Author: Chad Frye

Happy Free Comic Book Day!

Post author By Chad Frye
Post date May 2, 2009

fcbd_date_wide

Today, May 2, in comic shops all across the United States it is Free Comic Book Day! Huzzah! Hooray!

“What does this mean?” you ask? It means that any comic shop worth it’s salt is giving away select comics just today. All you have to do is walk in to your local shop and see what they are offering! Different shops may have different comics, too! Judging by my work that you’ve seen me post here on the blog, you can probably tell I’m into the more cartoony stuff, and lately there have been more comics for kids coming out, especially from D.C. One of my new favorites is the Shazam series written and drawn by my friend Mike Kunkel. Even if your local shop doesn’t give this one away today, you should buy all four issues NOW!

This is the cover of the first issue of Mike Kunkel’s “Shazam” comic book. A bi-monthly, there are four issues available for you to catch up on!

But wait! There’s more……

Can’t get to your local comic shop you say? Have no fear! You can get something completely for FREE just for sending an e-mail from the comfort of your own home! My friends Tom Heintjes and David Folkman put together a really terrific magazine all about comics, animation and cartoonists called Hogan’s Alley. The latest issue (pictured here) even has an article on Al Hartley (he did Christian Archie comics), the cartoonist who gave me my start in the business. For today only, they are offering to mail you a copy of their great magazine for the effort you put forth in sending them an e-mail!

This is the cover of the current issue of the great “Hogan’s Alley” magazine!

Here’s the official offer from Hogan’s Alley:

Even in the depths of the Great Recession, the best things in life are free! Mark your calendars for this Saturday, May 2: Free Comic Book Day. Send us an e-mail ON THAT DATE with your mailing address, and we’ll send you a FREE issue of Hogan’s Alley! No obligations, no strings attached; the only thing it will cost you is several hours as you enjoy the issue. (This offer is valid for all U.S. residents, whether you’re a current subscriber or not.) Remember the one condition — we must receive your e-mail request on Free Comic Book Day (May 2), not the day before or the day after. (Before and after that date, any requests for freebies will receive only scorn and derision.) Feel free to pass this offer along to anyone you know who might enjoy Hogan’s Alley!

So, here’s the official e-mail address to request your free issue of Hogan’s Alley: hoganmag@gmail.com

Happy Free Comic Book Day everybody!

Comic Books

Drawn & Quoted: Monstrous Joy

Post author By Chad Frye
Post date April 29, 2009

“The point of living and of being an optimist, is to be foolish enough to believe the best is yet to come.”

– Peter Ustinov (1921-2004)

Jack Kirby’s Captain America

Post author By Chad Frye
Post date April 26, 2009

Well, here’s a comic combo no one ever thought they’d see – a Captain America splash page penciled by the late great Jack Kirby, inked by Chad Frye.

My friend Steve Wyatt organizes a comic book convention each year in San Jose, CA called Super-Con. This year the event takes place on May 16 and 17 at the San Jose Convention Center. One of the events during the weekend is an auction of original art with some of the money going to The Cartoon Art Museum of San Francisco, and some to the Hero Initiative (a non-profit that helps out cartoonists that have fallen on hard times).

Steve had four drawings for us to choose from to ink. They were all printed in blue line on bristol so we could just pick up and go. Besides the Kirby drawing, three other drawings were penciled for the event by my pal Bill Morrison of Bongo Comics, Alex Ross, and Mark Schultz. I chose the classic Kirby one to ink.

Captain America penciled by Jack Kirby in the early 1990s, inked by Chad Frye in 2009

Steve has an impressive line-up of artists who are inking pages for this event. Along with mine, others in the auction were inked by Alex Niño, Ernie Chan, Adam Hughes, Frank Cho, Jason Palmer, Howard Chaykin, Micheal Golden, Talent Caldwell, Craig Hamilton, Buzz, Bill Morrison, Mick Gray, David Williams, Steve Mannion, Stuart Sayger, Mike Bair, Tony DeZuniga, Danny Bulanadi, Tim Vigil, Wade Furlong, Steve Leialoha, Bill Pressing, Pablo Marcos, Dan Brereton, and even more as the event draws closer.

