One lady's assessment of Censor Monkeys Have No Class

I think she did a fine job, don't you?  Do you agree or disagree with her?

Quimby's has my book

I - er ah - cannot confirm nor deny that.

Wrong Quimby, ya noodle.  I'm talking about Quimby's Book Store in Chicago located at 1854 W. North Ave.  They were gracious enough to sell my most recent book Jesus Needs Help about two years ago.  Once again they have the good souls to give yet another leg up to this struggling independent author and artist.

My book, Censor Monkeys Have No Class, is being made available at Quimby's the same time as these other books:

Mysterious Underground Men Ten Cent Manga

Brooklyn Quesadillas

Adventure Time - Pixel Princesses

So if you want a copy of my book and you live in the Chicago area, definitely stop in and take a look.  I'm sure the courteous staff will be glad to tell you all about it.

Worst!  Book! Ever!

AAAHHHHH SHADAP!!  Does he really work there?  Oh well, hopefully somebody ELSE can help you with any questions you may have.
Just like everywhere else, my book will cost $6.50, which in American money I think works out to three M-16 rifles and a chicken.  I'm not too sure what the conversion rate is right now.  Hopefully one of the staff knows.  Either way, whether you want any of the above books or not, it's always a good idea to go to Quimby's for the "full Quimby's experience".  You'll be glad you did.

FREE AT LAST!!! FREE AT LAST!!! THANK GOD ALMIGHTY!!! IT'S FREE AT LAST!!!

Yes, as of midnight tonight, my book Censor Monkeys Have No Class is free as in costing $0 to purchase............................. but only on Kindle............................... and only until 11:59 pm on December 1.  So I would say this would be a golden opportunity to get your own copy of my book for your very own.  I'm making this offer in the hopes that it may entice any one of you to order the paper copy from Amazon or in any store that carries it and give it to someone as a Christmas gift.  It makes a dandy stocking stuffer.  And of course Chanukah starts pretty soon too.  This book could make 1 of those 8 nights quite a festival.  Whatever the occasion, this book of mine would be a welcome addition to it.

For the time being, get your free kindle copy at this link here: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00FND2VNS

And, if the spirit so moves you, purchase the physical paper copy from Amazon here:http://www.amazon.com/Censor-Monkeys-Have-Class-everything/dp/1492725382/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1385524755&sr=8-2&keywords=censor+monkeys+have+no+class 

I know some of you may be asking "if the good reverend Martin Luther King Jr. were alive today would he be willing to use any part of his message to shill any variety of products?"















maybe..........

Update:  It is now post-December 1 which means that the free Kindle promotion is sadly over.  According to Amazon's records, my book reached #33 in sales during that promotion.  A big sincere thank you goes out to all who took the time to download it and read it.  If you like it, please tell others about it.  Maybe even persuade them to purchase the physical paperback version as a gift for someone special this Christmas time.  Also, definitely write a review of it either on Amazon, in the comment section of this blog, or anywhere else that people will see it.  Anything like that would be greatly appreciated.

Once again, thank you to all.

Another store is getting into the act

As of today, Strange Adventures now has many copies of my book Censor Monkeys Have No Class.  You can look for them at their Halifax location on 5110 Prince St. or at their Dartmouth location on 101 Portland St.  Their very courteous staff will be ecstatic to assist you.
I had left a sample with the store's owner before and he said that he would get back to me about it through email.  After a few days I thought he was ignoring me or he just plain forgot.  But then I discovered his response to me in the junk folder.  I'm so glad I did.  His message to me was that he wanted 15 copies.  I left work early today just to make that deal happen.
That's a lesson for everyone out there.  Always look through your email's junk folder before deleting its contents.  Take the time to scroll passed all the viagra and slut finder crap so that you don't miss any important messages that were filtered there by mistake.  Hell, my very first animation job offer came to me in the junk folder.  I almost deleted it even.  But I'm glad I didn't.

Anyway, like I said, my book is now available at Strange Adventures in Halifax.  You can now go there to get it oooooooooooooooorrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr..................................

On November 7, Comic Readers at 105-2125 11th Ave in Regina, Saskatchewan is having what they're calling a Group Art Show.  Many artists will be displaying their wares for sale.  I will be one of them.  So, if you live closer to Regina than you do to Halifax, you might want to purchase my book there.  (I'm talking to you, people of French Polynesia).

