@chris-sprouse
Cartoonist, husband, cat dad. Co-creator of Tom Strong and Ocean. Also the illustrator of Star Wars, Legion of Super-Heroes, Batman, Black Panther, Superman, Supreme and many other comics. VA native, OH resident. https://sprousenet.wordpress.com
A white & black cat lying on a stuffed polar bear toy with her paws crossed, surrounded by cat toys and blankets.
Daily cat photo: Furbs has a couple vacation spots in our house where she likes to go to get away from it all for a while, such as behind the comfy chair where she gets to lie in luxury on a very plush Ikea stuffed polar bear, surrounded by only the best blankets and most interesting cat toys...
Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on how you look at it) I'm too busy with pages and covers to do any pre-show commissions before I leave for Richmond. I can start a list, though, and I'll add you to the top. Do you want a Supreme piece or a different character?
A brown & white tabby cat exiting a clothes dryer.
Daily cat photo: Willy loves the warm dryer right after a load of laundry finishes (in case anyone's worried, I've raised a bunch of cats and know to always check the dryer before closing the door)...
A photo taken from below of a black & white cat climbing down a stack of books with a startled look on his face.
Daily cat photo: super-dramatic Jimmy!
A white & black cat on a pink blanket on a beige sofa with a black & white cat above her on the sofa cushion, his tail hanging down and resting on her back.
Daily cat photo: Jimmy (up top) resting his tail on Ms. Furbs (on the pink blanket)...
The 1st shot was bad but the 2nd one was worse. I watched my father in law suffer through shingles a few years ago, though, and I’d say the shot is totally worth it.
A black & white tuxedo cat and a brown & white tabby cat snuggling together and sleeping on a purple blanket, paws touching.
Daily cat photo: sleepy guys...
A white & black cat lying on a blue sofa with her paws folded underneath her.
Daily cat photo: in this current hellscape of a country, some things are still good...cats, for example, and sweet little Ms. Furbs here is one of the best cats...
A brown & white tabby cat falling asleep in a green & white cat bed in a sliver of sunlight.
Daily cat photo: Willy stars in this pic, one of the rarest photos you could ever snap in our house--a cat sleeping in a bed purchased just for them, instead of in an old cardboard box or some random other thing that fell on the floor...
A black & white cat lying under a flat screen TV that's showing a video of a fireplace.
Daily cat photo: Jimmy, comfy and warm by the "fire..."
Two cats on a desk looking out a window at a snow covered yard…
Daily cat photo: the boys during the recent snowstorm; we haven’t had this much snow since they’ve been alive, so I imagine it was very strange for them…
A white & black cat leaning against a wall in a kitchen with wood floors, with two other cats in the background.
Daily cat photo: little Ms. Furbs in the kitchen (with her "little" brothers guest starring in the background)...
As long as you pronounce it correctly: like house or mouse, not spruce! :)
A brown and white heavy-lidded tabby cat lying on a person's lap.
Daily cat photo: I love it when Willy makes this face when he's being a lap cat...
4) All of the front and back covers for the various older collections were also left out, including the rarely seen cover for the 3rd Tom Strong Deluxe Collection (the helicopter backpack image), a book that was never even published in the US. It was used years later in a Wildstorm tribute book...
3) Some other stuff left out of the Compendium books: all the character designs and extra material published in the back of the original 6 books that collected the original series. A few of my favorite character model sheets are attached here...
2) The 2nd book completely skipped the ABC A-Z material (sample shown here). ABC A-Z series, written by Peter Hogan (my partner on a lot of the later TS stories), was supposed to serve as an overview and introduction to the ABC books for new readers...
Two big books on a desk: Tom Strong Compendium and Tom Strong Compendium Book Two.
1) Received my copies of the Tom Strong Compendium Book Two today. Both handsome volumes are pictured here. They collect almost every bit of Tom Strong ever published, including the ABC Sketchbook and the 6 page Wizard insert I drew. But I'm me, so I have to note that they missed a few things...
Sketches submitted to DC Comics. I would have been happy drawing either!
Some new art of mine was published today, a variant cover for Action Comics #1095 featuring Superboy. This piece was drawn right after the Batman/Superman: World's Finest cover I shared recently. Inks by Karl Story & colors by Dave McCaig. pencils shown, sketches in the comments...
A black and white tuxedo cat on top of a Cozy Cat Cave, staring at the viewer.
Daily cat photo: Jimmy!
3 cats sleeping on various blankets on a beige sofa.
Daily cat photo: took a long break, but let's start this up again w/a pic of our little pride snoozing together this past freezing cold weekend. Ms. Furbs is nearest to the camera (on the pink blanket), with her brothers Jimmy (blanketless) and Willy (asleep on the blue blanket)...
7) ...to thank him again for that lunch, the inspiration and for his kindness. Condolences to his family.
6) ...he was just a normal guy who lived in the same kind of VA suburbs I did, working out of his house, using the same pencils I used, doing this weird little job I wanted to do so badly. He made it real for me--I knew then that I could do this. Sadly, I never got to meet Sal as an adult and pro...
5) ...to meet one on one with this dumb kid he didn't even know for a 2 hour portfolio review. He talked to me like I was an equal and never belittled or condescended or seemed like he didn't want to be there. And more inspiring than the comments on my art was the fact that...
4) I did, and when I became a professional comics guy, I realized that what he had done was cooler than it seemed to me at the time (and I thought it was very cool then). He must have been drawing several books that year and he took time out of what had to be an insanely busy schedule...
3) The adults set up a meet up for us and a few days later I hauled a portfolio of comic pages I'd drawn to a local restaurant. Mr. Buscema was incredibly nice and very patient with me in all my awkwardness and nervousness. He gave me a bunch of notes on my work and encouraged me to keep at it...
2) I grew up in the Virginia suburbs and someone my mom worked with in the early 80s knew Sal, who also lived in Northern VA, and suggested I meet with him for some career advice (I was already hellbent on drawing comics for a living as early as my freshman year of high school)...
1) You may not see a lot of Sal Buscema's influence on my own art style, but I am thankful for the part he played in my comic art life. I don't think I've told many people the following story, but I had a wonderful lunch with Sal when I was in high school...
Daily cat photo: little Ms. Furbs!