So, if you are in the San Jose area that weekend, perhaps you’ll have a crack at this and the other pieces in the auction at the Con.

If you want more info about the Super-Con, please click HERE.

Art: Inking Comic Books

Photo Contest Winner Announced!

Post author By Chad Frye
Post date April 24, 2009

Over on the Chad Frye • Illustration Guy Fan Page on Facebook, I’ve been running a photo contest for the past month. The instructions were simple – take a photo of yourself with a book, card, poster, piece of art, or even a print-out of something of mine. Be as creative as possible. Photos came in from all over the United States taken anywhere between Hawaii all the way to Ireland! It was really terrific.

One of the early front runners was this picture of Brian Hohlfeld, the executive producer of The Disney Channel’s “My Friends Tigger & Pooh” show taken in Hawaii while holding one of Chad’s Christmas cards.

Another early favorite was this photo by Andy Heckathorne who works at Penn State University. He has Chad’s recent Frankenstein head attached to the statue of Joe Paterno at Beaver Stadium.

All the photos were due this past Monday, and then the real contest began to see how many votes the photos would get from the fellow fans in order to choose a winner. Voting has been fierce this week. The voting started with about five photos being neck in neck, then three of them surged forward with more votes. A quick check to discover that those three photographers were doing some pretty good campaigning for their photos – not at all against the rules.

This sweet photo sent in by Shawn Garzony of South Carolina shows her daughter with Chad’s second book, “My Bible” (published by Barbour & Co. in 1993). This earned a highly respectable 26 votes for third place.

Then, in just the past day, two pics pulled away on their quest to be first at the finish line. The race has been very exciting with votes coming in from all over the country. First it was one out in front, then the other. The tension was edge-of-your-seat thrilling!

This shot of Michael Boone was sent in by his brother Matt. While standing on the campus of Bob Jones University in Greenville, SC, Michael is holding a sketch of Mushu from Disney’s “Mulan” that Chad drew back in 1998. This had 33 votes.

And then pulling away with just 3 extra votes for a grand total of 36 is our winner, Heather Lynn Lewis Schaub of South Carolina. Heather’s was certainly the most bizarre entry. She managed to acquire a print of a “magic toenail” I drew for a mutual friend who had recently lost a toenail due to long distance running. So Heather got her family together in front of the SC State Capitol Building and took this shot of their feet with the little purple toenail drawing.

This odd, and yet strangely creatively compelling photo by Heather Lynn Lewis Schaub was the winner with 36 votes.

So, what does Heather win for all her trouble? She wins the original gorilla drawing titled The Wingman featured here on the blog in a recent “Drawn & Quoted” column. That’s right, she won an original piece of art! Not too shabby for humiliating her family out in public.

So, are you on Facebook? Do you like Chad’s art here on his BLOG and on his WEBSITE? Come on over and join the Chad Frye • Illustration Guy Fan Page on Facebook where future contests will be held.

For you Facebook customers, come check out all the entries in this photo contest by clicking HERE!

Contests

Beamed Aboard the Star Trek Scoring Sessions

Post author By Chad Frye
Post date April 21, 2009
1 Comment on Beamed Aboard the Star Trek Scoring Sessions

Earlier this year when I first started this blog, my very first post was to share with you my “courtroom sketches” of a scoring session with composer Michael Giacchino and the music crew for the upcoming Star Trek movie directed by J.J. Abrams. The drawings were originally shown on the website ScoringSessions.com. At the time, Paramount didn’t want a lot of press that far in advance of the film, so the photographs had to be held back for awhile. Thus the reason for the less sensitive artist renderings that appeared on that site, and later on this blog.

Well, those photographic restrictions have been lifted, and Dan Goldwasser over at ScoringSessions.com has posted his wonderful photographs of the Star Trek crew hard at work. I’ve posted one here to wet your whistle – and yeah, I chose it because I’m in it, too.

