andy slocum

flyerstudios.com

2010-03-04T22:43:00.000-08:00

I have no other reason to promote this business other than they do incredible work. I just received my new business cards, and they look incredible. Great price, extremely fast turnaround and shipping, and excellent customer service. Great work deserves great praise. Thank you for my new cards, flyerstudios.com!

Gettin' some new business cards (andy slocum)

2010-02-08T21:57:00.000-08:00

Got off my ass this week to draw a little. It isn't exactly like the sketchbook is bursting at the seams. Life's been keeping me preoccupied. Not busy, just...preoccupied.

Sick...not sick, tired...not tired, busy...not busy, bored...bored.

What's new? All my jokes are sick. I've been listening to a lot of audio books in the car on long drives to and from work ever since I joined audible.com. I thought it was lame, but it's actually a pretty good deal, although the audio quality is less than perfect. Got what I paid for, I guess.

I log in to Facebook every time I need to feel better about my life. I think it's working.

I have a really, really great job. I hope Governor Jim doesn't screw it up for me. He's not really a dickhead. He's just some below average guy trying to save his ass the same as anyone else. But I'd still only give him three weeks on Survivor.

KNPR Interview

2009-10-01T20:24:00.000-07:00

Dave Berns graciously invited me to the KNPR studio to talk to me about my artwork. It was a lot of fun, and I really appreciated the opportunity to share my ideas about cartooning!

Take a listen to the interview:

I love this store!

2008-06-10T14:24:00.000-07:00

I don't normally like to promote retail stores, but when someone does a good business, provides decent prices, and treats me like they want my business no matter how small my order, well... I think they deserve a plug. I highly recommend Papermart.com for just about anything related to paper. I purchase all of my plastic bags from them, and for the standard price of shipping I always receive my order in two days--for you west coast folks out there, anyway. Anywho, I've consistently been impressed with the quality, service, ahttp://www.blogger.com/img/gl.link.gifnd speed of this company, and I hope you have the same experience as I did...

Humor Grafico

2008-01-13T08:37:00.000-08:00

I'm not lying when I say that some of my comics are being published in a Spanish language newspaper in Green Bay, Wisconsin. It sounds like I'm lying, but I'm not. It's a long story, but here's a picture to prove it.

Originally, only my comics without dialogue were going to be published, but then I was asked to do a Superbowl specific comic featuring Brett Favre pulling his tricks out of his helmet. For all you readers of El Hispano out in Green Bay who also happen to be reading my blog regularly, sorry to spoil the surprise, but here's a sneak peek at January's comic. For you NON Spanish speakers out there, it reads, "I know there's a Superbowl in here somewhere."

2007-08-09T15:49:00.000-07:00

Greg Thilmont is this really cool guy and Las Vegas Weekly reporter who supports First Friday Las Vegas, and he gets my jokes! He always has words of encouragement every time he visits First Friday, and he is one of Las Vegas' few genuine people. Check out his blog (especially the one that mentions Andy Slocum!).

Thank you, Greg, for your kindness and support of my artwork!

Click here to read Greg's article in the Las Vegas Weekly

Andy in August, 1974

2007-08-08T20:36:00.000-07:00

Googling Myself

2007-07-19T10:46:00.001-07:00

Thanks, Andy Slocum from Baltimore, for Googling our name and stumbling across my Tweeters! I'm glad I could make you laugh, and I'm glad you found me. The new measuring sticks for measuring my significance in the world are Google and website counters. Sad, sad, sad, but fun, fun, fun!

Duck, Duck, Goose

2007-07-17T23:57:00.001-07:00

It's summer vacation. Time to draw, time to finish those home repairs that I kept putting off during the school year, time to get ready for a baby boy to be born in September. After some intense negotiations, our son will be named Christian Andrew Slocum, after his father. It's definitely going to be a boy. The nurse was impressed by his...err...anatomy. Easy to identify his sex, so to speak.

Natalie is beautiful pregnant. Not at all the crabby, bloated, demanding caricature of a pregnant wife. She remains petite, although hiding a basketball under her shirt. We were even worried about her lack of weight gain. "No problem," the OB insists, "the baby will take what he needs; you just keep eating those peanut butter smeared english muffins." He's kicking all the time. If I talk to him in a deep voice, he kicks forcefully. Hope I'm not scaring him. It's a little like tapping the aquarium glass to get the fish's attention. "You still in there?" I boom to her belly. "Things out here are just fine! I've almost got your room done, although we're still looking for a dresser to store all the clothes your grandmothers have been sending you. I'm going to get a crib mattress tomorrow, or maybe the day after; we'll see if I wake up in time to beat the noontime heat. That's all for now. Keep kicking!"

