Okay... I was havin' problems postin' yesterday, so I was unable to do another post... So, I thought I'd get an early start, and see if that would work...



So yesterday was my Birthday, and I turned 36... With the exception of a couple of important errands I needed to run, I had a good day yesterday... I cashed in on my Quimby's gift certificate, that I was lucky enough to find while at "THE HERO INITIATIVE" at the Mecury Cafe, with Rafael Nieves... Part of the Fund Raisin' Event, was a Grip of Comic Boxes jammed full of, well, comics... The "Heroes Helping Legends" folks hid a bunch of gift certificates within these back issues, and I found 2... Yeah BABY, 2 of them... One for Quimby's Books, and the other for HardBoiled Records... I didn't make it to HardBoiled, cuz' the CTA sucks Ginormous Donkey Balls... So, at Quimby's, I picked up "Cry Yourself to Sleep" by Jeremy Tinder... This is a fun Little Book... No, I'm not diminshin' his work, it's actually a little book (( 4 1/2 x 6 1/2 )) ... If you've got 7 Smakeroos, and lookin' for a fun story and a fun art style, go get it... And "DORK" #10... Evan Dorkin is always good for a laugh, and gettin' in touch with your Inner-Homocidal Maniac...


These were 2 of the horoscopes I found for Libra... Looks like bein' Me at 36 will not be so fabulous... As a matter of fact, it sounds like it's gonna be a lot of work... GREAT!!! I can't wait... At least there a few speckles of Silver Lining in that there cloud... Happy Blah-Blah-Blah to Meeeeeee...


A couple of sketches to go with this post... First is ToasterHead... He's probably gonna end up on some t-shirts and stickers...


And, another Wizard World Card Sketch... Inks and Marker Colors...


This is the flyer for the Mini-Con that Rafael Nieves will be signin' at, see His name...


Now, I'm gonna go get Coffee Creamer and some Sugar, so's I can get started on my work day... Hope you enjoyed this Mini-Blahg Postin'... If so, leave a comment, a Booger, or anything to let a guy know you were here...

OH!!! And I rearranged and put some new links in my "Links-A-Roni" section, and started the "Bitchin' Places I Visit" portion of this here Bloggity-Woggity... O.K. BYE!!!

Later,

Tony

Some News...

Today is my Birthday... As of 3:32 P.M., I will be an inhabitant of this here planet for 36 years... Thanks to those who remembered, you know who you are... If BLOGGER let's me, I'll do another Birthday Post... Relax, Calm Down, Do Not Light any Sparklers yet... We'll have to see... But enough about me, for now...

Best Friend and Partner Rafael Nieves will be signin' at Around Comics' Chicago Mini-Con which wil be held at Dark Tower Comics and Collectibles on Oct. 14th. ... The address is 4835 N. Western, and number is (773) 506-0400... There'll be Signin's, Sketches, Door Prizes and MORE!!! I'll be there too, cheerin' Senor Nieves on, heck maybe even do some sketches if asked... Speakin' of which,

A Grip O' Sketch-A-Doodies... Some "Old", some "New"...

I can't even tell you how many "Empty" sketchbooks I have layin' around that are just beggin' to be sketched in... And yet, i find myself doodlin' on animation paper, copy paper, napkins, and what have you... Here's one of those animation paper scrawlin's...


I was just havin' some fun herewith one of my many character design sketches... This LiL Nibbler is Nicky the Hickey...


This started out a Grey Marker scribble, and progressed to bein' inked... Who knows, it might end up on t-shirt someday... Anxious LiL Pud, isn't it ???


Here's a few Moleskine Sketcheroonies... These buggers are fun to carry around to scratch some scribbles in... Some will see the chiseled tip of my markers, others won't... I think I'll leave these as they are...

Ouchie...


This SourPuss started out a Straight BrushPen sketch... Just figurin' out some facial contours... It was easy pickin' this expression since everyone I came into contact that day, seemed to have the same look on their faces...


I was just playin' around with some poses with no one in mind, "Really"... Then they kinda' turned into Spidey... Nuff' Said...


Later,

Tony

I TOLD YOU GUYS THERE WOULD BE SKETCHES!!!

And, here they are... Some Old, some New...

I know, I know... Just about every cartoonist has some kind of Animal, LiL Beastie, or what have you that's wearin' a FEZ... It's true... But do they have Bubble Pipes??? I think not my Friend, I think not...


