Ohhh, Donna...

Meant to post this yesterday, but flat ran outta time!

New Comics Day: The Pernice Brothers Die

One of my favorite gigs ever was a few years ago, when Joe Pernice of the Pernice Brothers, having dug a portrait of him that I'd done and sent his way as a fan letter, asked me to create a short comic to be used as a giveaway for folks who pre-ordered the CD Discover a Lovelier You. Joe wrote a little story, I did the artwork and design then sent it off to be printed, and a few days later, several hundred copies arrived at my house, awaiting my autograph. It was indescribably cool to get to work on a project with one of my heroes, and if I say so myself, everything turned out great.

This was the main "story" of the comic, a goofy little rumination on life and death.

As it happens, I have a few copies of the comic sitting around...the next five folks who order something from the blog, my website or at my Etsy shop will receive their very own copy of this rare piece of Ullmanalia.

U-Go Girl

This illustration began as a convention sketch, which I did for a fella at Baltimore ComiCon last year. He posted it to Comic Art Fans, I futzed with it a bit (and added a foot), and then printed it out in cyan on a big sheet of 2-ply bristol. Great inking practice!

U-Go Girl was a pretty awesome character, from Peter Milligan and Mike Allred's run on X-Force. She didn't last long, only a half-dozen or so issues, before dying in the line of duty on some mission in space. The book really didn't last too long, either, which I think is a good thing...it was a blast of gonzo, unpredictable fun every month for a couple years, before going away entirely and leaving you with fond memories (as opposed to apathetic regret that it wore out its welcome). More comics oughta follow the same path; stories are better when they don't need to go on forever.

Dr. Sketchy RVA: Pretty Penny

As a result of being busy as hell with work and SPX prep, and average daytime temperatures of around 1,000 degrees, I've been holed up in the house for most of the last two weeks. Inspired by the beautiful new Rocketeer: Artist's Edition I received that afternoon, I ventured out to The Camel for this month's Dr. Sketchy RVA meeting last Wednesday night. I'm glad I did; the model was Pretty Penny, who had a sort of an old west thing going on...I think Dave Stevens would approve.

The session began at 5, but as usual, I didn't arrive until almost 6, meaning I missed most of the cowboy hat and boots poses (drat!). But Penny's second costume, a long saloon dress, was a lot of fun to draw as well. Anyway, here are a few of my drawings:

Bumblebee Buccos

There was an interesting, exhaustive article on Uni Watch earlier this week about all the times the Pittsburgh Pirates have worn throwback uniforms from their "bumblebee" period (stovepipe hat, black and bright yellow colors, and occasionally, pinstripes) over the last few years. It's a great article, with tons of beautiful photography, and it got me all nostalgic for the stovepipe Pirates cap that I had when I was a kid, and led me to draw up some sketches of that oddball outfit in action.

I've been meaning for years to grab me a new 1970's Pirates hat to wear around and look ridiculous...but the nature of sports apparel being what it is, I can't find one in my size (probably a 7 1/2) anywhere online to save my life. Oh, I can buy this, or this, or even this...but the stovepipe? No dice. Might hafta draft one'a my yinzer pals for an assist on this one...

Gagtown

Until their untimely demise a couple summers ago, I used to occasionally do gag cartoons for Nickelodeon Magazine. It was a fun gig; I miss it.

Hockey Sketches