Mama Jen sure likes to play dress up but I like her best as Wacky Wonder Woman!

Did Da Vinci prophesy Batman? Did Bob Kane “Bat Channel” Da Vinci? Bob Kane admits that Leonardo Da Vinci’s Flying Machine influenced his design for the Caped Crusader! Weird bat true!

What a treat I have in store for you this Tuesday, dear Arf blog readers. Fasten your seatbelts!

It never ceases to amaze me how thoroughly comic culture has pervaded the mainstream. And I’m not just talking about things like the X-Men cartoon series or the upcoming Iron Man movie. Comics have been in the popular media since the days of radio. There was a movie serial of Captain Marvel in the Forties. Superman was on TV in the Fifties. Batman in the Sixties. And so on. But let’s not forget The Great White Way. Yes, comics have been on Broadway many times. We already featured a song from the stage presentation of Li’l Abner (that was on November 20, 2025 if you’re keeping track). There was also the Superman musical which is coming up on a future Tuesday, and the Broadway show Annie (which, fortunately, is not).

But whooda thunk there’d be a Broadway show based on the work of writer/cartoonist James Thurber?

(click for a closer look)

I love this track from the show for its sophisticated New York wit, back when being witty in the city was more important than being sexy. Yes, that’s Peggy Cass, famous game show panelist, as one of the urbane party-goers, along with John McGiver and the rest of the troupe. Trivial tidbit: The show was directed by Burgess “The Penguin” Meredith, for an additional comics connection. To listen, click on the bar below…

(if no bar appears please click here to listen)

Next Tuesday we feature The Ventures!

According to golf legend Gary Player, “The ideal build for a golfer would be strong hands, big forearms, thin neck, and a flat chest. He’d look like Popeye!”

Fact! Broadway caricaturist Al Hirschfeld sketched all his subjects in the dark, in his pocket, on a pad with a little pencil stub! Weird but too much!

Marge Planned to have Little Lulu be a spokestoon for Kleenex. This riled Saturday Evening Post editors, who banned the cartoon from their magazine! But Lulu returned to those same pages in the Kleenex ads! Weird But Achoo!

…could have been the motto of caricaturist Ralph Barton, who wrote his own obituary….then took his own life!

Zack Kim is an amazing musician that plays the Simpson theme song on TWO guitars at once:

I’ll be speaking at New York Comic Con (at the Javits Center) this year, with comic genius Al “Mad Fold In” Jaffee on Sunday April 20 at 3pm in room 1E03 about Arf and Old-Skool Cartoonists (Al’s work is in the new Arf). Also on the panel will be caricaturist David Cowles who has rendered Jack Kirby and Stan Lee for the Arf books and Glenn Head who’s art is in the new Arf, Comic Arf (and is the editor of Hotwire Comix). Please come and spread the word about this panel.

Click for a closer look at this fold-in and to watch it fold.

The new Arf book, Comic Arf will be debuting at the con! I’ll be signing them at the Fantagraphics booth, on Saturday April 19 from 11am-1 pm, and Sunday, April 20 from 1pm-2:45pm.

Click here to place an order for Comic Arf

A toon historian touted Kremos as “the numero uno delineator of delectable damsels.” But the cartoonist was said to be shy around women, blushing at their mere glance! (Don’t be shy, look for a whole color chapter on Kremos with tons of full-page of sexy girlie cartoons in my book Arf Forum!)