April, 2013 | Luis' Illustrated Blog

Simpsons Studio Artists Worked on the Simpsons Monopoly Game

April 25, 2013 in BOARD GAMES, BOOKS

BOARD GAMES – Simpsons Studio Artists Worked on the Simpsons Monopoly Game

Simpsons Quote:

Monopoly Guy: There was a bank error in my favor and I’m spending it all on Oriental Avenue prostitutes.

I play a lot of board games…well, I used to. I like playing them but either I don’t have the time to play them or no one wants to play them with me.

So what?

Well, I happened to have worked on a The Simpsons Monopoly game and today I’m going to be talking about it.

You can either watch the video below or read the text under it. It’s the same information so it doesn’t really matter which you choose:

I Happen to be a Gamer

I’m really into board games, I’m a big gamer. I used to be obsessed with video games. I’m not so obsessed with them anymore. I prefer something more tactile. I prefer siting around in a group, playing a game.

Board games fit the bill. I’m not talking about mainstream games, like LIFE, Monopoly, Risk. I’m talking more about what are often called Euro games, hobby games, or designer games. They’re different kinds of board games that are becoming more and more popular.

Game like Quarriors:

A big dice game. It’s difficult to explain the game in sentence. Just follow the link and you can learn about it.

Or games like DreamBlade, which I wrote about a few years ago on this blog. Here’s the link:

A Board Game I Worked On

Although I don’t play mainstream board games all that much I did work on one and it’s Simpsons related. That game is, of course Simpsons Monopoly:

Now I’m not a huge Monopoly fan, in fact, I don’t like playing it at all. I think it’s flawed, but most people when they think of board games they think of Monopoly.

So what did I work on? What did I do in this games?

I worked on the board. BUT only a tiny bit of the board.

There’s these tiny little vignettes of people on the board. That’s what I drew. Things like this:

I really didn’t do anything else. The background of the board was drawn by Emmy Award winning Chuck Ragins. He does background designs on the show and he drew the background on that Monopoly board. He’s gone on to win an Emmy on one of the shows he designed backgrounds for on the Simpsons.

I’m not sure who drew the rest of the board.

The Chance and Community Chest cards, I believe where drawn by Shawn Cashman. Shawn is Simpons alumnus who has gone on to become a director in many other shows. Including King of the Hill.

It’s neat looking game. It has lot’s a very cool bits. The game pieces are Simpsons character. It’s even got Kodos as a playable piece:

The Story Behind the Game

Okay so, how did I end up working on the games?

Well, Bill Morrison from Bongo Comics called me up because he had been given the assignment to do the art on the game. He simply didn’t have the time to do it. He didn’t have the time to do the entire board.

So he decided to farm out the art to people he thought was going to be able to handle it while he managed it all. So he paid off the artist to do the bit of the work.

Unfortunately for him, I was one of the last people he asked to do the worked on the characters. It was a last minute job. Then he asked me how much I wanted for the work. When I told him, it turned out that, because of what I asked, he didn’t get paid.

He coordinated the whole thing and then at the end, there was no money left for him. I didn’t realize that, I wasn’t thinking. It was really screwed up.

He had the job, he farmed it out, he did he difficult job of coordinating the whole thing, and then paid all the artist which left no money for him.

That totally sucked. I’m sorry Bill, I didn’t know. I wasn’t thinking.

Do you have it?

That’s my little board game story. Maybe you can still find this game I’m not sure.

Do you have this version of Monopoly? Do you play it? What do you think of the art? What do you think of this version of the game?

Let me know, I’m curious. Leave a comment below.

BOOKS – My “Art of Book,” Angel Cowgirl.

Behind the scenes for some time now, I’ve been working on putting together a collection of my art and sketches.

I finally managed to finish doing this.

To celebrate, I’m giving way the digital version of the book for FREE. All you have to do is opt in to my e-mail list and you’ll be sent a link to download the book.

That’s it! It’s so simple.

Here’s a sample of the art you can expect to see:

For more comics and stories written by me: COMICS AND STORIES If you like what you read, please consider signing up to my rss feed.

I also have a store. Click Here and check it out.

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How Garfield the Cat Got me Into Drawing.

April 18, 2013 in COMIC BOOKS

COMICS – Garfield the Cat Got me Into Drawing.

Simpsons Quote:

(Fat Tony drives the school carpool home.)
Fat Tony: Milhouse, may I borrow your three-ring binder?
(Milhouse holds up two binders.)
Milhouse: Garfield or Love Is…?”
Fat Tony: Uh, I prefer the cat. He hates Mondays. We can all relate.

