Started a couple months ago, our Deep Dive feature has proven to be a hit. Here are a few more things we found in our archive, with some notes from Lynn on what they’re all about!
When the Sunday pages were coloured by “American Colour” in Buffalo NY, We had to send their colourists a photocopy of the original art, hand-coloured and numbered according to the colour chart they supplied us. This was quite a process, but at the time, we were excited to be able to use over 100 colours (up from 64, which was up from about 10). Sending the original art to Kansas City, and the colour rough to American Colour, meant that the 8 week lead time was essential if we were going to see the strip in the newspaper on the designated date. Now, everything can be done in an instant…but the lead time for the Sunday page, according to our contract, is still 8 weeks! Go figure!
When I draw and colour a personal greeting card by hand, I always put this little bird on the back. I confess, I don’t think this is an original idea. I think I swiped it from another cartoonist, but I have no idea who or when. Maybe by default, or by “grandfathering,” I can now call it my own!
