Strip Search with London + Chianca

  " Wallace the Brave " cartoonist Will Henry is far from the first person to find himself on the short end of the cost-cutting stick when it comes to corporate newspaper ownership. But he’s one of the few whose brush with the harsh realities of modern journalism had a happy ending.  For his second time on "Strip Search" (check out his  memorable first appearance, from 2019, here ), Will shares that story (which Pete also chronicled here, at Boston.com ), gives us an update on what's up with "Wallace" — now and possibly down the road — and talks with Dave about pens. (Lots of pens.)  Also, find out what Dave and Pete have in store for their comic strip "Pet Peeves" in 2024! Listen and/or watch below, and check out some choice Will Henry art as well.     Will Henry, a.k.a Will Wilson, at work.

It's ironic: We'd never want the Deweys as our next door neighbors, but as for Pat Sandy — creator of the Deweys in the comic strip "Next Door Neighbors" — we could talk to him all day! Join in as Pat joins Dave and Pete discuss past "Peanuts," Pat's drawing style, and what went into his new collection " Block Party ."  Also, we revisit past interviews with two 2023 Ruben Award winners , the New Yorker's Christopher Weyant, who took home the prize for Gag Cartoon, and Will Henry, whose "Wallace the Brave" took home the award for Newspaper Comic Strip! Watch or listen below, and check out more "Next Door Neighbors" at GoComics  and on Facebook .  

Detail of a displayed work by LJ Baptise. “Cartoonist” sounds like one of those jobs that would be cool to have, but how does one go about getting there? Well, turns out there is no one way, says Heide Solbrig , a cartoonist and media scholar who teaches art, comics and media studies throughout Boston. That’s one of the reasons why she — along with LJ Baptiste, another art educator and cartoonist from Boston, whose comic series COMIXSCAPE has been running since 2012 — have developed a certificate program at MassArt to help would-be cartoonists figure out where to start. Both of them are this month's guests on Strip Search, where they talk to us about the program, the Boston comics scene, and their own upcoming projects. Also, we discuss our visit to Parker Memorial Library in Dracut, Mass. (to teach a comic strip workshop, not just to take out books); and give a preview of the Ruben Awards! (Yes, we know by the time you see this they already happened, but we're living in the

Boston Kids Comics Fest art by LJ Baptiste. With comics and graphic novels being among the most challenged books during the recent upswing in complaints about what’s on the shelves at school and public libraries, some might forget the role the medium has played in turning millions of kids onto reading — not to mention providing joy, fun, and excitement to generations of readers. The Boston Kids Comics Fest — coming June 3, 2023 at Northeastern University — is here to remind you. Listen in (or watch) below as we devote a full episode to a discussion with fest COO Meena Jain, co-founder and creator liaison Tony Davis (owner of Harvard Square's The Million Year Picnic ), and comics scholar (and past Strip Search guest !) Hillary Chute talking about what to expect from the event, why gatherings like this are important for kids, and the explosion of comics as a medium and kids' comics in particular. Plus, lots of laughs! Spotify link here .   Boston Kids Comics Fest logo design b

When Boston cartoonist Cagen Luse and fellow artist and comics fan Barrington Edwards headed to the Black Comic Book Festival at Harlem’s Schomburg Center back in 2015, they were inspired by seeing “a space for people of color to come and enjoy comics together,” Luse recalls. “We felt like Boston needed that,” he says. And now, eight years later — thanks primarily to their efforts during that time — Boston has that. April 29 will see the third free Comics in Color Festival come to the Reggie Lewis Center in Roxbury, billed as “New England’s first comic arts festival focused on stories by and about people of color.” This years version includes an all-star lineup of guests, including “Iron Man” and “Batgirl” artist Alitha E. Martinez, “X-Men” and “Ghost Rider” artist Larry Stroman, and comics historian and scholar Joel Christian Gill. Plus workshops, an artists alley, animated short films, music and dance performances, a cosplay contest, and even a fashion show. Not bad for something th

When most comic strip animals talk, they don’t exactly scream “realism.” It was hard to imagine that Garfield was speaking for most cats when he declared his hatred of Mondays or his love for lasagna. But the animals that populate “They Can Talk,” the wry, brilliant weekly webtoon by cartoonist Jimmy Craig, don’t just sound authoritative — they’re downright relatable. And fans of both comics and animals are clearly listening to what Craig’s creatures have to say. In the seven years since he launched the strip, it’s amassed 615,000 followers on Instagram, 658,000 on Facebook, and has spawned two books; the latest, “Are You Gonna Eat That?” from Ulysses Press , hits shelves this month. Listen or watch below as we catch up with Craig to talk about talking to the animals, and them talking back. You'll find samples of his work at the bottom of this post, and for more you can visit Jimmy's website, theycantalk.com , or his Facebook and Instagram feeds. (Plus, for his standalone New