Natalie is going to be a beautiful mother. She's so worried about it, but I see the way she eagerly sorts the piles of baby paraphernalia already bestowed upon us by many people who love us, and somehow I know she'll be terrific. She's organized, loving, tender, smart, and everything she does revolves around a person we've never even met. I've already taken a back seat, but it's a beautiful drive, so I enjoy the scenery and gaze at her hands wrapped lovingly around her growing belly.

I'm surprised we're grown up so soon. People stare at us as if we're too young for this--especially at her. I want to shout, "I'm thirty-three, and my wife is twenty-seven! We're ready, and we're going to do a good job, and we're doing it on our own dime, not yours!" But I just let them stare. I pretend that we know something that they don't--fantasize that were really are ready, that we really do know what we're doing, we're not scared even a little bit, and that everything is going to be all right.

Fishbowl

2007-07-11T17:00:00.000-07:00

Why DID the chicken cross the road?

2007-07-09T18:00:00.000-07:00

Copycat

2007-06-18T10:07:00.000-07:00

Man, I hate it when I think I have a truly original and funny idea, only to have someone else show me what a copycat I am.

Marco Polo

2007-03-24T16:23:00.000-07:00

This is kinda how I feel today. (Lazy Sunday)

2007-03-18T13:26:00.000-07:00

No, I'm not on vacation, and I don't really have any extra time. I've had a bunch of ideas taking up space in my sketchbook, and rather than go to bed at 9:00 like I have been the last month or so, I have decided to suck it up and stay up until midnight every day this past week to draw. I love to make people laugh, and I love to draw, and lately, I have really needed to do both. I hope you're laughing. If not, I'll just pretend that you are.

Hog Heaven

2007-03-16T21:21:00.000-07:00

Ceiling Fan

2007-03-15T20:22:00.000-07:00

Motion Denied

2007-03-15T18:49:00.000-07:00

Thank you Sara Riley for helping me with this one. It made perfect sense when you said it!

Bald Eagle

2007-03-14T16:18:00.000-07:00

Davy Crockett

2007-03-12T22:49:00.000-07:00

Nothing like a little junior high school to suck the creativity right out of you. Wouldn't be so bad, if I wasn't stuck in 8th grade for the next fifteen years. Oh well. I'd been on such a cat and dog kick for a while, that I almost forgot how to draw birds. Here's a couple of vultures. Nothing gets laughs like roadkill.

F*** the Ocean

2007-02-15T23:49:00.000-08:00

Why would a cat need pajamas anyway?

2007-02-12T22:08:00.000-08:00

You can't really see the bitch's underpants on the website, but they match her red bra. I love to say "cat's pajamas." Cat's pajamas. Cat's pajamas. Cat's pajamas. Cat's pajamas. Cat's pajamas. Cat's pajamas.

Dogs eat dogs?

2007-02-10T09:55:00.000-08:00

One of my favorite people in all the world, a former employer of mine (who also happened to be on the school board) once said to me while I was scrubbing her pizza pans, "Well, it's a doggy-dog world out there." I laughed, because I thought she was punning around. Turns out she wasn't. Turns out a LOT of people believe the saying is "doggy-dog world." It would be kind of weird to discover that I had been the one to misunderstand it as "dog-eat-dog" all these years, but there seems to be enough evidence to back me up. Now go eat some puppy.

Cats will be cats...

2007-02-10T09:51:00.000-08:00

Since I re-built my system software, I don't have the updates that I need to be able to post images directly to my blog, so I'm having to link directly from my website. No biggie, but it took me a few days to realize that I can do this.

Burrows

2007-01-21T20:36:00.000-08:00

Burros. Burrows. Heh-heh. You'd be smiling like a jackass too if you were headfirst in a hole in the desert.

Bingo

2007-01-21T14:28:00.000-08:00

Finally drew something. My friend Todd plays bingo. Occasionally he wins. Bingo is his game-o.

