Maryland cartoonist Steve Hauk (1954-2021) R.I.P. (UPDATED)

from Facebook

by Mike Rhode

Maryland cartoonist Steve Hauk (pronounced Hawk) passed away sometime this week in Silver Spring. The discovery of his death was on the morning of Friday, January 22nd, but he had not been seen in public since Tuesday, January 19th. He apparently was out of his room some time on Wednesday, so most likely passed away on the 20th or 21st.  His death is considered to be of natural causes, and won't be further investigated. Hauk identified himself on his Facebook page as a type-2 diabetic who needed to self-inject insulin on a daily basis. Hauk was born on August 4, 1954 according to the Grand Comics Database. For a short time in the early 1990s, he broke into drawing for mainstream comic books, but was unable to make a career of it. On his Linkedin page, Hauk wrote of himself, "Successful retail manager for such companies as Rosetta Stone, Brookstone and The Sharper Image. My life experiences have been varied including being an FM Disc jockey, gag writer for comedians, editorial and comic book cartoonist."

Joel Pollack, founder of the local Big Planet Comics chain said, "I believe Steve first moved to the DC area (from Cumberland, MD) in 1973 to attend University of Maryland. I met him through the UMD Comic Art Society where he also met his best friend, Gary Sommer. Gary and Steve hosted a radio show on WMUC for several years. Steve worked at Big Planet Comics circa 1990-1992, and was there when we moved from Cordell Ave. to Fairmont Ave. At that time, Steve relocated from Adams-Morgan to Triangle Towers where he resided for 20+ years. I know he drew Fish Shticks for Steve Moncuse, and "Emperor of Da Universe" for Comic Buyers Guide. He was living in a group house in Silver Spring at the time of his passing." Debbie Kozak said, "He was a beloved housemate of our group house in Silver Spring since May of 2015. Steve was a good friend. He always made me laugh. I miss him terribly."

Hauk and his painting of Lobo (after Bisley) for Big Planet Comics store on Fairmont Ave.

Fish Shticks #3

Gary Sommer recalled his time with his friend today for this obituary. The two met at UMD in the early 1970s as part of the Comic Arts Society and both worked on MetroCon. Gary Groth of Fantagraphics was a also member as was Joel Pollack. Steve was trying to break into comics at the time and did minicomics. Sommers and Hauk did eight years of college radio together on their show Sub-Ether Waveband, where they played a mix of up-tempo new wave, electronica, comedy and some original comedy. Steve did a segment called "Cooking with the Emp" with the self-proclaimed Emperor of the Universe, Andy Looney (who now does game designs for his company Looney Labs). This led to a series of minicomics about the Emperor's adventures. His minicomics were done in small runs and given away to his friends. 

As noted, from 1992-1993, he drew Fish Shticks (Apple Comics) for Steve Moncuse's Fish Police series. Eighteen pages of his original art for issue 3 can be seen online. Sommer says Hauk also inked an issue of Barbie for Marvel. Hauk's GCD credits also list a story in Vamperotica #10. The last of his comic book work appears to have been in the late 1990s in John Gallagher's Buzzboy comic.

Sommer notes that Steve kept drawing up to the very end, and his most recent minicomic was What We Do in the Pandemic, a parody of the tv show What We Do in the Shadows. He also drew his own Christmas cards, including a coronavirus-themed one for this past year's card as well - they were always funny or topical cartoons.

from Linkedin

 I personally knew Steve when he clerked for the Bethesda branch of Big Planet Comics. I can't believe that was 30 years ago. I enjoyed seeing Steve on a weekly basis back then and hearing his sardonic comments on life. It's a shame that he wasn't able to continue creating comic books, but it's always been a hard field to make a living in. Steve remained a Big Planet Comics Bethesda customer until his death.

  This obituary will be updated in italics as more information or images are sent to me.

2019 Christmas card

2020 Christmas card cover and interior

Steve with our youngest cat, Violet, from June of 2019

Steve wearing a Svengoolie T-shirt, August 2015.

From Gary Sommer, January 31st - "I ran across 3 pieces from the 1980s..."

 

After Max Headroom

Budgie Hunter

Dash Headon

 

2/13/21 UPDATE

Courtesy of Randy Scott, librarian of Michigan State University's Comic Art Collection, Steve wrote a mini-biography for:

Entry (p. 90) in Comic-Book 

Superstars, by Don & Maggie 

Thompson (Iola, Wis. : Krause

Publications, 1993). -- 

Call no.: PN6707.C65 1993

Steve Hauk. 4853 Cordell Avenue, Unit 1501, Bethesda, Maryland 20814.
Born: August 4, 1954, in Washington, D.C.
College or other education: Self-taught.
Biggest creative influences: Will Eisner, Vaughn Bode, Mike Ploog, Mike Hinge, George Carlin, Monty Python, Douglas Adams, Rocky and Bullwinkle, and Robert Sheckley.