As a little kid, I was pretty obsessed with Garfield the cat. I used to read comic strips all the time but the one I liked the most where Garfield comics strips.

I bring this up because somehow, the whole Garfield thing came full circle when I started working in the animation industry.

Today I’m going to tell you how that happened.

You can either watch the video or simply read what I have to say in the video below:

Some of the links below are affiliate links.

Obsessions of a Little Kid

Garfield really got me into drawing. I was really into comic strips when I was little. Specifically Garfield. I was really obsessed with Garfield.

I had the comic strip books,

I had Garfield story books:

When I was little I also drew comic strips. The comic strips I drew are actually kept in Garfield scrapbooks. I’ve got two of them:

I looked in my drawing folders to see if I could find old Garfield drawings I did from when I was a kid. I managed to find one. I drew this when I was in junior high:

You can see from the drawings, especially on the eyes that I was influenced by Jim Davis eyes. And of course, there’s a drawing of Garfield in the bottom. I think it’s a copy, although I used to be able to draw Garfield pretty good without needing to copy. It might have just been a memory drawing.

You gotta understand that I was pretty obsessed, I was drawing him, all the time.

Then There’s the Documentary

But above all else, what really influence me the most growing up, was a Garfield documentary. I don’t know what it’s called or where to find it. I used to have a copy of it on VHS that I recorded off the television.

I looked for it online and I can’t find it. I don’t even know what it’s called.

The documentary was about Jim Davis, the origins of Garfield and where it came from. It had behind the scenes footage of how a comic strip was made. It had footage of other artisst that worked on art for the Garfield merchandise. They talked about the Garfield TV show and the specials.

It even had Phil Roman of Film Roman studios talking about the production of the animated cartoon. He walks you through the process.

I wish I could find it. If you can find it online or you know what I’m talking about, please let me know so could put a link to it so every could benefit from it.

It’s a fantastic documentary. It talks about cartooning and all kinds of great things.

I used to watch it so much because is inspired me. I was pretty obsessed with it.

Well, I bring all this stuff up because it all came full circle for me. From elementary school drawing Garfield, to Junior High drawing Garfield, then soon after abandoning that and starting to draw cartoons and comics on my own.

My love affair with Garfield eventually faded away.

It All Came Full Circle

BUT then I get my first job in the animation industry, and low and behold, it’s in Film Roman where they were producing the Garfield cartoon.

That’s crazy. That was just crazy. I was more than aware of this coming full circle with the character. Somehow I ended up working in the studio that produced Garfield cartoons. I didn’t work on Garfield but I saw them produce it.

It’s one of those weird things.

Has This Happened to You?

Had you even had anything like that ever happen to you? Something that has ever come full circle for you? I’m sure it has and I’d love to hear about it. What inspired you to do what you do?

Oh, and I almost forgot, I also still have Pooky, Garfield’s teddy bear. Yeah, I was just this obsessed little kid.

Alright, that’s all from me today.

EDIT:

Dave Roman to the Rescue

Turns out, I’m not the only one with this “art entry point.” Dave Roman of Astronaut Academy, Teen Boat and many other comics, was also influenced by Garfield comics. As you can see by in this post:

http://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=1499#m12534

He was kind enough tell me what the name of the special was (Garfield 10th Anniversary Special) and gave me a link so here you go:

For more comics and stories written by me: COMICS AND STORIES If you like what you read, please consider signing up to my rss feed.

I also have a store. Click Here and check it out.

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The Tex Avery Documentary that Inspired me to Get into the Animation Industry

April 11, 2013 in SOME THOUGHTS, VIDEOS

VIDEOS – The Tex Avery Documentary that Inspired me to Get into the Animation Industry

$The Tex Avery Documentary that Inspired me to Get into the Animation Industry$ Simpsons Quote:

“I could pull a better cartoon outta my aaayyyy, kids!” – Krusty

There were a lot of things in my life that pushed me into animation industry. Tex Avery was one of them.

Today I’m going to talk a very tiny bit on how I became aware of Tex Avery and what that awareness did to me. But really, it’s just my long winded introduction to the documentary that educated me about the man.

You can either watch the video or read the text below it. Either way you’ll get the same information. Don’t forget to scroll down further to see the videos I posted up of the documentary itself:

Influential Documentary

Okay so how did Tex Avery help me get into animation industry? Well, it really was the Tex Avery documentary I saw when I saw in high school, which I embedded below.

Tex Avery, what I can I say about Tex Avery. Besides the documentary, you might what to seek out the this book with his work:

I really didn’t know anything about him at all until I watched the documentary on tv and I later recorded. I watched that thing over and over again. I had been broadcast on PBS.

