A WHOLE LOTTA STUFF I'VE BEEN DOIN'!

Guess what week it is? Seriously, nobody ever asks that. It's not like weeks have names, like days and months do. Makes me kinda feel bad for weeks that way, since they're the second-class citizens of the calendar. Well, I'm here to change that. This week is significant, because it ushers in the return of my Live Sketch Show (which you can catch at this link)! As always, the show broadcasts at 8pm eastern time and runs until 9 or 9:30.

Tonight's theme is Jim Henson creations, a theme I've done twice before to great response. Anything that could possibly fall under the Henson label--Muppets, Sesame Street, Fraggle Rock, Sam and Friends, The Land of Gorch, The Storyteller, Labyrinth, Dark Crystal, Tales of The Tinkerdee (I did NOT make that last one up)...the list goes on and on. Work up some good ideas, folks, then contact me during the show via Ustream's chat window. You need to log in to Ustream to use the window, but registering is easy. It only takes a username and an email address. Once you've entered that info, you can chat with me and suggest characters to be drawn. Just like always, I'll have loads of useless trivia and my own brand of quirky humor to inject (or infect) into each sketch I create! Hope to see you there!

In other news...

WEBSITE:

I've mentioned it before, but it bears repeating. My friend, fellow comic artist and letterer and web wizard Nate Pride is building me a brand new website, and it's really something special. It will still be called jayfosgitt.com, but will sport a whole new look. We're looking to unveil it sometime this summer, and I'll let folks know as the time becomes more definite. In the meantime, here's a screenshot of the site's homepage:

CARICATURES AND CLASSROOMS:

I spent a large part of last week in Saginaw County (the mid Michigan pocket where I grew up). I spent my first day at The River Rapids District Library in Chesaning, MI, where I taught a comic workshop to a group of children. It was a definitely one of the best experiences I've had teaching, and the people who both run the library and who attended the workshop were very nice. Here's a photo the local news took from the event:

That night and the following two nights, I drew caricatures for Hemlock Semiconductor's 60th anniversary party (an offshoot of Dow Chemical), which was held on Saginaw Valley State University's campus. It was a well attended event run by some friendly people, and I had no shortage of business over the three night event. The best part for me was that they had me set up in The Malcolm Field Theater, a truly grand and gorgeous performance space. I've had a lot of experience working in theater from high school through college and into community theater (I even have a minor in theater from CMU), so I felt very much at home in that auditorium. The worst part of the three day event (and it was no fault of the clients or the venue) was the crappy weather that hit Saginaw county that week. As I left the gig on that first night, I managed to drive through tornado conditions in wide opened farmland. I may as well have had a "suck me up into a funnel cloud" sign taped to my back. But I survived, and the rest of the event was far more pleasant.

I wound up the week by drawing caricatures for a graduation party in Brownstone, MI--a bit closer to my home in Ann Arbor. It was a nice event, great weather, great people. If all my gigs went as well as that one, I wouldn't complain!

NECRONOMICOMICS:
I've been plugging away at new installments of my horror strip, and can't wait to show everyone the results! For those who don't already know, Necronomicomics is a single panel comic I created that lampoons horror movies. I've already had one cartoon run in the letters column of Rue Morgue Magazine, and as of this August 1st, my comic becomes a regular monthly feature! While I can't blow the surprise of what's to come, I can give you a small peek of some artwork:

I mean c'mon, what's funnier than someone eating bloody guts, I ask you?! Trust me, when you see the full comic (assuming you get the reference), it'll be comedy gold! Just be sure to grab an issue of Rue Morgue on the first of every month starting August 1st with issue #114! And be sure to write the publishers and tell them how much you dig Necronomicomics!

BODIE TROLL:
I'm still hard at work developing my new comic book, Bodie Troll. As I mentioned before, the script for the first issue is written, and now it's just fine-tuning the designs before I begin illustrating pages. I think I've pretty much locked down the looks of the main characters, though changes can and will happen as new ideas pop up. In the meantime, you can view my character chart below for the most current looks of Bodie's cast (from left to right: Stoutheart, Cholly, Gossamer, Miz Bijou and Bodie Troll):

LITTLE GREEN MEN:
Ape Entertainment just released the second volume of "Little Green Men", the comic I write and drawn for them. It should hit stores today, and is available on Amazon as well. You can order it there and see the cover by clicking here.

So that about doe it for now. I hope to see some of you on the show tonight! And for those I don't, I hope to catch up with you soon!

Big hugs, folks!

--Jay