Robotjohnny.com>

Lord of the Couch Potatoes

In what is becoming a yearly tradition, I picked up the extended 4-disc set of The Two Towers yesterday.  For the next week I will most likely be found securely attached to my couch watching the movie at least once per 4 commentary tracks and all the bonus features and documentaries. 

If you don’t hear from me, I’ve most likely forgotten to eat, drink, breathe, and get up to use the washroom and have died.  Tell my family I love them.

1 Comment

Some Rejected Illustrations

I recently did some concept illustrations for a series of books for Scholastic.  They eventually chose another illustrator, who was probably better at reaching the “12-year old girl” market, but I can at least show you the characters I created (at 2 different ages):

9 Comments

CGI-Sore

I just finished watching the trailer for The Polar Express, the new Robert Zemeckis/Tom Hanks movie.

Um, so it’s animated?

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again—if you’re going to use CGI to create photorealistic animation, what’s the point?  If you want it to look completely realistic, then use a camera!

What’s worse is that Tom Hanks’s character is just a CGI Tom Hanks.  Sure, it looks good, I guess.  For a minute there I thought it actually was Tom Hanks behind a soft focus lense, until, of course, he opened his mouth and gave way to the telltale sign of a CGI human: stiff, unrealistic lipsynch. 

It’s like watching a Tom Hanks puppet. 

I’m sure proponents of the film will try to explain that it’s more than just animation—that it’s probably the result of a rigorous combination of motion capture and acting like Gollum’s character in the Lord of the Rings movies, but like I said—if you can actually film Tom Hanks, what’s the point?

14 Comments

Mullets!

Check out Mullets, a new comic strip by Steve McGarry and my pal Rick Stromoski.  A while ago Rick asked if he could use my font Turkey Sandwich for a new strip he was developing for Universal Press, but I had no idea to what extent.  The strip looks great, so be sure to tell your local paper that you want Mullets!

5 Comments

You Got Atwood in My Richler!  You Got Richler in My Atwood!

This is how my brain works.  Take a look at this book cover.  I came across this book in a bookstore last night and I stared at it for a moment looking at the photo(s).  My first thought?  “Wow, not a very flattering photo of Margaret Atwood!” Then I did a double take and said to myself, “You idiot, that’s not Margaret Atwood—it’s Mordecai Richler!”

Then after all my confusion, as if I wasn’t stupid enough, I decided to check the name on the book.  The author?  Brian Busby.  So of course my brain, in its infinite wisdom, convinces me, “Oh, it’s not Margaret Atwood *or* Mordecai Richler… it’s Brian Busby!”

I swear to God I need to get a new brain.

4 Comments

Right.  What’s a Cubit?

I’ve been trying to get a producer at work to get me some graphics specs so I can properly deliver some design elements to him.

After countless failed attempts he finally tells me, “You know, whatever, as long as it’s really big.  You know, like, thirty six… thousand… zigga… ziggalas.”

11 Comments

Meanwhile, in the forest, in a parliament of trees…

After years of having really shitty official sites, the Rheostatics, Canada’s most, well, Canadian band finally has a decent website on its way.

The site is live now in timing with the Rheos’ record-breaking 13-night Fall Nationals stint at the Legendary Horseshoe Tavern (breaking their own records of 12 and 11, and Stomping Tom’s 10).  The Nationals started last night and continue to the 22nd of November.

The band’s album Whale Music was recently named the Greatest Canadian Album of All Time by CBC Radio.

Also on the way is a live concert DVD entitled Maple Serum: Rheostatics Live at the Horseshoe.  This news excites me for two reasons.  The first reason is that this will be the second Rheostatics release to be linked to one of my fonts, namely, Maple Serum, which I named in honour of the Boys from Etobicoke.  (The other font-connection is that the band used Girls are Weird for the CD and t-shirts of Harmelodia.)

The other reason this DVD news excites me is that I was at this concert they filmed 3 years ago at the band’s first annual Fall Nationals (I attended all 11 shows).  I was in the very front row and a camera man was tripping over me all night....  I’m sure there will be many shots of me awkwardly rocking out and bobbing my head in all my geekdom, forever a part of Canadian rock history.

Fingers crossed.

3 Comments

In With The Old

While Toronto welcomes in its new mayor and The Armchair Garbageman tidies his desk for his new boss, I have suddenly developed a new system of judging mayoral candidates that I must try and remember for the next municipal election—the cuteness factor.

