In the News-John Hambrock

Art of Hoosier Cartoonists Goes on Display in Wisconsin

The Kenosha Public Museum of Kenosha, Wisconsin, is hosting an art exhibit called “More Than Funny: Cartoons and Comics From the Kenosha Festival of Cartooning.” The exhibit will run through Saturday, September 29, 2012, and includes work by Indiana cartoonists John Hambrock, Dave Coverly, and Michael Jantze, among others. A blog called "KenoWi" carried the story of the exhibit and of Mr. Hambrock in "John Hambrock at the Kenosha Public Museum," a posting of September 9.

John Hambrock, creator of the daily comic strip The Brilliant Mind of Edison Lee, was born in Fort Wayne, Indiana, and like Dave Coverly (Speed Bump), attended Indiana University. Mr. Hambrock received a degree from the Ringling School of Art and Design. (Cartoonist and fine artist Rob Harrell, creator of Big Top, also went to the Ringling School.) Before becoming an artist, Mr. Hambrock aspired to a career in marine biology, which happens to have been the vocation of SpongeBob SquarePants creator Stephen Hillenberg. In any case, marine biology's loss is cartooning's gain. (Mark O'Hare, one more in a seemingly endless list of Hoosier cartoonists, has also worked on SpongeBob.) In addition to drawing a syndicated comic strip, John Hambrock works in advertising. Among his clients is Keebler, maker of cookies and crackers. (If I can squeeze in just one more parenthetical statement and one more Indiana connection, the Keebler Elves were co-created by advertising executive William Harty, an alumnus of the University of Notre Dame.) Check out the blog posting, and if you live close enough to Kenosha, check out the exhibit, too.

Copyright 2012, 2024 Terence E. Hanley

In the News-Dave Coverly

Speed Bump Cartoonist Reflects on College, Art, and Life

Dave Coverly, author of the syndicated comic panel Speed Bump, will speak at the commencement of his alma mater, Eastern Michigan University, this weekend, Sunday, April 29, 2012. In an online article published today on the website of The Eastern Echo, Mr. Coverly offered a preview of his comments for the graduation ceremony to take place on the Ypsilanti campus. You can read the article by following this link. In case you're wondering what this could possibly have to do with Indiana: after graduating from Eastern Michigan, Dave Coverly went on to receive his master's degree from Indiana University and to work as a cartoonist for the Bloomington Herald-Times.

Copyright 2012, 2024 Terence E. Hanley

In the News-Dave Coverly

Cartoonist Dave Coverly To Speak at Commencement Ceremonies

Indiana University alumnus and cartoonist Dave Coverly, best known for his nationally syndicated comic strip Speed Bump, will be the commencement speaker at the graduation ceremonies of the Eastern Michigan University College of Arts and Sciences and the College of Technology on the morning of April 29, 2012. Mr. Coverly earned his bachelor’s degree in philosophy and imaginative writing from Eastern Michigan University in 1987 before going on to complete his master’s degree in creative writing at Indiana University in Bloomington. Mr. Coverly worked as an editorial cartoonist for the Herald-Times in Bloomington while attending graduate school, and his early cartoons appeared in The Saturday Evening Post, The New York Times, Esquire, and USA Today. In 1994, Speed Bump was picked up by Creators Syndicate. The panel quickly gained popularity, running in nearly 100 papers by 1995, at which time Coverly left the Herald-Times to concentrate on his daily cartoon panel. Today the feature appears in more than 200 newspapers and in Parade Magazine, which reaches more than 73 million readers each week. Mr. Coverly’s other accomplishments include a line of greeting cards for American Greetings and a number of books, including Sue McDonald Had a Book, Speed Bump: Cartoons for Idea People, and Caution Speed Bump: A Collection of Cartoon Skidmarks.

In addition to giving the commencement speech at the morning ceremonies on April 29, Mr. Coverly will be awarded an honorary Doctor of Fine Arts degree from his alma mater. You can read more in the following article:

“Cartoonist Dave Coverly and Michigan Lt. Gov. Brian Calley to Speak at Eastern Michigan University Graduation Ceremonies” (February 22, 2012)

Written by Bridget Hanley, Proficient Pen.

Copyright 2012 Terence E. Hanley