It really opened my eyes to a different style of humor and the way it can be pushed in animation. I was really into the comedic side of animation.

Why I Got Into the Animation Industry

THE reason I got into animation was to do exactly the kind of cartoons that Tex Avery did. I wanted to write and direct, animated shorts, just like Tex Avery. I thought that I was going to be the next Tex Avery. I thought I was going to do what he did.

That’s the only reason I got into the animation industry.

I’ve changed a lot since then. I know what I want now. I know how to go about doing it. I don’t really want to be Tex Avery anymore, but initially that’s why I got into the animation industry.

Once I saw the documentary, I started seeking out his cartoons and when I saw them, they blew my mind. His cartoons did stuff that I found to be very very different.

For Your Viewing Pleasure

Okay, so enough about me, here’s the documentary that changed the way I saw animation. I’m afraid it isn’t all of it and I don’t know where you can find it complete. Still, there’s enough here so that you can get something out of it. Enjoy:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tm_FDD0e7g0 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KJwv6bkP91E http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mzQNtbKIRho http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aFy_deLjxEw http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UHncLisvzZg http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j6KOJA5dhk4

What do you think? Did you know who Tex Avery was before you watched this documentary. Has his cartoons influenced you in anyway. I’d love to hear what you have to say.

Who Inspired You?

Who are your heroes. How have they driven you. Have you moved on from them as I have? I still love Tex Avery but I’m not driven by wanting to be him anymore. My heroes are different now.

SOME THOUGHTS – A Question for you About 2D Animated Features

This Tuesday after figure drawing, I got into a conversation with Richie Chavez and Paul Wee, about the animation industry. Specifically, 2d animation. I’m still hopeful about 2d. I think audiences want to see 2d animated movies.

Richie, had a different opinion. He doesn’t think audiences care. He doesn’t even think audiences know the difference.

The reality is that the last two 2d movies Disney came out with didn’t do well. Never mind the fact that one wasn’t all that well written and the other didn’t really appeal to most people.

The conversation lasted an hour and a half. We went into a lot of depth about the business of making animated movies and the way things are changing behind the scenes.

I can’t really reproduce the whole conversation here.

Chris Oatley had something to say about 2d animation in his blog a while back, but I’m wondering if the reason he’s so optimistic is because he’s surrounded by a group of people who appreciate the art form.

How about the “average” person who never thinks about animation at all? Do they feel the same way about 2d animated movies?

We discussed what “average” person meant and narrowed it down to: “parents/families.” Someone looking for something with good values they can trust.

But this begged the question:

Is that the ONLY market for animated movies. Why not target other markets like anime does? The answer from the discussion was this:

Anime which is released in theaters that target those other markets, don’t really make all that much money. Even Studio Ghibli movies.
Raise of the Guardians, was more teen centric and it didn’t do all that well (and it was CG!).

The discussion left me wondering.

What do you think? Would you like to see 2d features? Why do you think that the last ones failed? What would you like to see?

Is your opinion the same as the “average” person?

For more comics and stories written by me: COMICS AND STORIES If you like what you read, please consider signing up to my rss feed.

I also have a store. Click Here and check it out.

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At a Simpsons Party, I Encountered Weird Al Yankovic and..

April 4, 2013 in THE SIMPSONS NEWS

THE SIMPSONS NEWS – At a Simpsons Party, I Encountered Weird Al Yankovic and…

Simpsons quote:

Homer Simpson: Hey, Weird Al! Did you get those parodies I sent you?
‘Weird Al’ Yankovic: Yes I did, Homer.
Homer Simpson: Which one was better, “Livin’ La Pizza Loca” or “Another One Bites The Crust”?
‘Weird Al’ Yankovic: Actually, Homer, they were both the same.
Homer Simpson: Yeah, like you and Allan Sherman.

Sometimes, at Simpsons parties, celebrities that provide guest voices show up.

I don’t often get starstruck. In fact, I’ve NEVER gotten starstruck. This isn’t to say that I don’t think it’s neat when I see a celebrity.

Although, if I was to ever get an opportunity to talk to a celebrity or something, I probably would, if I wanted. Problem is, I don’t do well socially in the BEST of times. Not even with people I know, so I doubt talking to strangers would be any better.

Case in point, I had the opportunity one time to talk to Weird Al Yankovic at a party, here’s what happened.

You can either watch the video or read about the event below. It’s the same info:

(Some of the links below are affiliate links)

Growing Up with Weird Al

Growing up I really didn’t listen to much music. In fact, my little brother and my big sister LOVED music. I was surrounded by their music. They just couldn’t get enough music. From U2 to Bob Dylan…you name it they where into it. But I was not.

