Dale Martin, Cartoonist's Avatar

Dale Martin, Cartoonist

@smearysoapbox.bsky.social

Artist. Writer. Reader. Publisher. Caretaker of WATUSI the TALKING DOG. I've been handcrafting comics since 1985, & don't see any reason to stop now! Blog: smearysoapboxpress.com Webcomic: watusithetalkingdog.com Newsletter: smearysoapbox.eo.page/signup

108 Followers  |  147 Following  |  205 Posts  |  Joined: 14.01.2025
Posts Following

Posts by Dale Martin, Cartoonist (@smearysoapbox.bsky.social)

Looks great; I love that your character desciptions touch upon the relationships between them! I'm long overdue for doing this for my own comic...

09.03.2026 18:09 β€” πŸ‘ 1    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0
Post image

In "Peanuts," Snoopy first appeared in his astronaut persona on March 8, 1969. (It was a few months before the first manned moon landing that July. Charles Schulz was a big fan of NASA and space exploration.) Here's that strip and the ensuing dailies:

08.03.2026 13:44 β€” πŸ‘ 35    πŸ” 7    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0
Redirecting...

Memphis Urban Sketchers gets together monthly to practice observational drawing at different locations around town. More on our FB page...
www.facebook.com/groups/16083...

07.03.2026 20:46 β€” πŸ‘ 0    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0
Post image Post image

Rainy Saturday morning ... so a great time to draw at Crosstown Concourse with with Memphis Urban Sketchers! Was attracted to the signage at Memphis Teacher Residency, even if I didn't end up drawing most of it!

07.03.2026 20:31 β€” πŸ‘ 1    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0

BatFam #17 is an especially nice issue; the stories are loosely interconnected.

05.03.2026 13:25 β€” πŸ‘ 1    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0
A rabbit in overalls and a goat in pants are sitting on the ground drawing pictures. The rabbit is saying β€œART POSES A THREAT TO CORPORATOLRATIC SYSTEMS BECAUSE A PURPOSE OF ART IS TO REMIND THE INDIVIDUAL OF THEIR INHERENT AUTONOMY.”, the goat adds β€œTHEIR HUMANITY.”

A rabbit in overalls and a goat in pants are sitting on the ground drawing pictures. The rabbit is saying β€œART POSES A THREAT TO CORPORATOLRATIC SYSTEMS BECAUSE A PURPOSE OF ART IS TO REMIND THE INDIVIDUAL OF THEIR INHERENT AUTONOMY.”, the goat adds β€œTHEIR HUMANITY.”

Make Art (1/4)

10.02.2026 12:48 β€” πŸ‘ 12369    πŸ” 4516    πŸ’¬ 40    πŸ“Œ 39

Great one! Maybe my favorite Sunday Lauren strip yet!

01.03.2026 15:03 β€” πŸ‘ 1    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0
This watercolor depicts Sottsass's conceptual design for Villa Lora Totino in Turin, blending modernist curves with the landscape.
Image: Ettore Sottsass by Philippe ThomΓ©, Phaidon

This watercolor depicts Sottsass's conceptual design for Villa Lora Totino in Turin, blending modernist curves with the landscape. Image: Ettore Sottsass by Philippe ThomΓ©, Phaidon

Watercolor Study for the Lora Totino Villa, Turin by Ettore Sottsass (1951)

28.02.2026 01:11 β€” πŸ‘ 100    πŸ” 14    πŸ’¬ 2    πŸ“Œ 0

This is shaping up to be a fun storyline! Love reading the full strip in my inbox!

25.02.2026 13:57 β€” πŸ‘ 1    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

Reading her in 70s Archies, I had no idea Li'l Jinx had been around so long!

25.02.2026 13:55 β€” πŸ‘ 0    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

The answer to the question, "Which is more important in comics, the writing or the art?," by the way, is "Whichever is being worked on at the moment."

No half-assing the job and letting the other guy pick up your slack, buster. Even if the other guy is you.

11.02.2026 09:21 β€” πŸ‘ 102    πŸ” 12    πŸ’¬ 2    πŸ“Œ 1

Something else to look for, @kevinmule.bsky.social ?

06.02.2026 14:12 β€” πŸ‘ 0    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0
4 frame comic. First frame shows a set of keys, second shows the store Gummi with a banner reading, in German : Stamm und Bassermann / frΓΌher Gummi Weil. Third frame shows passersby looking at smashed storefront windows. Fourth shows a tweet by US homeland security that reads : Want affordable housing? Help report illegal aliens in your area. Call 866-DHS-2-ICE. If you are an illegal alien, you can take control of your departure using DHS.gov/cbphome . text reads :
according to the Berlin
Jewish museum, the nazi term
"aryanization" referred to
"the process of expropriation
or confiscating Jewish people's
property [businesses, stores,
homes, land, etc] and handing it
over to non-jewish ("aryan," in
Nazi usage) individuals or
companies, or to the state."
in his book "Holocaust justice,"
Shoah historian michael bazyler
estimates that between $230
and $320 billions (in 2005 u.s.
dollars) in properties were
stolen from Jews across
Europe in the different waves
of aryanization.
the first wave, starting in
1933, involved heavy pressure
on Jewish people to sell their
properties to non-jewish people
at a fraction of the price. after
the pogroms of November 1938
("Kristallnacht"), jewish owners
were outright evicted
and dispossessed. 
thinking about this today
for no particular reason.

