Famous Artists Cartoon Course Westport, Connecticut Drawing inthe panel ~~ Rube Goldberg Milton Cenitt A\Capp Horry Haenigsen Willrd Molin Gurney Williams Dick Cavalli Whitney Dertow Jt . Virit Portch Barney TobeyDrawing in the panel you would start working that way: Now we are realy to go into this problem in more deal. Nineey percent of your work a8 4 protesionalcarteonist will have wo be done within a panc, 50 {You can see how important its for you to understand the prob Jems that you will come up aginst ‘As we Have Said befor, the panel is your stage and i is your job to put the characters and actos in it. Where and how you place them will havea otto do with the success of your fease, For the time being, don't wory too much about backgrounds. Later om in the Course we will ever thes in detail For now, we ae more interested in the proper placing ofthe Bgure in the panel. ‘Los of beginners start olf by drawing the figure frst and the, if they like it, drawing a panel around it and finally the back round. This would be swell i you never had to worry about the se of shape of your panel. But cartooning in respect (0 panels and proportions of panels isan exact art An editor asks You for a cartoon panel ol'a certain siz. The sie he asks for is {hesize he wants ~ and he will mark you off his list if you don't give it to him. Normally you will work lager than the size the trawing isto be reproduced, so you must be sue that the panel vill reduce to the size desired. The only way tobe wure of this to sale up your panc tothe correc proportions. After check ble IF you should send a drawing to an editor, is the wrong size —say an inch and a hal 19 high —he has two choices He can throw the drawing aay or have it red, IC he doesn’t bave time for redrawing, he may tie your work, but he wll be robbing himself of an inch and 2 half of valuabie space that could be sold for advertising. Here's another reason for learning to draw in a panel frame. 1 the beginner starts out just drawing any old place be feels like on a piece of paper, he soon becomes accustomed t0 work that way. When eis given «picture frame and told w draw 8 figure in ite doesn Know how to proceed. The pane fxm hha poycholoical effect upon his sense of proportion. He won't now where to start drawing the head or the figure. When he doc sare it, chances are the fet will run out of the bottom of the picture. Drawing ies habit and for your own future good you should develop, as you go along, habits which will help. not hinder you, ‘Your panel can sho a thousand miles of territory or it ean show just the hand of 4 character. ‘Think of it a 4 cameraman does in the movies, Before starting to pencil in a panel, decide ‘whether you want a distance shot ora closeup, Nort ofthe ime the story you at welling and the action ofeach individual panel will determine how much ot how litle you will show. If you are going to show a cowboy being thrown from a horse, ou ‘wouldn't want a closeup of the cowboy's head: you would need ‘ough diatance to show the whole action. Ifthe cowboy i go ing © wink ata girl you would want a closeup shot By think: ing fist, you will save yourself a1 of trouble ‘As you wil ce Tater on in thie lemon, the placing ofthe By ures themselves within the picture frame wil many times st 8 ‘mood for the overall scene. This placement of eartoon figures for their mood value is very important co putting over an idea Many times our daily comic stip of four panes will be best ‘when all the figures in all four panels are placed exactly on the Same level, Again, on the very next strip you might find that Papel | will show a fll gure; Panel 2 2 Closeup; Panel 8 afar distance shot; and Panel 4 another close-up. This is known as “ehuange of pace.” This change of pace is Very important and ‘adds color and interest to your work, but be aure there isa reavon fori ‘Alto inthis leson we will ike up the procedure for drawing a Sunday page or a daily newspaper comic. The differences ‘ecween drawing a single panel cartoon and & daily comie stip are quite fundamental. With a single panel cartoon, the artist, is more concerned with putting over one individual idea, usually with a wallop. eis not particularly concerned with what came before oF what came after ~ the whole idea ir shown in one ‘panel. The artist draving the comic strip, on the other hand, is ‘concerned with fst putting across his idea ~ notin one panel, but in a series of panels. He must carry his reader's interest for the frst through tothe last pan and at dhe same time tll hi ‘ory, both vistally ad by the use