Evil Inc Shareholders’ Report: The 80th Annual NCS Conference and Reuben Awards

I gotta tell you — my heart is so full after this past week, I’m not sure where to start.

I spent most of last week in Columbus, Ohio, for the 80th annual National Cartoonists Society conference and Reuben Awards. My friend, Dave Kellett, and I were doing a live version of our ComicLab podcast, and I had received my third nomination for a Silver Reuben award in four years. (More on that later.)

The ComicLab LIVE stage show was a tremendous success, thanks to our guests Terri Libenson, Dee Fish, and Jamar Nicholas. We were able to spend a little time with each, showcasing their remarkable careers, and then we opened up the discussion to issues that affect us all.

You’ll be able to hear the entire show on September third on the ComicLab podcast.

I got to spend several days with my one of my very best friends, Dave Kellett, talking comics and laughing. The ComicLab stage show went wonderfully. Plus, Dave and I had exclusive access to the Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum, where we spent an hour or so, perusing gorgeous original comic art without another soul in the gallery.

As we were walking out of the main museum, I said to Dave, “Do you think WE will ever see our original art hanging in this museum?”

“Us? Nah.” he dismissed.

The next day, we were in the Reading Room at the Billy, and a ComicLab listener motioned us over to a display of even more comic art.

There, behind the glass, was an original Sheldon comic strip.

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Although I didn’t win the award I was nominated for, it went to Katie Cook, a cartoonist whose work I greatly admire. Plus, I got to know her during the conference, and she’s an absolutely delightful human being. I was thrilled to see her get her well-deserved accolades. I hope to win one of those awards someday, but in the meantime, if people like her keep winning awards, I’ll be just as pleased.

Mark Tatulli won the Best Cartoonist award after being nominated about ten times. When he wept openly on the stage, more than a few of us donated a few tears of our own — including his fellow Philadelphians.

The Philadelphia chapter of the NCS. Back row, from left: Dawn Griffin, Brad Guigar, Pat Higgins, Tom Stiglich, Jamar Nicholas, Kathy Schalk-Greene, Richard Greene, Chuck Dillon. Front row, from left: Dave Blazek, Mark Tatulli, and Andrea Beizer.

Dave and I had lunch with Dave Blazek and his wife Eileen. I know Blazek from the Philly chapter, and I think he’s one of the best cartoonists working today. And he’s undoubtedly one of the kindest and funniest people I’ve ever met. I made a crack that got a good solid laugh out of him, and I felt like the King of the World.

Every time I turned around, I was either face-to-face with one of my childhood heroes (like Cathy Guisewite) or running into a person whose work I admired, or bring treated with unbelievable kindness by someone who admired my work. It’s so nice to look someone in the eyes and say “you do wonderful work, and I’m so happy I get to tell you right to your face!”

I contributed 250 hardcover copies of my latest Evil Inc book to the goodie bags that went out to all of the attendees, and the number of people who walked up to me to thank me personally was jaw-dropping.

There were tons of ComicLab fans there, including a bunch who bought events-only tickets just so they could come see Dave and me. We got a chance to meet Superfan Ray Michels, who took it upon himself to update my Wikipedia page with a level of detail that was truly humbling. Dave’s too. Ray found books for my bibliography that I had forgotten publishing. It sounds silly, but many outlets use my Wikipedia page for press releases and bio text. For years, mine had been updated as far as Greystone Inn. Wikipedia doesn’t allow a person to update their own page, so I was stuck with it until someone volunteered. To say that Dave and I love Ray is an understatement.

Finally, as the conference was winding down, I happened upon Mort Gerberg, a 90-something gag cartoonist who has been published everywhere from The New Yorker to Playboy magazine and beyond. If a publication used ink, it ran one of his cartoons. I ended up sitting down with him and his wife, and we talked comics, shared stories, and took turns making each other laugh

I spent the first hour of my 7-hour drive home in complete silence, just reflecting on all of the things that would have made 12-year-old Brad Guigar absolutely shout with joy. I must have looked like a dope, driving down I-70 with a big, stupid grin on my face. I came home to a welcome-home steak dinner, and proceeded to regale my wife and sons with all of the stories as they came flooding back to me in big, happy waves.

So, yes... a very full heart.

And maybe a couple clogged arteries.