Romeo

2006-12-26T22:56:00.000-08:00

Wouldn't "Romeo" be a great name for a dog that isn't neutered?

Chickens...

2006-12-06T18:05:00.000-08:00

First Friday was once again an artistic success. Natalie was a great sport, volunteering to run the soda booth for Whirligig, helping to show our appreciation for the opportunities that First Friday has given us to mingle with artsy folk. Even though I don't rake in huge bucks at this show, at only $3 a pop for my artwork, I probably sell more samples of my artwork than anyone else there (except Patric).
Anywho, chickens on my brain...

Davey's Locker

2006-11-22T21:41:00.000-08:00

This is the kind of stuff that happens to my brain when I'm overworked, when I'm having nightmares about school, and when I'm on the brink of a panic attack every weekday morning. I dream of textbooks, verbs, nouns, standardized tests, and giant sea creatures stuffing each other into lockers. I remember when I had my first panic attack. I collapsed into the folding doors in the hallway, and crumpled onto the floor like a soggy paper bag. First person I called was my friend Todd. "I don't know what just happened," I said. I was freakin' out about student council, the yearbook, the proficiency exams, my evaluation, undone lesson plans, and my grades aren't done yet, and I just blacked out."
"Oh," he said, "you just had your first teaching-induced panic attack." My first?
Turns out being an obsessive/compulsive nut in the classroom isn't necessarily healthy for me. I need to find an outlet somewhere outside of the turn-in bin. Now I draw comics. Oh well. It's almost better than blacking out.

Cola Bears

2006-11-16T18:35:00.000-08:00

Christmas Cards

2006-11-14T15:43:00.000-08:00

I swore when I started this whole cartooning thing, that I wouldn't do cards for specific occasions. Tweeters was a comic, and the greeting card was simply a vehicle for humor. People kept asking me if I did birthday cards, easter cards, christmas cards, st. patrick's day cards—whatever. "No," I said. "I'm just trying to make people laugh." Last First Friday, I got a lot of requests for Christmas cards. "I can't denigrate Christmas!" I said. "Sure you can," she said. And I guess she was right.

Weiner Dogs

2006-11-13T20:47:00.000-08:00

What if Bulls ate red meat?

2006-11-10T09:41:00.000-08:00

I'm #1! I'm #1!

2006-11-09T22:38:00.000-08:00

First Friday, November

2006-11-09T20:49:00.000-08:00

Family flew in from NY this week and had a chance to see my Tweeters in action at First Friday this month. It was great to have a few familial witnesses to my success down there, and to just plain have fun in Vegas' arts district. Thank you to Mom and Craig for their long distance support! We had fun. Thanks also to all the First Friday patrons who smiled, laughed, giggled, or sneered at my warped sense of humor. It's always a shot in the arm for me to see you all downtown! Thanks for the pictures, Ma!

Me, sporting the new line of "Tweeters Wear," courtesy of Mom Enterprises.

The fans of First Friday keep me motivated to make people laugh.

Finally, an hour or two to draw...

2006-10-18T21:40:00.000-07:00

I carry a small sketch pad with me everywhere I go, and I'm itching to get some of the ideas out of there and onto the website, but I did a stupid thing and sold my prep. at school, so I'm on the treadmill of grading papers, and seem to have very little time for anything else.
Anyway, I seem to have cats on the brain. Funny, because we just got a dog. That makes four rabbits (one in the house, litter trained), one cat, and one shivering chihuahua. Life is one big animal cartoon in itself.

Surrender, Dorothy!

2006-09-05T17:35:00.000-07:00

Okay, so I forgot Toto, you lame-o's. Maybe I'll put him in later just to stop all the whining from the true Silver Screen buffs. "But where's Toto?" they ask, practically panicking. "Toto was in that scene too! And—and they were disguised as guards. They should be wearing guards' uniforms!"

It's a comic. About birds. Birds molt; the witch melted. It's a joke. I'll put the damn dog in, but I'm not putting guards' uniforms on them. Sheesh!

Who doesn't like poop-kebobs?

2006-09-03T09:38:00.000-07:00

Who doesn't like poop-kebobs? Well, there was much discussion as to whether or not they should jokingly be called something more profane, and more closely related to "shish-kebobs," but I think "poop" is more fun to say. Nobody blushes. Everyone just cringes. More importantly, the question remains. Why do dogs eat poop?

