Comic Book Showcase

Mel Basham was recently made a finalist in the Scriptapalooza television contest in the sitcom category and is currently part of a creative team of writers in development on a new animated series for a variety show with Universal. Her other writing credits have included five episodes for an episodic comedy pilot for an Orlando production company as well as work on various stage productions. Her strip Nuts, Inc. is syndicated by Toonscape, Inc.

Darrin Bell was born on January 27, 1975. Although both his parents were teachers in the Los Angeles Unified School District, the Bells were not eligible for welfare. So, Darrin carved a set of pencils and brushes from a nearby fern and taught himself to draw. Darrin was sent to the best public schools in Los Angeles, and was, nevertheless, admitted to the University of California at Berkeley where he graduated with a B.A. in Political Science. He currently serves as the staff cartoonist for The Daily Californian, is a regular contributor to the Los Angeles Times, the San Francisco Chronicle and the Oakland Tribune, and has contributed to several other publications in the U.S. and Europe. Darrin has won several awards, including first place in the California Intercollegiate Press Association competition (1999 and 1998), second in the Charles Schulz Awards (1997 and 1996), and second in the AAEC's Locher Awards (1998). His editorial cartoons are distributed on-line by iSyndicate, and a major syndicate will launch his comic strip Lemont Brown in 2001. His other comic strip Rudy Park, which he co-created with journalist Theron Heir, is in development with United Media for syndication in 2001. Theron is a writer based in Northern California. He is the presumptive heir to the Heir fortune, which consists of the collected works of Barry Manilow on 8-track tape and three counterfeit Beanie Baby dolls. He is suing his parents for poor taste.

© Darrin Bell and Thron Heir.

© Butch Berry.

Butch Berry is a writer/cartoonist who lives in London. He produces a daily comic strip for the Internet The Raunchy Roach Show distributed by Art Comics. Butch also writes and produces the children's animated series Tell Me Who I Am for Kid Positive, a Maryland-based TV production company.

Christophe "Hagen" Granet is the Australian-based cartoonist of the single panel cartoon It's a Jungle out There!, a weekly single-panel cartoon with G-rated humour. He uses cute animals to depict the funny or absurd side of life. To see more samples of his work goes to Christophe's Web site.

Chris Kania has been publishing an Internet cartoon since 1996. His cartoons are single-panel, off-beat takes on family, business and technology. Vincent Media of USA Today said, "Chris Kania describes himself as an underdog cartoonist on the Net. Looks like some 'top dog' stuff to us." If you want to check out more of his work visit his Web site, kaniamania.

© Chris Kania.

© Jerry King.

Jerry King is one of the most published cartoonists in the country. His work has appeared in over 2,000 greeting cards, seven cartoon books, ten children's books and numerous newspapers and magazines, including Playboy, Golf Digest, the National Enquirer and Women's World. Jerry is also an award winning editorial cartoonist whose work can be seen in The Canton Repository in Canton, Ohio. Through his work, Jerry has been associated with such celebrities as quarterback Bernie Kosar, President George Bush, country star Vince Gill, and Leon Wilkenson of Lynyrd Skynyrd. Recently, President Bill Clinton mentioned Jerry's work in a USA Today article. Jerry has worked for such prestigious companies as The United States Golf Association, Marcel Schurman Fine Papers, Arnold Palmer Golf, American Greetings and Gibson Greetings. After serving in the army as a medic, Jerry went on to graduate from the Ohio State University with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in English. To find more Jerry King strips go to his Web site, jerryking.com.

© Wil Panganiban.

Wil Panganiban was born on August 14, 1971 and has been drawing ever since. He received his Bachelor's Degree in Art from UCLA. For his short, Snake Theatre, he received the Hanna-Barbera Director's Award for Animation Excellence. He was the artist for the comic panel, Chaos, which was syndicated by King Features Syndicate. He had also been developing another strip with his late friend and mentor, Tom Forman (of Motley's Crew fame) when he decided to join Disney's Interactive department. Wil is currently working for a new software company, developing Don Bluth's legendary game, Dragon's Lair for the next generation of game players. Still, Wil hasn't forgotten his number one passion, comic strips.

Alan Perun is currently trying to publish or syndicate his single panel cartoon collection. He is an artist/animator living and working in Winnipeg. He claims to have been drawing cartoons ever since he stopped eating his pencils in grade school.

© Alan Perun.

Rick DeMott is the Associate Editor of Animation World Magazine and the writer of AWN's Flash. Previously, he served as Media Coordinator for Hollywood-based Acme Filmworks. He holds a BA in Film/Video from Penn State University with a Minor in Comparative Literature.