Another page of Doodled CUCOS!, with Pokin', Proddin', and the Gratuitous Fart Doodie... And, a CUCO! with a Penchant for Christmas Clothin'...


Goofy Doodles at their most Mediocre... So, I thought I'd throw some Marker-Type Hues on'em... Did the colors bring any of these Sketch-A-Roni's to "Life"??? Well, that's really up to you now, isn't it ???


One of the jobs I'm workin' on, has me drawin' stuff that I normally don't draw... ANIMALS... So, I did these Pooches as a warm-up, and liked them... Maybe, I'll keep doodlin' out animals once in awhile, so's I'll keep on top of, "How to"...


I think this speaks volumes on it's own... Don't you???


I wish I knew someone who made costumes... Cuz, I would have this costume and just travel around the city in it...


A Moleskine Sketch... These LiL books are great to mess around in...


That's it for now... Go back to work you lazy slacker, it's over...

Later,

Tony

The last of the Wizard World Chicago 2006 posts...

I would have to say this was a pretty Good Con this year... It mostly had to do with the PEOPLE that I met and reconnected with this year (( You know who you guys are ))... Don't make me name, uh, names... Gus Vasquez, Andrew Kudelka, Johnny & Esmerelda Gomez, Robert, Miranda and their son Remy Perez, Lamorris Richmond, Jiba M. Anderson, Tom Negovan, Ed Dunphy, Alberto Ruiz, and Jose G... Then there's Beth Collier, Nicky's friends Caitlin, and John from outta town...

Raf and I were also interviewed for our BIP (( Book In Progress )) "BLACKBIRDS", by our friends Victor Cantu & Company of

"Fist Full of Comics" ...

... Always Great seein' you guys...

And, the Voice of Comics, John Suntries of

"WordBalloon"

fame... This guy knows his stuff... Big THANKS John, for givin' us some AirTime... Check his site out for Cool-Ass interviews and Loads of Info...

Here's a Promo Postcard we worked up for the con this year...


We also met a very talented Illustrator this year, who goes by the name Caleb Prochnow... Seen here with his Lovely Wife Annie... As an artist, Caleb is top-notch... As a couple, they were great too watch... I've only ever seen dedication like that with Raf and Amy Nieves... Check out his site from my links-a-roni section...


This is Beth Collier, posin' with my sketch of "Carlthulu"... It was Pleasure to meet her, since she showed a sincere interest in what we had at the table, and is as nice as She looks... She's also a painter, with some nice work... I'm glad Carlthulu has a new roomate... Next sketch goes to me Beth...


This the second Carlthulu sketch I did for the "Fist Full of Comics" SketchBook... They're nice enough to post it on their site along with our interview... Next one'll be better Victor...


This is Teddy the Tentacle, one of my legions of CUCOS! ... This one went to Amy Nieves, well, for just bein' Amy... I thought it might be cool to show the inks and marker colors... What do you think ???


This obsessive LiL guy is Selfish Sam (( He's an ornery LiL Bastard ))... I've still got Sam... No one was interested in buyin' him... So, I'm stuck with his selfish ass...


Well that's that for all the Wizard World Chicago 2006 stuff... The next post will just be sketches, for reals...

Later,

Tony

Another Wizard World Chicago 2006 Post (( For those who still CARE))... And then, I'll start to post more sketches... PROMISE...

Big thanks to Amy Nieves (( Better Half of Rafael Nieves )) for bringin' me over to Cathy Hannah's table to check out her book "Winter Beard"... I really enjoyed meetin' Cathy and her friend Meredith, as well as readin' her story... It took me back to a time when it was hard for me to express how I felt about someone, to them... It's a refreshin' read, and I suggest that everyone pick it up... Here's Cathy showin' nuthin' but LOVE for her book...


Here's a close-up, so's you know what too look, or ask for at your comic shop... And, a little sketch she did in the book... Thanks Cathy...


The next few batch of pics, are of a bunch of "COSTUMERS" that attended the Con this year... I didn't get as many pics as I would've liked, but these are the ones I did get...


The guy messin' with the Mandalorian, is my friend Lamorris Richmond... Check out his site in my links section...


