I was born in the fishing town of Gloucester Massachusetts, a town full of fishermen and seascape painters. My grandparents were artists, they taught me how to use ink pens and oil paint. My grandpop showed me lots of old newspaper comics he had saved, old ones, Roy Crane, Lionel Feininger, Winsor McKay. When I was in college I discovered R. Crumb and S. Clay Wilson. I drew a lot of perverted comics, until one day I discovered George Herriman, the grandfather of American comics. The true master. People often ask me if comics are "art." Whatever, I don't care what you call them, but when you're immersed in a collection of Herriman Sundays you understand what they're getting at.I love funny comics but I love moving, emotional, poetical comics, too. Preferably a mixture of both.