April 30, 2009

Marianne was reading her e-mail one morning when she called me over. "Look, Ross! One of the CCI grads posted a link to a comic strip called "The Middletons" and it's about CCI."

"Ooooo, show me!" I begged. So she lifted me into her lap so I could read it and we chuckled together at the punch line. "Who is this cartoonist named Dana Summers and how does he know about CCI?" I wondered.

"Well, let's do some research," Marianne said, pulling up Google.

Dog bless the inventor of Google! We found out that Dana Summers creates "The Middletons" with Ralph Dunagin. He also creates the strip "Bound and Gagged" which we read every day in the Denver Post, and he's the editorial cartoonist for the Orlando Sentinel. Busy guy! But we didn't find anything that explained his connection to CCI, so I sent him an e-mail with lots of questions, which he graciously answered.

ROSS: How do you know about CCI? Do you know someone with a CCI service dog?

DANA: I have a friend who trains CCI dogs and I know someone who is raising a CCI puppy.

ROSS: That makes sense, since our Southeast Regional Campus is in Orlando. Have you been to a CCI graduation?

DANA: I have and it was great! My big problem there was keeping my hands off of cute pups like yourself!

ROSS (modestly): Aw, shucks! I bet Marianne would let you pet me if I *cough* remember the rules and sit nicely. You're a very funny guy -- Marianne and I love your work! How do you find time to do so many cartoons? You save time for naps, right?

DANA: Ah! Managing my time, well that’s a concept I’m surprised you think about, being a dog and all. I don’t sleep twenty hours a day, that’s for sure. It’s a little complicated, but I basically do "Bound & Gagged" starting on Monday and hopefully finish it on Wednesday, when I immediately begin writing the six daily "Middletons" I’m responsible for. I normally finish those strips by Friday or Saturday. In between all that I draw six or seven editorial cartoons for the Orlando Sentinel.

ROSS: WOOF, that sounds crazy!

DANA: It’s a tight schedule with not much time for Milk Bones or belly scratches, so the ideas have to come. I’m forced to be creative on demand...that phrase is an oxymoron, but that’s what cartoonists do.

ROSS: I can relate since I write a weekly DogBlog, but I only have to think of one idea. You have to think of.....um, 6, carry the 2 times 12 minus 4....yikes, that's 19 or 20 ideas! How do you come up with so many?

DANA: No cartoonist knows where the ideas come from. "Middletons" gags I take from real life, "Bound & Gagged" gags I take from the Twilight Zone. But where they actually come from...who knows?

ROSS: Do you ever get stuck?

DANA: Yes, I get cartoonists' block. When that happens I try to thumb through other cartoon books to get my mind in the mood to write off the wall stuff. Sometimes I ask my wife to scratch me behind my ears.

ROSS: Oh yeah, that totally helps. How do you and Ralph work together on "The Middletons?"

DANA: Ralph comes up with the Sunday page idea and draws it and I come up with the six dailies and draw them. We don’t collaborate at all on those and normally have no idea what the other is doing!

ROSS: That sounds tricky. Does he have a CCI connection too, since the cartoon that started this conversation was a Sunday comic strip?

DANA: Ralph doesn’t have a CCI connection, but he knows that I do and we’ve done cartoons in the past about CCI. We’re always looking for an excuse to put a dog in the strip. I’ve done occasional dailies and he’s done Sundays off of them.

ROSS: Now I have to go find those other CCI-related strips! How did you decide to be a cartoonist? Were you always interested in drawing?

DANA: How did I decide on this career? Well. IT picked ME, really. Cartoons have been the only thing I’ve been interested in ever since I was about seven. I used to draw The Flintstones and copy monsters and hot rods onto sweat shirts for money. I used markers. I’m basically a little shy and drawing crazy images was a great way to get females’ attention!

ROSS: And I thought CCI puppies were the best chick magnets. Huh. Live and learn. Did you go to school to learn cartooning?

DANA: I went to The Art Institute Of Boston where they had no cartooning courses, so I majored in Advertising / Design. I limped through that and bummed around print shops, sold life insurance and even worked in a warehouse freezer at 15 degrees below for eight hours as a Teamster, before landing a staff artist job at a small paper in North Carolina.

ROSS: Good thing you found that artist job; those other jobs don't sound like much fun for you at all, unless there were good snacks in the freezer, of course. Do you get inspired by other cartoonists? Are they friends of yours?

DANA: Jeff MacNelly’s cartoons always inspire me. He passed away a few years back, but I think he was the best artist. My partner Ralph Dunagin is among the best caption writers of all time. Mike Ramirez who does editorial cartoons is my favorite right now art-wise. I know a number of cartoonists including Mike Peters, Chris Browne and a ton of others.

ROSS: Looking through the archives of your work I see lots of cartoons with dogs, which of course is a good thing.

DANA: I include dogs almost every week because I absolutely love them. Dogs like you are so loyal and they have a great sense of humor! I had a black Lab for 13 years named Daisy and she was great.

ROSS (interrupting): Oooooo, a black Lab, just like me! Do you have a Lab now?

DANA: My wife doesn’t share my enthusiasm for dogs so I don’t own one now...but I’m always looking for a dog fix!

ROSS (stunned): Your. Wife. Doesn't. Like. Dogs. How is that even possible? I bet if she met a CCI puppy she'd change her mind. Well (shaking head sadly), let's change the subject. Marianne found a book by Hal Higdon called "Run Dogs Run" that you illustrated. Have you illustrated other books?

DANA: I have only illustrated that one book...but it was about dogs! And I had fun drawing them all. I used ink and watercolor, but if I did another, I’d use the computer for the color. I have no current plans to do another one, though.

ROSS: What do you do in your spare time?

DANA: Spare time? What’s that? I actually play guitar and write. I’ve just finished a novel and, no, it’s not about cartooning. I’m looking for an agent, know any K-9 agents, Ross? I also do some free-lance cartoons for a company in Connecticut.

ROSS: Gee, I don't know any dogs who work as agents, but maybe that's a career path I should explore if this whole CCI thing doesn't work out. I bet you won't have any trouble getting your novel published, though. I'll be first in line to buy it! What else can I tell my readers about you?

DANA: I’m very insecure and afraid to let up for a second...Type A. My religion means a lot to me, and I’m a music freak. I listen to my iPod when I'm working and I HATE meetings of any kind...big time-wasters. I guess that’s all. Do I get a big lick on the face as my reward? Good luck when your graduation rolls around!

ROSS: Thank you for taking time to chat with me. Consider yourself virtually licked! If I do graduate, I'll send you an invitation! But in the meantime you could attend the graduation at our Orlando campus on May 16. I think you should take your wife.

Chow for now!

Ross

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