The Mario Bros. were a big hit at the con... They're friends of Hyperthetical Partner Jon Knipping... And they were Great Sports about posin' for every person who asked... They probably posed for 20 pics, while standin' there talkin' to us...


Not too overly verbose in this post... I thought I'd let the pics do most of the talkin'...

Catch You Laters,

Tony

Hey Wake-Up!!!


Tony here, and I'm finally back with some Wizard World Stuff... And these are some of the Fine People I had the pleasure of sharin' this experience with...

First off, we've got the man, Rafael Nieves seen here shakin' mitts with the Ridiculously Talented Illustrator Doug Klauba... If someone were smart enough, they'd pair these two together on a book... Rafael was quite busy durin' the whole con... Between signin' books at the Transfuzion table, he was also at the Moonstone table signin' books, meetin' loads of fans, makin' new friends while reconnectin' with old ones... Rafael and I also talked about our project "BlackBirds"... We also did a couple of interviews about it with Victor Cantu and the Fist Full of Comics Guys, and John Siuntres of WordBalloon .com... More on that later... The man is a MACHINE, I can barely keep up...


Here we have Gary Reed, CoFounder of Transfuzion with Rafael, chattin' with some fans... As I've mentioned before, Gary, Rafael, and a couple of other writers are lookin' for a few Great Artists... To embark on the often Perilous Adventure of, COMICS... Think you've got the chops to do it ??? You want it so bad, you can taste it ??? Then what are you waitin' for ??? Head right over to the

Transfuzion Website

and do it, to it... Send in some samples of your Sequential Art for them to peruse... Who knows ??? You might actually get so HUGE, you could quit your gig at POPEYE's...


Next, is Nick Muntean, Protege of Rafael, Buddy Ol' Pal, and future "Wizard Top 10 Writer"... Nicky helped out at the HYPERTHETICAL Table with his visitin' friend John and made sure Rafael and I made it to the con on time a couple of those days... We also talked a little bit about our future project... Way later on that...


Jon Knipping, Hyperthetical Partner, Writer, Designer, and all around Good Guy was there as well... He hooked up the ride Friday, makin' sure the Hype Table ran smoothly when I wasn't there, and previewin' his joint project "Ayomi" with artist Eric Draper (( Pictured below Jon ))... The preview looked Awesome guys, I can't wait...


And the guy coddlin' his Ear, is artist Eric Draper... I met Eric at last years Wizard World, and was impressed with his pencil work... So I'm glad he's on this Fantastic Journey with Jon...


All in All, it was a Really Good Con this year... Check in for more on other Creators, Costumes, Interviews, and ME next time, on "The Lonely Rice Chronicles"... Lonely Rice says, "Be there, or I'll kill you"...

Later,

Tony

...WIZARD WORLD CHICAGO: Aug 3rd-6th, 2006...

Gonna' be there this year with the rest of the

HYPERTHETICAL

Crew, Rafael Nieves, Jonathan Knipping, and Nick Muntean... We'll all be at Table #3117 in Artist Alley, Sellin' Stuff, Previewin' Projects, and havin' Loads of FUN... I'll also be doin' Comission Sketches... So, stop on by and say "Hi" ...

Rafael will also be at the

Transfuzion

Booth, with Transfuzion Co-Founder Gary Reed and the rest of his crew at (( Booth #3085 ))... All you Artists with a strong portfolio, and desire to be workin' in the Comic Industry, stop by this booth cuz' they might be lookin' for you...

And just when you thought you might not get enough of Rafael, that's right, you stand corrected... Cuz', he'll also be signin' books and meetin' his loyal fanbase (( You know who you are )) at Moonstone (( Booth #246 ))... So bring your Hellstorms, Mr. Motos, Phantoms, Vampire:The Masquerades, or whatever Rafael Nieves titles you might have, get them signed and meet the Man yourself... Hell, maybe even give him a hug...

Hope to see you there...

Peace!!! I'm Out!!!

Tony

Hey Friends,

Just lettin' you know about my friend's (( Johnny G ))

BLOG...

... He 's one of my very Best Friends and unbelievably talented... So, when you get a chance, check it out...




Also, keep and eye on

Rafael's Blog...

, where He'll keep us up to date on his SDCC Adventure... Hope you're havin' a Great Time Raf...

Later For You All,

Tony

Good Thursday to you all...