Orchestrators Chad Seiter and Chris Tilton, director J.J. Abrahms, music editor Steve Davis and composer Michael Giacchino. Illustrator Chad Frye is all the way over on the left side in the background. — Orchestrators Chad Seiter and Chris Tilton, director J.J. Abrams, music editor Steve Davis and composer Michael Giacchino. Illustrator Chad Frye is all the way over on the left side in the background.

To see the rest of the Star Trek recording sessions images, along with Dan’s great commentary on what was going on in the shots, please visit his website, ScoringSessions.com, by clicking HERE!

And if you’d like to see my “courtroom sketches” again, you can see them HERE on ScoringSessions.com, or HERE on my blog.

Chad About Town Film Music

Pooh & the Honey Tree

Post author By Chad Frye
Post date April 19, 2009

Having worked on television projects with both Mickey Mouse and Winnie the Pooh, I still love to draw the characters from time to time. Usually it’s for friends such as this piece I share with you today. This was a birthday card I made a few weeks ago for a friend on the occasion of her sixtieth birthday. As matriarch of her family, I thought she deserved the whole queen bee analogy.

Winnie the Pooh bringing a pot of honey to the queen bee on her birthday.

If you’d like to see other things I’ve done for the actual Disney Channel show My Friends Tigger & Pooh, click HERE.

If you’d like to see my other fan/friend sketches and cards of Pooh and the gang in a previous blog post, click HERE!

Animals Art: Watercolor Disney Illustrations

NCSF Jay Kennedy Memorial Scholarship Winner

Post author By Chad Frye
Post date April 16, 2009
2 Comments on NCSF Jay Kennedy Memorial Scholarship Winner

This week the National Cartoonists Society Foundation (NCSF) announced the winner of the second annual Jay Kennedy Memorial Scholarship given to a college student who shows real promise in the world of cartooning.

Entries came in from students all over the country, and after a tough committee process, the NCSF picked their winner. This year the winning student was Chris Houghton who is a junior at the College for Creative Studies in Michigan. Below is one example of this student’s fine work.

by Chris Houghton, winner of the 2009 NCSF’s Jay Kennedy Memorial Scholarship

These kids really had a great opportunity in applying for this scholarship. They not only win a tidy sum to help with their schooling, but they also win an all expense paid trip to the National Cartoonists Society’s annual Reuben Awards to accept the prize. This year the Reubens will be in my neck of the woods when it comes to Hollywood for the Memorial Day weekend.

Also, the applicants get their work before a fine group of professionals who thoroughly discuss the entrants and their work. I know this because as a board member of the NCSF, I was one of the judges. Some others on the judging panel with me included Rick Kirkman (“Baby Blues” comic strip), Tom Richmond (MAD Magazine), Daryl Cagle (MSNBC.com politcal cartoonist), Michael Ramirez (Investor’s Business Daily political cartoonist & last year Pulitzer winner), Sandra Lundy (“Between Friends” comic strip), and other fellow freelance cartoonists John Kovaleski (who spearheaded the committee), Sean Parkes, and Ken Alvine.

The NCSF is a fully licensed non-profit organization, and can always use your tax deductible donations for things like this scholarship, helping to further other items of importance to the field of cartooning, and helping out cartoonists in need. Click HERE to visit the NCSF website!

And to see the full press release on the Jay Kennedy Memorial Scholarship winner with even more samples of his art, please click HERE!

Chad About Town Contests

Drawn & Quoted: The Wingman

Post author By Chad Frye
Post date April 12, 2009
2 Comments on Drawn & Quoted: The Wingman

“Nothing so fortifies a friendship as a belief on the part of one friend that he is superior to the other.”

– Honorè de Balzac (1700-1850)

If you really dig this sketch, and you have an account on Facebook, please come check out the Chad Frye • Illustration Guy fan Page where you can read about how you can win this ORIGINAL ART in a contest that ends on April 20th! On the left side of the fan Page you will see a link to the event “ANOTHER WIN A FREE FRYE SKETCH CONTEST!” with all the details. Come check it out!

Animals Character Designs Drawn & Quoted Sketchbook