1993 projects: Developing a title for Parody Press, full art and story. Emperor of Da Universe back-up story in Team Danger #0 from Obsidian Publishing, inks on Marvel Comics' Barbie Fashion #29.

Past comics tides and related projects:
Since issue #677 in November 1986 contributed editorial and other cartoons to Comics Buyer's Guide. Multiple logos for the Arrow/Caliber book Deadworld. Two contributions to the Apple Press book 101 Other Uses for a Condom (mine were "Frog Partyhat" and "Emergency Airsickness Bag"). A Fish Police mini-series from Apple Press, Fish Shticks, six issues, all interior art, pencils, inks, and tones. Recently my inks over Dan Parent's cool pencils on Barbie Fashion #29 for Marvel (and on my first work for Marvel, my first work to see color, Michelle Wrightson does the coloring. Wow.). I've written gags for Don Martin and Larry "Bud" Melman.

Favorite comics not worked on: Any Ambush Bug comic, 2000 AD, Epic Comics' The Sleeze Bros. and Lance Barnes, Post Nuke Dick, and Ostrander's Grimjack.

Dream comic-book project: Realistically, to ink a Keith Giffen pencilled Ambush Bug special (or any Giffen pencils; I especially like his silly side). Total fantasy, to have worked with Vaughn Bode.

And his friend and housemate Debbie wrote in to note, "We have converted Steve's room into a den and have affixed this memorial plaque to the doorframe so that anyone entering the den will see that our den is dedicated to Steve's memory."

 

 

Quarantining Coronavirus through Comics at MSU's Comic Art Collection

by Mike Rhode

Like many of us, Michigan State University librarian Randy Scott was sent to work from home when covid-19 began shutting down schools and libraries across the country. To be able to work from home, he had to get creative, since he couldn't take parts of the Comic Art Collection home with him. Scott began clipping comic strips from the Lansing, MI papers that dealt with coronavirus and setting up new subject headings in the collection's Reading Room Index (RRI).

When I checked in with him, and heard that he was doing this, I began sending the daily Washington Post comics pages (I'd been sending the Sundays for years, continuing what crack comics historian Ian Gordon had begun years ago). He's picked coronavirus as his main subject heading, noting "The first mention of the coronavirus (covid 19) pandemic appeared in this collection in the February 13, 2020 episode of Prickly City. Newspaper strips are added here when 5 examples of a title with pandemic-related content are located, clipped and filed in the Library's collection." As of today, he's collected about 600 strips, 400 of which are in the RRI, and 200 waiting to be added.

Strips he's collected include:

• Arlo & Janis (starting Mar. 30, 2020)
• Baldo (starting Apr. 4, 2020)
• Barney and Clyde (starting Mar. 4, 2020)
• Blondie (starting May 7, 2020)
• Brevity (starting Apr. 7, 2020)
• Brewster Rockit: Space Guy! (starting Apr. 6, 2020)
• Candorville (starting Mar. 23, 2020)
• Curtis (starting Mar. 30, 2020)
• Dilbert (starting Apr. 20, 2020)
• Family Circus (starting Apr. 15, 2020)
• Frank and Ernest (starting Mar. 13, 2020)
• Frazz (starting Apr. 18, 2020)
• Lio (starting Mar. 30, 2020)
• Non Sequitur (starting Mar. 9, 2020)
• Off the Mark (starting Apr. 6, 2020)
• On the Fastrack (starting Apr. 13, 2020)
• Pearls Before Swine (starting Apr. 6, 2020)
• Prickly City (starting Feb. 13, 2020)
• Reply All Lite (starting Mar. 30, 2020)
• Sally Forth (starting Apr. 13, 2020)
• Speed Bump (starting Apr. 27, 2020)

New and newly significant related topics include:

• Contagion  
• Covid 19 
• Hand Sanitizer
• Hand Washing
• Hazmat Suits
• Hoarding
• Home Schooling
• Lockdowns
• New Normal
• Quarantine
• Reopening
• Shaking Hands
• Social Distancing
• Staying Home
• Surgical Masks
• Toilet Paper
• Vaccines
• Working from Home
• Zoom

 A typical entry for a Washington, DC-based cartoonist looks like this:

Social Distancing. 
   "Boo Cat Lives and Breathes Social Distancing" (Reply All
   Lite, Apr. 26, 2020) / by Donna A. Lewis. -- Call no.:
   oversize PN6726.S79 Apr. 26, 2020 

Special collections work over the long run and most of this collection probably won't be of interest to users for a few years, and then again after a few decades, most likely for the fiftieth anniversary of the pandemic. But just a cautionary note for those who think they can find everything on the web... this Chris Ware strip from the New York Times from April 26, 2020, has disappeared from the Times' website (and Randy would like a tearsheet if you have it).