NEWS GALORE!!! Are you sittin' down??? Good, here we go... Best Friend and Partner in everything Artastic "Rafael Nieves", is gonna be at the San Diego Con this year (((SUPER EXCITIN'!!! I'm goin' next year, by Hook or Book)))... And it sounds like he's gonna be "Busier than a one-legged cat tryin' to bury a turd on a frozen pond"... He'll be hangin' with Tom Negovan and his Century Guild/Olympian Publishing peeps... Who by the way, will be sportin' some Sweet-Ass Art Nouvea, available for human consumption... Then do yourself a favor and look for Him at the Moonstone table where He'll be signin' books and meetin' his fans, who have followed his career from Hellstorm, Mr.Moto, Vampire:The Masquerade, and The Phantom... If you're missin' any of these, get up off your ASS and go get them now... Also, check him out at the "Phantom Panel", where he'll answer questions about his Phantom Stories, and maybe relinquish a few more juicy tidbits of future Phantom Goodness... Check out his

...Blog...

for more info... GO!!! The Lonely Rice commands it...

But wait, there's more... Back in May, Rafael, Nicky, and I were at the Motor City Con spreadin' the Goodness like we do... We hung out with Gary Reed and his crew... A Fabulous time was had all three days... It was also the first appearance of

www.transfuzion.biz

... A group of some of the industries best writers, lookin' to hook-up with some artists in order to bring some Sweet Projects to fruition... Check out the site and spread the word to any artists who are lookin' to be a part of something Fantastic...

I'm not done yet... We also met the Guys of

Fist Full of Comics

... Who interviewed Rafael and Me for

PodCasts

that they posted on their site... Check it out...

And now for some Sketchilicousness ((( Like my Made-Up Word??? Yes you do...)))

I received some positive comments on my last art post, about the Barbarian Sketch... So, I'm postin' a couple more of those per request... Before divin' headlong into a project, I like to shake any cobwebs loose with some Warm-Up sketches... So, I figure why not have those be for one of my future projects... Y'Know, build a pile of characters to chose from later on, that'll inhabit that world... These first few sketches are for a Barabrian story I hope to get to someday...

This guy will probably end up someone's muscle... I'm thinkin' that he'll have some secret attack that'll involve that crazy belt he's wearin'... We'll see...



There would be more of this Meanie, but I ran outta room on that page... He might end up bein' one of my Barbarian's main enemies... I think it'll be fun to work out their "Sword Battle" ... I hope to involve hardcore Bladin' and some Mystical Aspects in that fight...


And what would a Sword and Sorcery story be without it's Beasties... This one is a little generic, but I like it nonetheless... I might make it a little more deformed, playin' around with the shape a bit...


These two are from a ton of Alien Sketches I did one night... Same thing about buildin' a treasure trove of different characters to inject into stories... When I get a chance, I'll post more of these...






Well, I did it, I came back while havin' my first Cup O' Joe and put some comments for this round of sketches... I think I'll treat myself to another cup and some mornin' grub...

Tony

Bad, Bad Tony!!! Let another month go by without postin' anything... I should be thrown into the center of an enormous Kickin' Circle, and booted into Oblivion for my Bloggin' Transgressions... "What, you're givin' me another chance"??? Well far be it from me to let an opportunity like this go unappreciated... These 2 posts will be another edition of "BLASTO FROM EL PASTO"... While I was in Puerto Rico visitin' my famliy last month, I was able to scan a "LOT" of pictures of them... So, here we go...

While over in P.R., we celebrated my GrandFather's 93rd Birthday, and a good time was had by all... There was cake and people comin' over to wish him a Happy One... In the back row, from the left we have Mom, Titi O, Grandma, Priscilla, Titi Alicia, and Angelica... In the first row, Nicole, Gramps, and me... Look at that cake, it's huge... There was still cake when I left 5 days later...


Back row, Mom, Titi Alicia, Grandma... Front row, Nicole, Gramps, and Alexis...


Next we have a few oldies of the Womens...

Here's my dear GrandMother when she was just a Teenie Bopper, posin' up a storm with her bad self... You know it's trippy to look at old photos like this of family you've only known as long as you've been alive... Personally, I wonder what she did that day after the photo was taken, or what she was thinkin' while it was bein' took... I'd ask, but I'm not sure that she'd remember and would feel bad about havin' no recollection of that day... Maybe I'll ask her the next time I see her... Con Mucho Amor Abuelita...