Sold in stores now

As of today, my new book Censor Monkeys Have No Class is officially available for purchase in stores.  In the very wet city of Halifax, there are two specific stores have agreed to aid me in my quest to unleash this cautionary tale of mine onto an unsuspecting public.  So far, they are:

Giant Robot Comics - 114 Woodlawn Ave, Dartmouth, NS 

Monster Comic Lounge - 2091 Gottigen St, Halifax, NS 

Right now, those are the only stores in the entire world that contain my latest book............................... that I know of!!!

Is my book in your local store?

Well, there's only one way to find out.  You need to walk right in there and ask.  Just start by simply saying "Do you happen to have that new comic book sensation sweeping every nation Censor Monkeys Have No Class?"  If they say yes then you've hit paydirt.  Buy your copy and enjoy.  But if they answer with either "no" or "what the dang are you talking about?" or give some pretentious nerd-rage excuse for not carrying it then you must demand it be in their store.  

Shout out loud if you have to.  Shout and shout until the entire place turns blue and then you most likely pass out or something.  If that store doesn't carry my book soon after that then they are not a store worth frequenting ever again.

I would also like to use this post to remind everyone of my launch party comic up on November 3.  It will be at the Economy Shoe Shop located at 1665 Argyle St. in downtown Halifax.  If you purchase a book either at the event or anytime before then, you get 10% off of all food and drinks the entire night.  That's a pretty good deal.  Please join the event on Facebook if you have not already done so.  See you there.

(A special note to my wonderful nephews Michael and Gabriel that participated in those photos: please do not shout while you are in a store.  That is very bad manners).

Censor Monkey Have No Class: preview

For those unsure about my latest book, below is a lovely preview for it.



That video is the book's entire prologue.

Immediately below are the first three pages of the book when the story actually begins.

So there you have it.  You can order the book online at this link: https://createspace.com/4442899

You can also buy it on Kindle here: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00FND2VNS

Censor Monkeys Have No Class now available

That's right, my new comic book is finally available to the public.

Right now you can purchase it online at this link: https://createspace.com/4442899

Or you can run (not walk) to your local book store and demand that they carry my book.  Pour gasoline on yourself and threaten to light a match if you have to.  Whatever you do, go out and get it.  Frankly, I need the money.

Party people

Here's some fun party people looking for a good time.

Welcome to the world, Jody

As of September 8, 2013 at 6:45 p.m. Saskatchewan time, another soul has maneuvered his way among the living.  He is my new nephew named Jody Douglas Martin.  (The reason I'm rather late in posting this is because all week I was busy with my all too demanding job as well as finalizing my latest comic book).
He's named after our cousin Jody whose life was tragically cut short when he was only 21 years old.  He was part of a construction crew working on the highway when a big semi truck (whose driver was undoubtedly asleep) was just not being careful.  Needless to say we all miss him terribly.  My sister was roughly the same age as Jody so they were very good friends.  Her naming her first born child after him will most definitely help preserve his memory.

As a welcoming gift, I have very quickly scribbled down this little drawing for him.  Although I don't think his little baby eyes can make out shapes just yet, I hope he enjoys it anyway.

So there's that.

Ok, world.  Like I said, my new nephew is here.  It is now up to you to make sure that there are enough finances and resources for little Jody to live a nice comfortable life.  Let's all see to it that he grows up in a very positive environment so that he can become someone very very cool.  All greedy corporate fat cats should definitely stop grafting money away from the people just to pad their own savings.  Really, Donald Trump can go at least one day with out eating a solid gold omelette.

No I can't.

OK!  So Trump is being an unmovable knob on this.  But the rest of you out there with too much disposable income should absolutely help give Jody a fighting chance in this world (and any other babies too if there's time).

And for those of you seeing this post and asking, "who's that crazy man in the picture yelling at the baby?"  Well, that is just my attempt at drawing that legendary rock 'n' roller The Big Bopper.  Like I said up top, I drew this very quickly.  So, below is a clip of Mr. Bopper in all his glory.  Enjoy!

Datz Sho Bizniss

There's a movie about the life and trial of Lizzie Borden in the works.  Miss Lizzie will be played by Christina Ricci.  Much of the footage was shot here in Halifax and a few surrounding areas.  They even just finished shooting the last bit of scenes in Windsor just recently.  Very thankfully, I was lucky enough to have been chosen to play an extra in several scenes in this movie.  I was a gallery member in many scenes during the big trial.  I was a churchgoer that attended the same church as the Borden family (before and after the murders).  And lastly I was a nosy neighbour trying to catch a glimpse of the dead bodies in the Borden house followed by my portrayal of someone who watched the caskets being taken to the cemetery on a horse drawn carriage.  And I can honestly say that I performed each of those rolls with the ability of................ well let's just say I performed them.
Sadly, at this time, I'm very limited in what I can post about it up here for now.  I can't even show anyone what I looked like in my various costumes I had to wear.  We were definitely not allowed to take pictures while on the set.  So I guess all there is for me to do is to relay my own personal experience in being a part of this project without giving too much away.  So here it goes:

First off, I will just say that acting in movies is very fun but it is definitely not as easy as you might think.  For one thing, we had to repeat our performances 5 times or more.  Not always because our performances were bad either, but mostly because the director wanted to shoot the same thing from different angles.  Some of the less patient people on the set found that annoying and exhausting.
Of course, sometimes it was more exhausting to not be working.  There were days when most of our time was spent just standing around waiting for something to do.  But that was fine with us because we were still getting paid money to stand around anyway.  Basically we the extras were the equivalent of any bits of studio equipment they had lying around in big trucks that they were renting per day.  The main difference being of course is that we were much less expensive to replace if we got broken.

But I think everyone who's ever worked on a production has experienced that.  That's common for every movie, tv show, commercial, porn, etc. ever recorded on film.   I should talk about things that are unique only to this movie set.

I guess I should start with the main star Miss Christina Ricci herself.  I'm sure some of you reading this would like to me to dish out some dirt on her and possibly expose any undesirable traits that she's managed to keep hidden for so long.  Well, sorry to disappoint all of you out there who thrive on the misery of famous people, but I have no dirt on her for you.  That's because I saw no dirt.  It was always a pleasure to watch Christina work.  She is a consummate professional.  She shows up on set, does her job, and does it well.  There is not one ounce of diva bullshit in her.  Hell, some of the minimum wage slobs being extras displayed more bratty diva-like attitudes than anybody.  I even overheard one of them say "watch me pull a Mariah Carey".
There was one point between takes that Christina Ricci even displayed a very down to earth human side.  While shooting in Lunenberg, one citizen wandered onto the set accidentally while walking her dog.  At that point, Christina broke away from her station and went over to actually pet that dog.  That is definitely something I never thought I'd see.
No, I did not get to interact with her in any of the scenes, although I did almost knock her down once.  DOH!  My bad.  It's a good thing I was paying attention and stopped myself before that happened.  It's probably just as well that we didn't interact in any scenes because I think she considered me to be weird and creepy.  She's not entirely wrong.  She's not the first to come to that conclusion and she won't be the last.
Although, to be fair, I do think she held a similar attitude for all the extras.  I don't think she was too happy with all of us being recruited through Kijiji (I found out about this through Facebook myself).  All the while she was probably thinking "who or what lurks among those people?"  Some of the other actors felt this way as well I'm sure.  Fortunately for her most of us were well behaved.
I'm a little disappointed that she feels that way, but I definitely do respect her as an actress and as a professional.  I do think that she is destined to win an Irving Thalburg Lifetime Achievement Oscar and when she does I will be applauding quite loudly.

Below is a picture of her I quickly scribbled.  I was hoping to get it autographed by her but the opportunity never presented itself.  Oh well, here it is in all it's.............. majesty?

So that's that.  Oh, I should also give a special shout out to the director of this film, Nick Gomez.  He ran a very slick and well organized production.  The way his crew took down and set up equipment from one spot to another in record time was reminiscent of NASCAR pit crews.  But besides that, Nick himself seemed to have pretty much every detail of the movie figured out so all he had to do on set was orchestrate everything like a good symphony conductor.  I've read that Alfred Hitchcock liked to put 90% of his attention for his movies into the preproduction planning stage so that all the shooting and the editing would just fall in to place.  I have a feeling that Nick Gomez works in a similar way.  And, as if all of that weren't enough, he's got the task of looking at the footage with me in it over and over again.  If he makes it through that ordeal without peeling his scalp off then he should get some kind of award for that alone.

All in all, I would say that the entire thing was a very positive experience.  I learned alot about the art of making movies, I met some nice people, and I made some nice money.  I absolutely need to make lots and lots of that nice money right now.

Speaking of nice people.  One of them that I met on the set was James Vincent Walsh.  He is an artist who was brought in to do all the courtroom art during the trial scenes.  He draws court room scenes for a living as well.  You can see his work all the time on the local Halifax 6 o' clock news.  You can view his work on his website here.

Another person I met was a man named Gary Fontaine who has made his own film called Wendy and Wanda.  The trailer is embedded below.  It looks like it could be fun.

Well I guess that's about all I can say for now.  If anyone else who was on any of the various movie sets for this film, please chime in and share your experience.  I'm sure all of our observations combined could reveal the full picture of that entire movie shoot.