Picture from Twitter

Coronavirus Catch-up Conversation with Caricaturist Mike Jenkins

Rhode by Jenkins

by Mike Rhode

I've talked with Arlington's Mike Jenkins several times here, iirc, and recently we were Zoom judges together for the Robert F. Kennedy cartoon award that will be announced on May 1. I checked in with Mike recently about the state of his business, which is normally dependent on going to places and parties and drawing the happy people there. As I suspected, his company, Capital Artworks, has taken a sharp hit from the pandemic. I commissioned a post-birthday caricature, and I encourage other readers with regular incomes to do the same (not drawings of me though).

How has the coronavirus pandemic affected your business of drawing caricatures?

Most of the work my coworkers and I do is caricatures for special events like high school graduation, family celebrations and company parties. We have sideline illustration and caricature commission work as well, but that is the bulk of it. The coronavirus hit in March, which is usually the tail end of our slow quarter. A great deal of the work we do is corporate and private events, which usually concentrates around graduation/summer and the holiday seasons. There’s a lull after the holidays, and the business picks up again around April. So when the coronavirus social distancing hit it didn’t affect our regular business cycle, but everything in the pipeline vanished. Even if the restrictions lift sometime before summer, there’s a strong likelihood the economy will have taken such a hit that there will be cutbacks in special events where caricaturists are hired.

But that void is a possible opportunity. There are many families who are upset that their high school graduates are missing out on all the fun and celebration of their kids’ milestone achievement, and want to commemorate it in some way. And other special occasions like birthdays, anniversaries and awards are going without the traditional gatherings and celebrations. Drawings were a popular part of those celebrations, and they are affordable and still available. The only work we have coming in right now is commission work of that sort, and we're hoping that will go some way towards refilling the pipeline. Even if the full blown event caricature business never comes back, we have the skills we developed there and commission work could be the next step.
 

How much of your business has dried up during this epidemic? 

I would say all of the business. Commission illustration and caricature work has been a sideline to the main special event caricature business. Now that’s all we see coming in. We’ll see if that holds.

 

Can people still get drawings from you? How should people contact you? 

My email is mike@capitalartworks.com.

What type of information do you need to do a 'virtual' cartoon (i.e. a real drawing, but not with the sitter in front of you)?

Two or three photos of the person to be drawn are what I usually go by,  including at least one high resolution one if possible, but one decent photo will do. If it’s a color caricature I may need details such as eye and hair color. They often don’t come through in photos quite right. And I ask people to suggest a personalized background detail or two if they want more than a head and shoulder portrait style. If they have a list of details, I ask that they make it in descending order of importance. If I can’t work it all in, I cut from the bottom of the list to make sure the most important suggestions are included in the finished drawing.

As a small business owner, are you applying for some loans from the government?

I was considering taking a loan to upgrade my website before the pandemic hit, then I was glad I hadn’t. I’m uncomfortable taking on debt when there’s no guarantee the work I’ve been doing will come back. If not, I need to rethink my marketing, and at that point may apply for a loan. When I hire other artists it’s on a subcontracting basis, so the paycheck protection aspect of government small business loans doesn’t seem to apply to people like me.

Mike's website for Capital Artworks is https://www.capitalartworks.com/ if you want to see more of his work. He has a strong following on Facebook for his lunchbag artwork and I'm sure he'd be glad to do some of these on commission too, if you've got someone still leaving the house each day. And you can read Mike's older attempt to creating a comic strip around his life.

The coronavirus is obviously affecting a lot of local artists, stores, and companies. If you'd like to be interviewed here at ComicsDC about your comic art job, drop me a line.

