Miyazaki's Little Nemo

Over on Cartoon Brew, they have a cool post about the tortured history of "Little Nemo: Adventures in Slumberland". Hayao Miyazaki and Isao Takahata were involved in pre-production, and through the years, numerous people were attached.

But ultimately, Bill Hurtz (George of the Jungle, Unicorn In The Garden) and Masami Hata (Sea Prince and the Fire Child) ultimately directed the final release, admittedly a mixed bag.

If you’re wondering what a Miyazaki version might’ve been like, check this out. Below Carton Brew posted a short test film dating from December 1984. Key Miyazaki animator/director Yoshifumi Kondo (Whisper Of The Heart) directed this test sequence, supposedly filmed in 70mm. Remember to put your tongue back in your mouth when it ends.

Today's cartoons 4/10/08

Today's cartoons

Stanley Kubrick: A Life in Pictures

Here's a video from the Charlie Rose show, filed a while back, about the documentary Stanley Kubrick: A Life in Pictures. Appearing are Martin Scorcese, Christiane Kubrick (Stanley's widow) and Jan Harlan, his long-time producer.

If you're interested in Kubrick's films, it's worth watching.

Today's cartoons

Murray Sabrin makes Ron Paul cry

This week's Cartoon Caption Contest

I’ve been caught up watching the HBO mini-series “John Adams,” and I thought a good caption contest could revolve around what George Washington, John Adams or Thomas Jefferson would have to say about the current predicament the Democrats find themselves in.

Come up with a pointed caption for this cartoon and post it in the comments link below. Keep it clean (this is a family website) and keep it brief (brevity is the soul of wit). When you post, include your name and the name of the city where you live. If you wish to remain anonymous from others, simply email your caption idea to me at rob.tornoe@politicker.com. Your deadline is noon Friday.

We'll post the winner's name and caption here Saturday morning, along with several runner-ups. If you send us your name and address, we'll mail the winning writer a color print of the cartoon with the caption, signed by Rob Tornoe. Please allow at least 4 weeks for delivery.

If you have any questions or suggestions, feel free to email me at rob.tornoe@politicker.com.

Good luck, and have fun!

Caption Contest Winner

Hillary lets Nancy Pelosi know how far she'll go to secure the nomination thanks to the winning caption provided by Doug of Manchester, New Hampshire. A signed print of the cartoon is on your way.

Here are the runner-ups:

"I want a chopper, Michigan, Florida and more time on SNL or the jack ass gets it!"
- Chris from Stockton, New Jersey

"I didn't put up with Bill's crap to quit now!"
- Amod from Portland, Maine

Thanks for all your entries. Check back Monday for a new caption contest.

Today's cartoons

And don't forget to check back tomorrow when the winner of the caption contest is revealed!

Where are the Julio Diaz's of the world?

I read so much news that sometimes it becomes this constant wave of information that I just parse through to get what I need.

But then sometime to come across a story like this, from NPR, and it just makes your day.

If you can listen to it, it's much better. But reading it is just as good. And ask yourself, "Could you have done what Julio Diaz did?"

Check out the story here.

Today's cartoons

Billy Batson and the Magic of Shazam!!

How cool does this look? It's a new Shazam comic being produced by Mike Kunkel of Herobear and the Kid fame.

You can check out character designs here.

Sketches here.

And read their blog here.

Does Anything Beat The Third Man ?

Warning: DO NOT WATCH if you've never seen the movie!!!!

And lingering questions about Bush's legacy?

Mother Jones has a profile of Murat Kurnaz as well as a timeline of his experiences.

UPDATED: All New Politicker Cartoon Caption Contest

UPDATE: If you have any ideas, and you don't live in one of the states below, email me your suggestion at rob.tornoe@politicker.com. Remember to give me your name, city and state.

Brand new starting this week, compete in our Cartoon Caption Contest! Challenge your office co-workers, friends and families!

Come up with a pointed caption for this cartoon and post it in the Politicker site of your home state. Here's a list:

New Jersey
California
New Hampshire
Vermont
Maine
Kentucky
Arizona
Nevada
Washington
Oregon
Maryland
Colorado

Make sure to keep your suggestions clean (this is a family website) and keep them brief (brevity is the soul of wit). When you post, include your name and the name of the city and state where you live. Your deadline is noon Friday.

We'll post the winner's name and caption here Saturday morning, along with several runner-ups. If you send us your name and address, we'll mail the winning writer a color print of the cartoon with the caption, signed by Rob Tornoe. Please allow at least 4 weeks for delivery.

If you have any questions or suggestions, feel free to email me at rob.tornoe@politicker.com.

Good luck, and have fun!

Paul Pope's Avengers

Check them out here.

John McCain is...The Flash!

Barack Obama bowling...badly

Happy Belated 81st to Hy Eisman

Hy Eisman, cartoonist and Kubert School instructor, celebrated his 81st birthday on March 27th.

Here's a brief history of Hy from Lambiek.net for those of yout that have no idea what a B-6 is:

Hy Eisman started as a greeting card artist and quickly went to creating his own newspaper cartoon feature 'It Happened in New Jersey'.

In the late 1950s he became an assistant to comic artists like Alfred Andriola ('Kerry Drake') and Vernon Greene ('Bringing up Father'). At the same time, he drew for comic books by Charlton (romance), ACG ('Adventures into the Unknown', 'Forbidden Worlds'), Marvel (romance), Harvey ('Blondie') and Western Publishing ('Nancy', 'Twilight Zone', 'Smokey Stover').

From 1967 to 1983 he illustrated the 'Little Iodine' series, which was originally created by Jimmy Hatlo.

In 1986 he took over 'The Katzenjammer Kids', the world's oldest continuing comic strip.

In 1994, Eisman added another comic legend to his repertoire when he started drawing the Sunday 'Popeye' strip.

Some cartoons for you to chew on