There is much talk about Miller’s victory over Tory here in the big city (I did my part and voted for Super-Mayor), but let’s not forget our neighbours in Mississauga who once again re-elected warhorse Hazel McCallion.  At 82 years old, she’s been running Mississauga debt-free since 1978.  And is it any wonder?  Look at her—she’s adorable!  She’s like a little municipal leprechaun!  I just wanna reach out and squeeze her cheeks!  (Yes, yes, your dirty jokes are welcome and anticipated)

5 Comments

Charles Schulz, Grandfather

The Comics Journal has reposted the audio of Gary Groth’s interviews with Charles Schulz.  This comes at the perfect time for me, as I finally got around to reading Charles M. Schulz: Conversations, a collection of interviews with the Peanuts creator spanning his 50-year career.

The interview with Groth is included in the book, and it’s by far the most in-depth and original interview we’re given.  The interviews were all conducted independantly over 50 years, and yet they all seem to cover the same information and not reveal anything new—Sparky hated the title Peanuts, he once taught Sunday School to adults, he considers what he does to be a low form of art.  It began to feel like I was reading the same interview over and over again.

One of the surprises in Groth’s interview is finding out that, vulgarity aside, Schulz actually likes the work of Robert Crumb.  When Groth, however, asks Schulz if he ever thought of using his strip to combat sexual frustration in the same direct way as Crumb, Schulz reminds him, “these are just little kids.”

Reading the interviews really makes you feel like you know Charles Schulz.  It’s perhaps how grandfatherly he sounds (even in his earlier interviews when he was in his 30s!).  For someone whose life work has been studied and philosophised (and in the process made him a multimillionaire) he is undoubtedly a simple man.  In a darkly-titled interview with Sharon Waxman called Charlie Blue: The Fragile Child Lurking Inside the Cartoonist, he opines on the bronze statue of Abraham Lincoln that adorns his office: “I bet he was fun to be with.” Of all that could be said or written about the Great Emancipator, that’s what Charles Schulz has to say on the matter.

I went for drinks with a bunch of cartoonists once and several of them shared stories of the first time they met Charles Schulz.  Meeting Sparky always seemed like the goal of any aspiring cartoonist—once you’ve shaken the hand that draws Snoopy you’ve made it.  I, of course, never got to meet the man, but I still feel like I know him.  After all, he’s shared all his insecurities, secrets, fears, and joys with us for 50 years via his little round-headed alter egos.  (He says it’s Snoopy that doesn’t like coconut, but it’s really him, isn’t it?)

Listen to the interviews and you’ll listen to the slow, soft-spoken voice of someone who, though maybe not one of the world’s great thinkers or even someone comfortable in their celebrity skin, is undoubtedly one of kindest people who ever lived—A kindness you wish you were able to wrap yourself up in like Linus’s blanket.  He really is like a grandfather I never met—the kind who would sneak you a quarter when your parents weren’t looking, or listen to all your stories with unparalleled attention, and read comic books with you on a Saturday afternoon.  I bet he was fun to be with.

1 Comment

Syndication Rites

For those of you who do your news- and blog-reading via an RSS reader, I’ve finally gotten around to providing an XML feed for you.  (Actually, I’ve been providing it the whole time, but it’s only now that I managed to put up one of those trendy little buttons on the side there.) Go nuts.

Continue reading...

Leave a Comment

Boffo Lingo

Ain’t it about time you rubes brushed up on your Vaudeville slang?  This schtick’ll really click next time you wanna knock the stubholders bowlegged!  A guaranteed yock.

1 Comment

Mechanical Automatons!

Check it out—robots of the 19th Century!. (via MetaFilter)

The mechanical man named Boilerplate, in particular, reminds me of Chris Ware’s robot drawings, such as the little fella from his Rocket Sam series.

Continue reading...

Leave a Comment

Rainy Day Papercraft Fun

Have some extra free time? Why not try your hand at some papercraft?

(Some of these sites are in Japanese, but you should be able figure them out easily enough.  Just look for the PDF links!)

4 Comments

Type Design 101

There are plenty of resources on the basics of type design online.  One I just found is particularly charming in its use of hand-drawn diagrams (after all, shouldn’t all type design start with a pencil?) Check out typeworkshop.com for their Type Basics.

The site seems to be brought to us by the folks at UnderWare, who give workshops on type design.  I’ve always loved that they share their rough designs and makings of for their typefaces.

(via Snog Blog)

2 Comments

More on OCAD

The New York Times has an article on the OCAD’s new addition by architect Will Alsop (previoulsy mentioned here).

Particularly worthy of note is this quote: “Will is an architect who, in theory, I should really hate his work,” said Rowan Moore, the architecture critic of The Evening Standard.

What a coincidence!  Will is an architect I really hate in practice.

6 Comments