ofthe balloons The panel is your stage Someone once sid that every cartoonist is a frustrated ham actor. Since the average cartoonist usually eats with more regu: Tarity than the average actor, the frustration should be eary to contro. A cartoonists interest in the stage can relly be an asset, ‘The panel has i definite limitations ~ so has the sage. Your job isto presenta clear, ineresting production within your con space m Caniff had close qucak when he almost became a profesional actor alte college. Today, his advice to young. cat {oonist is apt to be ful of stage and movie lingo. ‘The business of stage stings, movie cloxeups and longshot also applies very pointedly to drawings. Caniffs "Steve Canyon” docs't suller because of his knowledge. Neither will your work. ‘When we tell you to acustom yourself to working in a panel we don't mean just for your finidhed art work, You should also ‘work in a panel when You ate doing practice work. For your practice wotk on these lesons, rule up 2 bunch of panes beore- hhand on your paper. It doesn't make any diference what sze or shape the panes are, just there i a panel outline to confine {you to a given space: Once jou have formed the habit of think: Ing as well as drawing in panels, you will nd that you prefer to ‘work inside of panel trates,tenon Tl Fomous Artis Cartoon Coune Drawing in the panel Position sets up the idea ‘The themYoo F Drawing in the panel ) Part of figures out of panel When only parts of your characters appear within the panel, itis visto pene nthe figures compitely. This enables you te lite hem properly insite and to give more convincing ston the isle portions Do the sme with gues eneringor leaving the panel 4 tan anthers Maintaining proportions of cut figures when you ate drawing part of «figure in pane, your mast be sure thatthe pares shown ae in core proportion tothe gure Sr whole WANTED 70, 8UT LEAVING US ALONE AND ASLEEP WAS A DIRTY TRICK...I'LL- ‘wrong RightFomous Ariss Cartoon Couse Drawing in the panel YOU TOOK A SHOWER AND FORGOT TO TAKE OFF YOUR WRISTWATCH 7 THAT WAS ENTIRELY DIFFERENT---Fomows Arise Cartoon Cue Drawing in the panel “ll Composition In cartooning, composition is used solely to point up your gug fo draw attention to the action of your character ia a tar. ory. You must be aware of fe with every line you draw “Le politics, composition is x subject people can argue about forever and arrive nowhere. There are no hard and fast rules your composition sense will grow to be as personal to you 3s your syle of drawing. However, certin thing catch and inter ‘st the reader's eye others repel it We have tied hereto give you a few important fundamentals to start you of "This isa part of your art that should Keep growing with every new picture You draw. Think when you daw: think of backs Tine help guide or dis doesnt help direct the And think of whites ~ will this tract your reader's eye? It a ine eye the right spot, change i or el Make it interesting 1m tuys compete market aon cat gt very fa without imagination. A picture may be drawn with pa pee acre fi Sept gat eta! greatest crime a cartoonist can commit ‘When composing your panel, don't just draw your subject so that Ici veagnlzable, Think: can you include some action oF diferent viewpoint that will be exciting to the readers eye? Perspective, action, background ~ all the element of cartooning mutt be conaidered a ingredients that can help you take inter toting competSpaceSolid white and solid black10. lnm Tl fomovs Arts Corton Caine Drawing in the panel Laying out a comic striptenon Fomevs Arist Cartoon Cone 1 Drawing in the panel12 ee Toma a f eae The Sunday page Each syndicate has certain requirements for the sizes and layouts of ther Sunday pages which must be kept in mind if to submit work to them. For instance, here isa Sunday ss it was drawn by Hairy Haenigaen in black and white, bat ‘aled down to At the ste of out book. This, enlarged, would Sa haltpage space in the Sunday paper ut, some papers want the feature in one third page sie Sand the syndicate must supply them. You notice thatthe entire uh the heading leads into the story, but ot. This ine ean be ut of, leaving the ewo bottom lines which, witha small typeset heading, would then exactly fit one-third of a newspaper page. Mr. Harnigien had to keep this in mind as he developed his gag. For the tabloid page siz, photopprints ofthe drawing are rearanged to make the overall Tayoue deeper than iis wide ‘any good black and white drawing will look well when it is colored. It pays, however, to keep color in mind when ‘rawing Sunday pager. Careful atention to areas of whites and blacks can make's world of difference in the drawing when re produced in color. Notice how economical of pen shading Mr. Haenigsn is in “Penny,” and how carefully he spos his back This results in good, csp color reproduction. {guide isa photostat of the drawing the size iwi paper, and colored with yater colors, colored Ayes Most syndicates have special artists who do nothing make the color guides forthe engraver and printer. However, some ofthe top men, Harry Haenigsen and Milton Caniff among them, insse on making their own color guides, The result july their extra works ‘Because of the syndicates’ production ost and the continual battle for space in the color comic pages, newenmner’s chances ‘of winning acceptance in this feld right off the bat are very sim. “The usual procedure is for a cartoonist to buildup a good back log of readership with a daly suip or panel. When the editors feel thatthe demand i great enough, they will invite him to add a Sunday page to his chores, A‘mumiber of magazine cartoonists have entered the Sunday comics inthis sytem, bat it tally an invitation-only affair. Very few Sunday pages have leaped {nto the spotightfalLblown aad stayed there ‘A sense of cols, like your composition see, of which ii a part, a personal thing which grows seth ase” Atm cartoonist, ‘ost of your work will be done in black and white for black and ‘white reproduction, and that is what this couse is designed to teach you. But on that happy day when your editors are ready ney for fourcolbe plates of your work ~ be14 tenon N= Fomor Arti Corton Coe Drawing in the panel Compose for your story Here are two panels Milton Canift drew to illustrate this AMeniwanutl, BBA FOpOH! — crona!FAMOUS ARTISTS CARTOON COIRSE Student Wark Tesson 1 ‘Te problen of draving in a panel ts essentially one of composition. Composing is the arranging of all the elenents in a cartoon in the most pleasing wey thet vill tell your story quickly, clearly and effectively. A good composition puts on what te Inportant in the situation or gag and at the ame tine creates a vell-balancel piotire. To study and practice Read the lesson assignment belov, think up a sultsble idea, gag or situation and ho you are going to illustrate it. Decide what characters, background and prope fare necessary to express your idea. Then, on typewriter paper, make a great many trial pencil sketches 5-1/2 inches vide by -1/2 inches high. ‘In them arrange the elenents in as many different ways as possible until you cone up with composition ‘that tells your story vel. Tn thts planning stage do not concern yourself with details of figures, props or Deckgrounds. Merely sketch the general size, shape ani action of each figure. Concentrate on placing the figures in the proper relationship to one another and ‘to the props ani background. If you use balloons with dialogue, they too, are important elenents end their placement should be planned Just ai carefully as thet of the other objects in the draving. ‘The cartoon editor of the local paper needs a one-penel black-ani-vhite line cartoon. He Likes your work and trusts you to cose up vith sonething fresh and interesting to his readers. ‘The Job will be reproduced 5-1/2 inches vide and 1/2 inches high. Your original should be scaled at least "ivice up" and be able to reduce to your editor's exact specifications. (Ana -- renember that page oa "Sealing" in the Introduction you skipped by so Lightly? ‘Take another look! ) You happen to know that the subject matter this editor really likes is either (A) sumer vacations, or (B) local sports itens. Pick either subject -- keeping in mind that future jobs wil1 depend on your performance on this one. Be sure your cartoon idea explains itself to the realers. If it does not, you should furnish a ception, headline or balloons. Select the best one of the composition sketches you aid for the practice assign- ent and work it up into a finished certoon. Finish it in ink with neatly ruled panel torders ready for the engraver. When we eriticize your cartoon, ve vill look to see how good your idea is, how yell the composition emphasizes the idea end how well the entire picture is balanced. Present your assignment in the sane clesn, professional manner you vould use if you were submitting 1t to the cartoon buyer of a publication. letter your name, address and student number carefully in the lover left-hand corner of the page. In the lover Fight corser, lace the Lesson thmber. Wail to: FAMOUS ARTISTS CARTOON COURSE Westport, Connecticut