The only thing that I would listen to, was Weird Al Yankovic.

I still have my records. Like my “Even Worse” record:

and this self titled one:

The right hand corner of the second record album above is chewed up by the hamsters I had growing up. I left the album too close to the hamster cage.

I do have a turn table so I can still listen to the records. I also had tapes. Mostly I had tapes.

I listened to them all the time. I memorized the music, it was fun. I lyrics where humorous. I was really into comic strips and comedy. It was my thing.

Yeah ,so I was into Looney Tunes, comics strips, funny music…that was my life. I wasn’t that serious a kid (well maybe I was) which is why I like comedy and liked to laugh.

Who would have thought that he’d do a voice on the show. I believed he played himself in it.

An Encounter on at The House of Blues

Well, one time there was Simpsons party that took place in The House of Blues in Hollywood. My wife and I, we were in line to get in, and who was in front of us, but Weird Al Yankovic.

So it was a bit of shock because…well, I grew up listening to his music. For so many years, and there he was. But I didn’t do anything. I didn’t say anything. I’m just too introverted to do that. But it was a very strange experience.

Anyway, we get inside The House of Blues and we go and mingle. We’re there for an hour or two and my wife needs to use the ladies room.

So we walk over there to the restrooms and I stand outside, lean against a wall and while I wait for her to come out, because I have nothing else to do.

Of course, who has a date that also needs to use the lady’s room, but Weird Al Yankovic. So he’s standing there next to me, and we make eye contact.

The Big Moment

For that split second when we made eye contact…in my head I said to him,

“Dude, I listened to your albums for so many years of my life. They’ve been part of my life. Thank you for making me laugh.” Stuff, stuff I wanted to say. It was just welling up.

We locked eye for just a simple second. Then we turned away from each other feeling really really awkward. I can tell he felt awkward, like he should say something, but he didn’t. And I felt awkward, because I KNEW I should say something but I didn’t.

It Passes By

So we just sat there feeling uncomfortable, sharing silence. It was terrible.

It’s the curse of the introvert, the curse of the shy guy. And then my wife came out and we walked away, and that was it.

That’s my story. It’s anti-climactic, it’s heart wrenching and he was there and I said nothing. It was weird, and sad, and it sucked.

Tell me Your Story

Has this ever happened to you? Have you ever done that?

I few weeks ago I got a good response from one of these posts and it was really interesting to hear your stories.

BOOKS – The Tower’s Alchemist is FREE

The Tower’s Alchemist, my wife’s book, is FREE on Amazon for the Kindle.

It’s an experiment. We want to see if the first books is good enough to get you hooked on the series. That way you buy the other two books. I think it is. The second book is even better than the first.

Go check it out. It’s a 4 1/2 star reviewed book. I don’t know how long my wife is going to keep it free.

For more comics and stories written by me: COMICS AND STORIES If you like what you read, please consider signing up to my rss feed.

I also have a store. Click Here and check it out.

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Luis' Illustrated Blog

Simpsons Studio Artists Worked on the Simpsons Monopoly Game

BOARD GAMES – Simpsons Studio Artists Worked on the Simpsons Monopoly Game

I Happen to be a Gamer

A Board Game I Worked On

The Story Behind the Game

Do you have it?

BOOKS – My “Art of Book,” Angel Cowgirl.

Share this:

Like this:

How Garfield the Cat Got me Into Drawing.

COMICS – Garfield the Cat Got me Into Drawing.

Obsessions of a Little Kid

Then There’s the Documentary

It All Came Full Circle

Has This Happened to You?

Dave Roman to the Rescue

Share this:

Like this:

The Tex Avery Documentary that Inspired me to Get into the Animation Industry

VIDEOS – The Tex Avery Documentary that Inspired me to Get into the Animation Industry

Influential Documentary

Why I Got Into the Animation Industry

For Your Viewing Pleasure

Who Inspired You?

Sign up for, special content that I will NOT post on the blog. Don’t miss out.

SOME THOUGHTS – A Question for you About 2D Animated Features

Share this:

Like this:

At a Simpsons Party, I Encountered Weird Al Yankovic and..

THE SIMPSONS NEWS – At a Simpsons Party, I Encountered Weird Al Yankovic and…

Growing Up with Weird Al

An Encounter on at The House of Blues

The Big Moment

It Passes By

Tell me Your Story

Sign up for, special content that I will NOT post on the blog. Don’t miss out.

BOOKS – The Tower’s Alchemist is FREE

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