First Friday, 9/1/2006

2006-09-02T17:14:00.000-07:00

School started this week, which will certainly put a strain on my cartoon production, stealing many hours of my drawing time each month. First Friday was yet again a fun experience. Barely made enough money to fill up my gas tank to get there, but I made my profit in laughter. Special thanks to all my friends who came down to say hello and show their support for my Tweeters. It means a lot to Natalie and I to see you all down there! And a sincere thank-you to everyone who huddled around my display just to laugh at my cartoons. Nothing could make me more proud! See you all again next month!

I Like Birds

2006-08-25T19:56:00.000-07:00

An old teammate of mine from Broome Community College is now a stand-up comedian, and making quite a success of it. You can find Paul Morrissey here. He makes appearances on talk shows, where he saw this band, The Eels, with their hit song, "I Like Birds." You can watch it RealPlayer style here.

I Like Birds
by The Eels

I can't look at the rocket launch
The trophy wives of the astronauts
And I won't listen to their words
'cause I like
birds

I don't care for walkin' downtown
Crazy auto-car gonna mow me down
Look at all the people like cows in a herd
Well, I like
birds

If you're small and on a search
I've got a feeder for you to perch on

I can't stand in line at the store
The mean little people are such a bore
But it's alright if you act like a turd
'cause I like
birds

If you're small and on a search
I've got a feeder for you to perch on
I've got a feeder for you to perch on
If you're small and on a search
I've got a feeder for you to perch on
I've got a feeder for you to perch on

Zimbabwe Jim of the Celery People

2006-08-24T23:24:00.000-07:00

This is the earliest example of my cartooning that exists today. I think this was for a project in 10th grade, which I failed, because I took so much time finishing the first panel, that I never completed the required three. I was a pretty weird kid, which explains the juxtaposition of such ideas as an African and celery prey. Looking at it today, I'm a little ashamed to see how naively racist this drawing is. But I keep it anyway, as a reminder of my first attempt at creating sequential drawings within panels.

The first cartoon I can remember drawing, was done on a rainy day in upstate New York, at our dining room table when I was seven. Mom and Dad were in the kitchen, rattling things and murmuring. My pencil scratched across the plain white copier paper, creating the profiles of the inside of a cave, complete with a few stalagmites and stalactites. The cave was filled with people, on every level and filling the entrance. I was having a glorious time imagaining all of my people in the cave, fraternizing and thoroughly enjoying themselves within the damp confines of this underground earth orgy. Huh? Did I just say...? Yep, with my tongue wagging slowly across my lips in deep concentration, I was carefully pencilling the naked features of every person in that cave, piling nude caricatures on top of one another, engaged in acts of...extreme friendship. Mom came from the kitchen, rubbing a dishtowel in the bottom of a saucepan. "What 'cha drawin', Andy?" she asked. "People in a cave," I answered. She leaned over the table to peek at my artistry. Then she came around the table, her face a puzzled frown. "Chris..." she called to my dad in the kitchen. He ignored her. "Chris, come in the dining room, and look at what your son is doing..." I had no idea why she was using that tone, and my pencil stopped instinctively. Dad reluctantly came into the room, around the table, and looked over her shoulder. Then he leaned in closer, examining my crude pictorials of debauchery. They looked at each other like I had contracted a disease, and mom wrung her hands around and around the dishtowel. I remember that reaction. That there was a reaction. That something that I had drawn had made them stop everything they were doing, and to be inexplicably drawn to the table where I had been working. I had no idea what they were thinking, and I had no idea that I had done anything wrong. As far as I knew, it was a bunch of people laying around on top of each other in a cave, naked. But to them, I had done something big, something that made their eyes grow large, something that made my mother twist her dishtowel into a knotted lump, made my father clear his throat and push his glasses back up his nose. Nothing that I could possibly remember before that moment had earned any reaction on par with this, and I was proud.

I don't remember much of what happened after that. My memory fills in the blanks with them tautly explaining that they would "hold on to my picture for me," and that I probably shouldn't draw any more people without their clothes on. They were pretty good sports about it, and probably saw it for what it was—a kid's naive stumble into human sexuality.

I don't know why I made that picture. I didn't even realize the significance of my characters'...situation. It just made me feel butterflies to draw it, and I've been chasing that feeling with every pen stroke since that day. I'm chasing it now.

