spiral notebook on me, at all times, to jot down ideas for Calvinistic Cartoons. This was great when my wife and I were shopping. She can stay in a clothing store so long I have to shave again before I leave, so I spent most of my waiting time thinking up new cartoons and features. 
One day, after I washed a load of my clothes, I found hundreds of tiny bits of paper all over the dryer. I had included one of my notebooks (the one that was completely full, of course) in the wash. I will never recover some of those jokes but, at least my ideas were clean.

Fact: Dan Adkins, an inker for DC comics, wanted to hire me as his assistant many years ago. I stayed with him for a week in New York City. He offered for me to stay at his home for 3 or 4 months, rent free - until I earned enough money to rent an apartment and send for my wife and kids. I turned his offer down because I didn't want to be away from my family for that length of time.

4 comments:

  1. Wow, I love the inking and color of comics especially some of their graphic novels but DC has taken such a dark turn lately I'm glad you didn't do it.

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  2. I love old classic comics, had a 2 box of comics but all lost to flood last 2009.

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  3. I loved the old Classics Illustrated. I am pretty sure that after a month or so, the students, who read the actual novels, didn't retain any more of the story than I did by reading the comic book version.

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  4. I remember a few years ago when Tim LaHaye signed a big zillion-dollar book deal, without Mr. Jenkins, hearing that Jenkins' next book would be titled Left Way Behind.

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