Here's Momma lookin' like a little doll... She was a cutie as a kid, huh??? She's always been kinda' shy, even as a kid... Sometimes I wonder what Mom woulda' been like if she had been more outgoin'... If she were the template of the person I'd turn out to be... Or the need to be so practical wasn't so prevalent in her life, how different she woulda' turned out... Then, I think of the person she turned out to be, and I smile... Despite whatever arguments or hardships we've been through, she has been the one consistent source of support my whole life... As I was growin' up, I started to notice that my Mom felt more like a Big Sister while my GrandMother felt like the Mom... Some people told me that wasn't normal, but I think it's a big part of why we are the way we are with each other... And, I wouldn't change that for anything... If you wanna' know how I feel about my Momz, listen closely to Kanye West's "Hey Mama"... I Love You Momz...


Here's Titi O... If they would've had latinos on the Little Rascals, she would've been a shoe-in... Everyone I know has a favorite Auntie... I on the other hand lucked out here, cuz' not only is she my favorite, she's my only Titi... Now, I do have another aunt on my father's side, but I didn't grow up around her, so there's no real relationship there (No Disrespect Mildred)... However, Titi O was very Attentive and Lovin' with me my whole life, even after movin' to Puerto Rico when I was a kid... She's always Happy to see me and Anxious to hear what's goin' on in my life... She even comes here to my blog to check and see what I'm up to... (One of my few fans) I Love You too Titi, never forget that...


This little beauty here is Nicole, my cousin Alexis' daughter... At 8 she already has the makin's of a star in whatever she wants to do in her life... She's Sooper Smart, Beautiful, can Sing and Dance... Spendin' time with her while visitin' P.R. was a real joy... She had me tappin' into Paternal instincts I didn't even know I had... Hell, she's even got me convinced that I can handle havin' a daughter some day... If you know me, you know that the thought of havin' a daughter frightens the shit outta' me... And, she killed that with how Wonderful she is... I'd wish her Good Luck, but I don't think she'll need it... Watch out world, cuz' when she hits, you'll fall in Love too...


That's it for the Womens in my family... Next will be the Gentlemen...

Later,

Tony

Here go the MenFolk, or at least 1 man and 3 chillins'... How I Love these old photos...

Here's my favorite guy in the whole wide world, my GrandFather... This one was way, way, way back in the day... Back when people actually interacted with each other... No internet, no cell phones or any of the stuff that has managed to separate us as a people... I only mention it cuz' when Gramps and I would go for our walks, there wasn't anywhere we'd go that a bunch of people didn't know him... It was, "Hey Don Tono" here, "Goin' for a walk Don Tono" there... Now, don't misunderstand the "Don", he wasn't a gangster... It was a show of respect and admiration for a man well liked... And let me tell you, "Like" doesn't cover it, He's LOVED by everyone who knows him, then and now...


On my trip to Puerto Rico, I scanned so many old photos of my family... Two of the people that I didn't have too many photos of were my two cousins... Which, I thought was a shame, since I love them like Brothers... When my Titi O and Ricky moved to Puerto Rico, I was devastated... I lost my Titi, who has always been like a second mother to me... And Ricky, who was the closest thing I had to a brother at the time... Which is why I was always so excited at vacation time... I wish we were all closer to each other... Anywho, this one here is Ricky when he was cruisin' around on a Go Cart...



Here we have Baby Alexis... I scanned a grip of his baby pics, since I had so little of him to begin with... I mean c'mon, look at that grill, he was so Adorable... It's funny, after Alexis was born, Ricky and I would fight about who would hold him... He would say, "He's my brother", and I would say, "But you see him all the time"... Eventually leadin' to my Titi or Mom takin' him away, and us fightin'... Ahh, good times... On this last trip, Ricky wasn't there (Miss You Brotha'), so I got to hang with Alexis more, and his beautiful daughter Nicole... He's a good soul, I wish I woulda' been around him more growin' up...


And then there's me muggin' for the camera... I don't remember what I was thinkin' here, but doesn't it look like I'm about to say one of my Dumb-Ass comments???


Well that's it for this round... I hope you enjoyed the trip down "My Memory Lane", I know I did... Catch ya'll laters...

Tony