DCist on virtual Awesome Con

Awesome Con Goes Online To Offer Some Comic Relief

Colleen Grablick

DCist April 28 2020

https://dcist.com/story/20/04/28/awesome-con-goes-online-to-offer-some-comic-relief/

PR: With Garth Ennis and PJ Holden’s The Stringbags, Dead Reckoning Maintains May 20th On-Sale Date and Establishes Comic Store Terms

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

With Garth Ennis and PJ Holden’s The Stringbags,

Dead Reckoning Maintains May 20^th On-Sale Date and Establishes

Comic Store Terms

Dead Reckoning, the graphic novel imprint of Naval Institute Press, will maintain the on-sale date of May 20, 2020 for The Stringbags by Garth Ennis, PJ Holden, and Kelly Fitzpatrick. Considering the current upheaval in the comics distribution pipeline, Dead Reckoning has established comic store terms for those shops that may wish to order direct and advises thatThe Stringbags is also available from Ingram Content Group.

Based on the Royal Navy’s combat squadrons who flew the Fairey Swordfish aircraft during World War II, The Stringbags is a subject Ennis has wanted to write about for years. Because of an extensive partnership effort during May and June 2020 with Wargaming.net and its hit game, World of Warships (whose combined reach is one half billion users worldwide), Dead Reckoning believes that those comic stores operating on an online or curbside basis will receive requests for this book. Robin Noonan, director of sales and marketing, and Jack Russell, sales and marketing manager, are reaching out to comic retailers to inform them of the newly created terms. Shops interested in purchasing The Stringbags or any other Dead Reckoning titles direct are encouraged to contact  sales@deadreckoning.org.

“We believe that if ever there was a time when books and the stores who sell them are considered ‘essential services,’ it is now,” says Noonan. She adds, “In their pre-publication reviews, comic and book critics agree The Stringbags story and art are stellar. We think those retailers who want new titles should be able to order this book from us or from Ingram in the timeframe originally promised.”

Dead Reckoning’s warehouse, Books International, remains open. It operates under guidelines set forth by Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the State of Virginia, and local authorities.

Jacqline Barnes, Publicity Manager, 410-295-1028, publicity@deadreckoning.org

291 Wood Road  Annapolis, MD 21402  www.deadreckoning.org

Barbara Dale's coronavirus cartoons

Baltimore cartoonist Barbara Dale did a couple of cartoons about COVID-19 on Facebook, and then put them on Zazzle and is selling prints of them. I asked her to say something about them for us.

About the "Self-Portrait During A Pandemic": I've worn the same red robe for three weeks. I no longer believe in underwear. My hair is reminding me that I'm old. It's hard to breathe through a mask. Disinfecting the mail is ridiculous, but I've done it. Clutching chocolate is a comfort. About "It's Not My Fault": I feel still, isolated, sad and only temporarily safe inside my four walls, while outside the numbers of dying continue to grow. I put Trump on top, all a flutter, to contrast the stillness of the bottom part of the poster. He's cruelty manic, pointing at everybody but himself to blame. A whirling dervish.  I think the bottom part of the poster, with the person inside the house surrounded by dead, is a good image unto itself and I'll explore that further.

Big Planet Bethesda & College Park still open (UPDATED)

I just stopped by and picked up my comics in Bethesda, very quickly.

College Park is open as well.

The Vienna and DC stores are closed but doing mail order.

Here's the information from their website.

Important Update

Mar 17, 2020

Some Big Planet Comics locations will be closed for the foreseeable future. We are still sorting it out, but for the time being keep an eye on our Facebook and Twitter accounts for more information. Sorry for the inconvenience, but your safety and ours is more important right now. Everyone take care of yourselves and be safe.

Bethesda store
Sunday 12-5
Closed Mondays
Closed Tuesdays
Wednesday 11-7
Thursday 11-5
Friday 11-5
Saturday 11-5
Curbside pickup available
Mail order available (free shipping!)
To set up mail order delivery or arrange a curbside order pickup:
Call 301-654-6856
Or email bethesda@bigplanetcomics.com

College Park store
Sunday noon-5pm
Monday noon-5pm
Tuesday noon-6pm
Wednesday 11-7pm
Thursday noon-6pm
Friday noon-6pm
Saturday noon-6pm
Curbside pickup available
Mail order available (free shipping!)
To set up mail order delivery or arrange a curbside order pickup:
Call 301-699-0498
Or email collegepark@bigplanetcomics.com

U Street store
Closed for the foreseeable future
Mail order available (free shipping!)
To set up mail order delivery:
Call 202-342-1961 on Tuesdays (11am-3pm) or Wednesdays (11am-3pm)
Or email dc@bigplanetcomics.com

Vienna store
Closed for the foreseeable future
Mail order available (free shipping!)
To set up mail order delivery:
Call 703-242-9412 on Tuesdays (11am-3pm) or Wednesdays (11am-3pm)
Or email vienna@bigplanetcomics.com