Comic-Con Pics (Finally!)

2006-08-18T22:34:00.000-07:00

This full-scale model of an alien was entirely welded from hardware—bits of bolts, nuts, screws, and scrap pieces—all welded together in a gigantic mass.

I think this is supposed to be Jango Fett, one of Boba's brothers, or cousins, or his father or some relative from the Fett family. Save your lame-ass nerdy critique of my lack of pop-sci-fi pseudo-culture for someone who gives a damn. This costume was pretty cool, for the amount of time it took to make himself (or herself—could have been a chick under there for all I know) into a fantasy character from his favorite space movie. Probably had to sacrifice a lot of nights that he could have been making out with girls to create this one, but it was all worth it in San Diego, when they flocked to the Mock-Jango action!

More hot guys in costumes. No, really; it probably was hot underneath all that creativity!

This girl...ahem... asked Patric out on a date, which of course, he accepted. I call it Super. Patric is well over six feet tall. This girl(?) was flying back to Kreepton when the picture was taken.

How Am I Supposed To Get Any Drawing Done Around Here?

2006-08-13T00:10:00.000-07:00

This cat keeps jumping up on my drawing table and batting at my pencil whenever I wiggle it through a line. At this rate, I'll never get another panel done!

You Don't Count...

2006-08-11T00:54:00.000-07:00

see and buy more of my artwork at andyslocum.com

I seem to be drawing a lot more chickens lately. Where do I get these ideas? How am I inspired? Where is such creative genius founded? Thirty-two seconds after Natalie has reached REM, I find it entirely necessary to throw on the lamp, scribble something about a chicken in my scratch pad, and flop back onto my pillow. This happens 10-12 times each night, on average. Natalie says we had better be as rich as Gary Larson pretty soon, or she's going to stab me with my pencil. I think she's just cranky.

Business Cards Arrived!

2006-08-08T20:18:00.000-07:00

I don't think I've ever seen 5,000 of anything at once. I've certainly never ordered 5,000 of anything before. But every local printer quoted me upwards of $700 for 2"X3" full color cards, and luckygraphics.com printed them double-sided and shipped them from Miami for $140! Did I mention there are 5,000 or them? The box weighed 25lbs.! Now I gotta start giving them away.

You Never Take Me Anywhere

2006-08-08T14:28:00.000-07:00

please see and buy more of my artwork at andyslocum.com

This was a fun drawing to do, because if you look closely, the only "drawing" I did, was the two chubby penguins. I sort of had to visualize where the rest of the elements would fall when final color was added, and I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised with the results.

First Friday, August

2006-08-08T02:19:00.000-07:00

First Friday was a blast, as usual. Where else can you find the work of Las Vegas' finest (and not so fine) artists, cross-dressing nuns, soccer moms unloading vans of young towheads, "antiques" from the 70's and 80's, and satirical, scatalogical cartoons sold by yours truly? Only in the armpit of Las Vegas, the arts district. The first Friday of every month, at the crosshairs of Casino Center and Colorado, my wife and I are witness to the kind of people-watching usually only awarded psych ward medical staffs in blue-filtered B movies. And for too many reasons to ponder in this short space, many of them are drawn to a yellow tower displaying MY comics. We had a few small crowds gathered around the display this Friday—folks jockeying for position to get their next giggle fix from a farting canary, a dismembered rabbit, or an electrocuted pigeon. We never make any money at First Friday. I'm lucky to break even for the love of my hobby. But I get off more on the attention and the compliments than the girth of my wallet at the end of each night. I love to hear folks belly laughing at my jokes, pulling their friends over, "C'mere, you gotta see this!" They read them to each other, as though the other were illiterate, then smile and watch their friends' faces for the glimmer of humorous recognition. "Oh, I get it!" the friend/husband/stranger says. "He's waiting for a date with the cuckoo bird!" More laughter, more sharing, and more smiles from me and Natalie. "Oh, these are great," they say, walking away with currency tucked safely away inside pants, purses, and fishnet hose. We don't sell much, but if we had a dollar for every time someone chuckled...