I'll end this blog with one of Christina Ricci's earliest performances.  She herself either might still be proud of this or would like to forget it ever happened.  But, if you can withstand Cher warbling through  a golden oldie (I can't) then you will enjoy the video below.

See you at the movies!!!

Valentines that might have been

Recently, I got involved with a project of sorts spearheaded by Tex Avery's daughter Nancy.  She was talking with Hallmark in the UK about releasing some Tex Avery inspired Valentines.  Sadly that deal went through.  But, just so all that hard work didn't go to waste, here are the Valentines cards I made:

I hope you found those enjoyable.  I certainly enjoyed making them and I wish I had the opportunity to make more.  If anyone out there does decide to create a line of Tex Avery inspired Valentines cards (or any other holiday that comes to mind) please include me.  I could use the money now more than ever.

Incidentally, if you're not sure where those characters in that last Valentine came from then watch the cartoon below and wonder no more:

Boiling Spaghetti Sauce

Here is some rough animation of the bubbles in boiling spaghetti sauce.  I think it turned out alright.  What do you think?

boiling_animation by Daffyduckandthedinosaur

A paper anniversary

This is a special (OMG) 10th anniversary celebration of the creation of my student film Hansel und Gretel: Sie Sind Innen Hasslich.  It was first shown at the graduation ceremony of my animation school around about 10 years ago today.  Since then it's been shown at a few other venues like:


The Empire Film Festival in New York

...in 2003, not 2009.

The Stuttgart International Trickfilm Festival in Stuttgart, Germany

The Eat My Shorts Film Festival at Just For Laughs in Montreal

The Yorkton Film Festival in Yorkton, Saskatchewan, Canada (yes that place exists)

And it was featured on a CBC program called ZED.

This show featured independent short film both on TV and the internet before it was pretty much killed by Youtube.

CBC made another attempt at something like this with a show called Exposure.  My Hansel and Gretel film was on there too.

The show was much like ZED except there was a contest involved.  Sadly, my Hasnel and Gretel film was just a few votes shy of being in the running to even be considered.  But a fellow graduate of my school Kelly Morrison actually DID make it into the running with her animated opus Beatless Nick.



In those 10 years, my film has had a rather bi-polar range of reviews about it.  The response was either "THIS FILM COMPLETELY ROCKS!!!!!" all the way to "THIS IS A DISGUSTING PROMOTION OF VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN!!!!!"  There were hardly any opinions in the middle of the road at all.  I'm guessing that to mean that I've done good.

Here's hoping I get a chance to make another film sometime within the next 10 years.  Who knows what the reactions will be then.

It's a matter of humour and DEATH!

The Hap-Hap-Happy Happenstance of Fanny Punongtiti - watch more funny videos      

As you can see, The Hap-Hap-Happy Happenstance of Fanny Punongtiti is now on the Funny or Die website.  Please go to that site and vote for this video.  If you don't, this guy with find you and punch you................. in the mouth!

Do you want to see how my next book is coming along?

Here's a rough panel from it.  I can't wait until it's finally done!

Guitar art

Recently my cousin asked me to put some art work onto a piece of his guitar.  Spoiler alert: I said yes.  Immediately below is the first preliminary sketch I made.

Sorry for the blurriness of this picture.  I took it with my iPhone.  Anyway, I showed that to my cousin and he approved of it.  So I went ahead and finished it off.  Here it is: 

I'm sure that will enhance his musical presence.

Speaking of which, I should give his band a shameless plug.  It is called Have (pronounced Ha-vey).  I tried to find some footage of them playing but with no such luck.  So you'll have to take my word for it that they completely and thoroughly rock the joint.  The best I can do right now is post one of their album covers:

I do have a photo of them performing:

If people could hear photographs, then they would know that we are completely and thoroughly rocking this joint.

It would be a good idea to post a link to their Facebook page right here too.  Go there and give that page 500 million likes.

Drawn ducks

Recently, a very very very VERY VERY VERY close and dear friend of mine named Janet Alaan gave me a drawing challenge.  She asked me to draw a duck with just one stroke.  Challenge accepted!!!  The result is the picture below.  You tell me how I did.

After that I was still feeling creative.  So, I also drew a duck HAVING a stroke.  Poor guy.

Should I issue an apology to any real stroke victims, ducks or otherwise?  NAAAAAAAAAAH!!!!!

Add: here's Janet's drawing of a duck done in one stroke, with wings even.  (Although I think the eye makes it 2 strokes).

She's an artist too.  If you know Janet Alaan, let her know you've seen this.