4 frame comic. First frame shows a set of keys, second shows the store Gummi with a banner reading, in German : Stamm und Bassermann / frΓΌher Gummi Weil. Third frame shows passersby looking at smashed storefront windows. Fourth shows a tweet by US homeland security that reads : Want affordable housing? Help report illegal aliens in your area. Call 866-DHS-2-ICE. If you are an illegal alien, you can take control of your departure using DHS.gov/cbphome . text reads : according to the Berlin Jewish museum, the nazi term "aryanization" referred to "the process of expropriation or confiscating Jewish people's property [businesses, stores, homes, land, etc] and handing it over to non-jewish ("aryan," in Nazi usage) individuals or companies, or to the state." in his book "Holocaust justice," Shoah historian michael bazyler estimates that between $230 and $320 billions (in 2005 u.s. dollars) in properties were stolen from Jews across Europe in the different waves of aryanization. the first wave, starting in 1933, involved heavy pressure on Jewish people to sell their properties to non-jewish people at a fraction of the price. after the pogroms of November 1938 ("Kristallnacht"), jewish owners were outright evicted and dispossessed. thinking about this today for no particular reason.

No particular reason.

05.02.2026 15:08 β€” πŸ‘ 268    πŸ” 147    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 2

Finally treated myself to @twomorrows.bsky.social "Comic Book Implosion" book, so digging into this era. Really felt like another near death moment for comics, purely for economic reasons. Kahn really pulled them back from the brink!

03.02.2026 15:55 β€” πŸ‘ 0    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0

Great - I can't remember anyone besides Sienkiewicz drawing that character successfully!

01.02.2026 13:57 β€” πŸ‘ 1    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0
Preview
Influence & inspiration: Sal Buscema Earlier this week I learned that Sal Buscema died, just days short of what would have been his 90th birthday. He was a dynamo of an artist, producing some of my favorite comics from my early years …

A lot of people have been sharing their appreciation for the late Sal Buscema. Here's mine: smearysoapboxpress.wordpress.com/2026/01/29/i...

29.01.2026 16:49 β€” πŸ‘ 2    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0
Post image

Doctor's Orders
β€’β€’β€’
Other unintentionally timely cartoons are at ComicsKingdom.com/Bizarro
β€’β€’β€’
@comicskingdom.bsky.social

28.01.2026 13:48 β€” πŸ‘ 44    πŸ” 10    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 3

Sadly, yes.

28.01.2026 03:16 β€” πŸ‘ 1    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

Same. He was THE Hulk artist that hooked me on the character from my first issue, and gave the series a consistency for a good 8 years after that! His work never felt as refined as his brother's did, but I found it a lot more FUN because of that!

27.01.2026 04:36 β€” πŸ‘ 1    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

This is a really good one!

26.01.2026 02:26 β€” πŸ‘ 1    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

Keep up the good work!

24.01.2026 03:51 β€” πŸ‘ 1    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0
Preview
Recommended reads from 2025 I’m not just an artist and a writer, I’m also a reader, and here are a few of my favorite reads from 2025. Some were newly published, some were ones I only discovered last year, and som…

Better late than never, here are my favorite reads from 2025: smearysoapboxpress.wordpress.com/2026/01/20/r...

21.01.2026 00:51 β€” πŸ‘ 0    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

Great idea, MPLS! Is anyone doing this for the 901, @indivisiblememphis.bsky.social ? If so, please share the word!

20.01.2026 13:29 β€” πŸ‘ 2    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

Read the thread, too, if you aren't familiar with Franklin's introduction... and even if you are, it's still a good story.

19.01.2026 21:11 β€” πŸ‘ 0    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

Dr. King taught that injustice is measured by how those in power treat people with the least protection.

On this MLK Day, that test is clear. Targeting vulnerable families with raids and deportations, responding to protest with deadly violence, and attacking health care and SNAP is a moral failure.

19.01.2026 20:10 β€” πŸ‘ 34    πŸ” 10    πŸ’¬ 2    πŸ“Œ 0
Post image

Sometimes they're funnies, sometimes they're fundamentals. YAY!

18.01.2026 15:25 β€” πŸ‘ 169    πŸ” 54    πŸ’¬ 4    πŸ“Œ 5
Preview
Opinion | I'm a Minneapolis sociologist who studies violence. Here's how ICE observers are helping. Research into how violence occurs shows that disapproval from the people around you can help reduce it.

For @msnownews.bsky.social, I wrote an article about how ICE Watch is grounded in sociological theories of violence prevention.

The reality is that most men will only commit public violence in extremely specific scenarios and ICE Watch disrupts the conditions necessary for escalation.

16.01.2026 18:55 β€” πŸ‘ 7935    πŸ” 3336    πŸ’¬ 95    πŸ“Œ 281

Good job, MN Cartoonist!

Reminder: all the warrant stuff at the bottom is 4th Amendment fact!!

18.01.2026 01:00 β€” πŸ‘ 3    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

Five. Always wanted that Flash Spectacular (the cover really grabbed me in the ad for it), but never saw a copy, then or since. Tbf, I don't really look for Flash comics, either...

17.01.2026 19:08 β€” πŸ‘ 2    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

Thank you!

13.01.2026 18:41 β€” πŸ‘ 1    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0