Thanks to the stroller lady, for actually paying attention to my work, month after month. "Oh, you have a lot of new ones this month," she says, lifting each card gently as she reads them. She doesn't laugh, but she buys. "I have a short stack of them at home," she shows me, indicating with her thumb and forefinger how tall the stack at home is. 's funny, 'cause I assumed people shared the greeting cards—mailed them to each other, shared the joke. Turns out some of them just get collected like baseball cards. Never thought of that, but it's kinda cool.

Sorry to the guys I absent-mindedly ignored for ten minutes past their patience, while I ranted to a teaching colleague about the state of student misbehavior. Natalie told me later that a couple dudes waited a long time to ask me something—didn't want to ask her—waited for me, and then gave up, as I only gained momentum on my soapbox. Hope you guys find the website...

The tax lady finally cornered me this month, wringing $4.50 from my pocket, for Oscar's 7.75%. She was pretty patient with me, and didn't even ask how much I'd sold since October, just since 6 o'clock. I learned an important lesson about making sure next time that my markup is at least 8%. I've never been accused of being a businessman. But I wouldn't mind one day being referred to as a cartoonist.

Thanks, Patric, for always being supportive and polite about my crude drawings and even more crude humor. And thanks for helping me haul my unecessarily heavy display tower through a labyrinth of drunk teenagers and smelly emo chicks. I'm sorry that Drunk Guy couldn't put enough parts of speech together to satisfactorily explain why he was sleeping in front of your booth. When I met him, he was coherent. First Friday has that effect on a lot of us.

Back to the drawing board. When I say that, I actually mean it. It isn't that I'm running out of ideas, but I have to think longer for each new design—try to top the last, continue to get the laughs. I should have drawn super-heroes; they're expected to be campy. I'm expected to be funny, and there's nothing humorous about that.

Buffalo Wing Night

2006-08-03T01:23:00.000-07:00

see more of my artwork at andyslocum.com

Protectin' My Nuggets

2006-08-01T15:13:00.000-07:00

see more of my artwork at andyslocum.com

First Friday coming up...

2006-07-31T00:13:00.000-07:00

The actual site is being updated in short, creative bursts of inspiration, and as I have the time. "Have the time?!?!" You're probably asking. "Don't you have the whole summer off?" Well, sure, but I still have a lot to do as the "house husband" around here, so keep your pants on.

Comic Con San Diego was a blast. Natalie, Patric and I were the only three people there NOT dressed up like a stormtrooper, wonder woman, or batman. David Prowse was there, Lou Ferrigno (I don't even care enough to double-check the spelling of his name; it took me longer to type this explanation than it would have for me to Google it.) Carrie Fisher, Samuel Jackson, the dude who played Jango Fett, and the chick who played the Jedi with blue dreadlocks. I really have no idea who these people are, but I'm sure they're famous to someone. BUT, we did catch a glimpse of Master Stan Lee as he was being briskly escorted from the building in a tightly packed moving mob of fans popping flash bulbs and giggling incessantly. And lots of stormtroopers. Businessmen dressed as stormtroopers. One guy daintily snacking on his $6.00 stale soft pretzel was overheard saying, "Can you believe it? This guy just asked me if my blue shirt means I'm an officer in the Empire, and I was like, duh, yeah! What a dork!" (Yes, I did punctuate that properly. That was the man dressed like a Star Wars character insinuating that someone else was a dork.)

Andywho, I'm off to finish folding and bagging and cutting and stickering my prints for First Friday this weekend. Haven't been there yet? Stop by for a visit: firstfriday-lasvegas.org

Homie Pigeons

2006-07-31T00:12:00.000-07:00

see more of my artwork at andyslocum.com

Puss On Your Face

2006-07-28T00:43:00.000-07:00

see more of my artwork at andyslocum.com

Bringing Home the Bacon

2006-07-28T00:38:00.000-07:00

see more of my artwork at andyslocum.com

Down On My Luck

2006-07-19T22:07:00.000-07:00

see more of my artwork at andyslocum.com

Mice Crispies

2006-07-12T09:19:00.000-07:00

see more of my artwork at andyslocum.com

Inflatable Chick

2006-07-06T21:55:00.000-07:00

see more of my artwork at andyslocum.com

In Case We Get Lost

2006-07-06T21:54:00.000-07:00

see more of my artwork at andyslocum.com

extra crispy

2006-07-06T21:47:00.000-07:00

see more of my artwork at andyslocum.com