Stephan Pastis's Blog, page 8

Ten Years Ago Today

It was December 30, 2001 that Pearls Before Swine first debuted in newspapers.

Well, newspaper.

This strip ran in the Orlando Sentinel, which for some reason needed to start the strip a week before all the other newspapers kicked in. I would later re-run the strip so it could run in all the other newspapers as well.

And in honor of my tenth anniversary, I've signed a few more books at my local Copperfield's Bookstore in Santa Rosa, California.  I also drew a character in each.  So if you want one, just call 707 578-8938 and they will ship it to you.

Now go out and celebrate.

Stephan

And Now For The Cities I Wasn’t Able to Visit

For those of you whose city I wasn’t able to get to on the last book tour, I just signed a bunch of “Larry in Wonderland” books (and drew a character each) at my local Barnes and Noble.

So if you want one, just call and order and they’ll ship it to you. I also signed a few other Pearls books as well.

The number is 707-576-7494, but call quick, as these often go quickly.

And Now For The Cities I Wasn't Able to Visit

For those of you whose city I wasn't able to get to on the last book tour, I just signed a bunch of "Larry in Wonderland" books (and drew a character each) at my local Barnes and Noble.

So if you want one, just call and order and they'll ship it to you. I also signed a few other Pearls books as well.

The number is 707-576-7494, but call quick, as these often go quickly.

The Dotted Line Fades Away — A Few Words About Bil Keane (1922-2011)

Bil Keane was funny.

Maybe that comes as a surprise to those who see the Family Circus as primarily sweet, but it was true.

For years, he hosted cartooning's annual Reubens banquet, which he would open by saying, "It's more than a pleasure to be here tonight.  In fact, it's a damn inconvenience."

At times during the event, he would purposely lapse into this odd gibberish in which he might say every other word in a sentence, causing you to either check your hearing or wonder if the PA system had broken down.  It was awesome because he never gave any hint that it was a joke.  You either got it or you didn't.

And his work in the Family Circus could be edgy.  That's right.  Edgy.

Consider this early strip from the 1960′s where two of the kids are arriving back home after attending a football game with their Dad.  One of the kids says to their mother:  "And we each had a bottle of soda.  Daddy brought his own in his pocket."

I was lucky enough to spend time with him on a couple of occasions, even interview him at his house for the Charles Schulz Museum.  When I was there, we talked about the parodies I did of the Family Circus.  He told me he didn't mind them at all.  "As long as they're funny," he added.  "Just be funny."

It was during that visit that he told me about his USO-sponsored tour of Vietnam, and I remember thinking to myself how much I would like to do something like that.  And sure enough (with the help of his son Jeff), I was able to go on such a tour a few years later in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Bil was my inspiration for that.

Sometimes I would call him at his house.  I thought at first he enjoyed the calls, but at the end of one conversation, he said, "Well, great talking to you.  Now my dinner is cold."  I would have been offended, but I was laughing too hard.

I parodied his comic because it was an icon.  A status those in my generation can only dream of.   And in parodying it, I saw what amazing care Bil took in drawing his strips.

But most of all, he was a kind person.  Every year he sent me (and surely dozens of other people) a signed Christmas calendar.  It was a small thing, but it made me feel like a big shot to get a signed calendar from Bil Keane.

Through his own conduct, he showed each of us in the profession how we should act toward each other, and how we should act toward those just starting out.

And his low-key, friendly reaction to my parodies taught me more about class than any lecture ever could have.

I'll miss him.

Portland and Seattle, Prepare Thy-Beer-and-Coffee-Swilling-Selves

Yes, indeed.

The Larry in Wonderland Tour will be stopping in Portland on Thursday and Seattle on Friday.

Come by and see for yourself whether I look like the degenerate I portray myself to be.

Heck, I'll even draw in your book (depending on the beer you bring me).

For more info, click HERE.

And now enjoy this grunge version of me, twenty years too late.

[image error] [image error]

Ready or Not, Readers, Here I Come

Behold!  I am finally hitting the road.

Here is the complete schedule for my upcoming book tour, which I begin tomorrow.

Come out and see me if you can.  You can even touch me.  (Well, not all of you.)

Just click HERE for info.

Drunken Finns Are Falling Down

It was midnight when the first Finn fell.

"What was that?" I asked the guy next to me.

"The fellow behind you just fell," he said.  "He drank too much."

Someone helped him up.  I went back to drinking.

Ten minutes later, I heard another crash.

"What was that?" I asked the guy next to me.

"The guy by the door just fell," he said.  "He drank too much."

I watched as the fellow tried to get to his feet.  I grabbed another beer.

And fifteen minutes later, another crash.

This time I saw it.  An old guy fell right in front of me.  Took out a table and two chairs.

"What the hell is going on in this country?" I asked the guy next to me.

"Here, people drink until they fall," he said.  "Then they drink more."

A half hour went by.  There were no more falls.

I was beginning to think something was wrong.

"It's been half an hour," I said to the guy next to me. "I think you guys are improving."

He tried to respond, but couldn't.

Because a woman fell into his bar stool.

Four Finns in one hour.  It was a remarkable run.

It was them against Newton's law of gravity, and Newton was winning.

So I tried to figure it out.

And it all comes down to my dad's bowling ball.

You see, when I was a kid, I used to take the ball out of my Dad's bowling bag and set it on the garage floor.  Then I would try to stand on top of it.

And every time I tried, I fell.

The same goes for Finland.

They're at the top of our bowling-ball shaped globe.

And it's hard to stand there.

By the next night, I was taking bets on how many Finns would fall in the bar.  I guessed five.

Remarkably, none did.

I walked back to my hotel, disappointed I had lost the bet.  Deep in thought, I walked into the hotel lobby.

I really had to go to the bathroom and didn't think I could quite make it to the one in my hotel room, so I searched for the lobby bathroom.

"It's that way," said the guy at the lobby desk, "Down that half-flight of stairs."

So I walked over there.

And fell down the stairs.

 

Scandanavian Skies

The Stephan World Tour continues…
If you're in the neighborhood, drop by and see me in Helsinki, Finland next Saturday and Sunday, where I'll be speaking at the Helsinki Comics Festival.
I'm always up for free beer.

Not Fit for Fido

I'm currently finishing up an ebook for the iPad that I'm doing with Chronicle Books.  It's called "Only the Pearls" and is set to come out in early December.  It will have 250 of my favorite Pearls strips, as well as both audio and video commentary.

But in doing the videos, we occasionally used a product for which we needed approval from the company that makes it.

Long story short, the company said no.

They said Pearls Before Swine was not a "good fit" for their product.  i.e.  That the comic strip was not something with which they wanted to be associated.

Was it Mercedes Benz?  Perhaps concerned with tarnishing their pristine image?

The Ritz Carlton?  Maybe worried the strip wasn't a good fit for their customer?

Cristal champagne?  Not sure I meshed with their upscale reputation?

No.

It was a dog chew toy.

That's right.

Apparently Fido would take one look at my videos and spit the toy right out.

So now I can officially say…

My work is not fit for a dog.

Tributes. We Have Tributes.

Recently, cartoonist Lynn Johnston posted this video tribute to cartoonist Charles Schulz.

 

So I posted my own tribute to cartoonist Mark Tatulli.