The mystery man behind "Tom the Dancing Bug"

Did you ever practice law?

Yes, I practiced law when I first got out of law school, for a year and half, and then I made a very big dramatic showing of quitting the firm to go out and seek my fame and fortune through cartooning. It didn't quite work out that way. I came back [to work] pretty quickly. I've had a day job ever since.

How do you balance having a day job in finance and cartooning?

It's very Clark Kent-like. It's two different worlds. I even take my glasses off. Some people who have had day jobs, like Scott Adams of Dilbert, use their day job as material for their comics. You can tell from my comics that I don't do that at all. I keep my job in one hemisphere of my brain and my cartooning in the other, and there is very little overlap.

Then what does inspire you to make cartoons?

I love "The Daily Show." I love sketch comedy, and that's been a huge influence on my humor and writing style, things like Monty Python, "Kids in the Hall" and "Mr. Show." I'll watch a show like that and get really excited, and I'll want to do what they're doing. That will inspire me to write a comic.

What were your favorite strips as a kid?

I loved Peanuts -- I still do. It's just a brilliant form of American art, the way [Charles M. Schulz] developed all the characters, the pathos behind every strip. The early stuff was almost postmodern, the kind of thing I strive for in my Super Fun Pack comics. Something was lost once Snoopy became a major part of the strip, though.

I also loved Mad Magazine, all those artists (Al Jaffee, Will Elder). I really read everything, whether it was funny or not. If I was in a store and I could hector my parents into buying me something, I'd get it, whether it was "Andy Capp" or "B.C." -- it didn't matter to me. I just loved comics.

When you first started out, you were "self-syndicated." What does that mean?

I started "Tom the Dancing Bug" in 1990 in a small New York newspaper. It was called New York Perspectives, then it was called New York Weekly, then it was called "bankrupt." But before it went bankrupt, I was able to sell the strip to a few other papers. For seven years, I was sending packages out and following up with phone calls, trying to get editors to run the strip. I ended up selling it to about 60 newspapers. I was surprised at the success I had, especially in selling to daily newspapers. I didn't think it would be my market.

In 1997, the Universal Press Syndicate approached me and asked if we could work together. That came at just the right time, as I was starting a more serious day job, and I was about to have my first baby. I just didn't have the time and energy to devote to the selling of the strip. I decided that whatever job they did would be better than whatever I could put forth at that time.

What is your personal favorite character or comic story in "Tom the Dancing Bug"?

The cliché answer is that my favorite is the last one I did. But it's true. When I think of a new character or a new format, it's like a new toy. I use it a lot.

You're right: That is cliché. How about if I ask it this way: Which comic gets the best response from your readers? And if you answer this one, I'll tell you what my favorite "Tom the Dancing Bug" comic is.

My most popular character was probably Harvey Richards, the lawyer for children. I developed him in law school, and got a huge reaction whenever I used him. He's not in the latest book, though. I had to stop using him because I didn't want to repeat myself, and I wanted to be able to stretch in other directions. I think I've used him only once in the past three years, and then only in a cameo appearance.

These days  I'm always glad when I can think of a Billy Dare comic. He's fun to draw. I'm using a Tintin look, and I enjoy playing with the narrative structure of that strip.

Personally, I love the God-Man strips. They're silly and subversive.

While that is also quite popular, God-Man gets very negative reactions -- more than any other character, in fact. People seem to take offense to any comments about religion. It's sort of ironic because these same people wonder why there is very little discussion of religion in American culture, but when I introduce the subject, their tendency is to want to shut it down. They seem to miss the point: God-Man isn't actually God. He is a straw man that I'm using to make fun of some people's very simplistic views about religion and philosophy. They literally forget that and think that I'm offending God Himself with these strips.

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