Mark first came to Aaron's notice on the Cartoonist Kayfabe YouTube channel. The hosts Jim Rugg (Street Angel) and Ed Piskor (X-Men Grand Design, Hip-Hop Family Tree) did an episode showcasing picture books that spotlighted Mark's underrated classic, “Who Needs Donuts?” On this episode of Speech Bubble, Mark explains the bizarre story of how the book got its non sequitor title among other unlikely tales from his life as a prolific cartoonist for The Village Voice, The Washington Post and other equally high profile American publications of record, including The New York Times Book Review.
In all three of the publications named here, Mark wrote and drew long-running comic strips – the most well-known of which was arguably McDoodle Street, which developed quite a cult following in the pages of The Village Voice among the miscreants living in 1970s New York. He tells Aaron that inspiration for the content of such a thing came on long meandering walks through the city streets at all hours of the night where he would just let his mind wander into all manner of dreamy tangents. Later, in his rent-controlled apartment – where he once heard the music of Kris Kristofferson wafting through the floor boards – he would draw what he saw. What came out was often a Where's Waldo-esque acid trip where every inch of the panels were covered in a warped-ly detailed cityscape with sight gags strewn throughout. Maybe this was at least partially due to the fact that both Mark's parents were gag cartoonists themselves. In fact, growing up he sometimes found himself playing in the backyard with the real Dennis the Menace (son of the strip's creator Hank Ketcham).
In addition, to its busy pages, McDoodle Street gained attention for its biting social commentary and satirism. A combination Mark was later asked to repeat when targeting America's seat of power for his Washingtoon Strip in the Washington Post and then his Boox Strip for the New York Times Book Review. Though special in their own right, these two strips never quite captured the imagination like McDoodle St., which ended abruptly, without explanation. Mark offers that explanation here and in the pages of the newly published McDoodle Street collection from The New York Review of Comics and Penguin Random House Canada, which he came to the Toronto Comics Art Festival to promote at the time of this interview. This episode of Speech Bubble is sponsored by Hairy Tarantula.
Cartoonist Kayfabe – Show and Tell 04: Picture Books feat. Who Needs Donuts?
The publisher of the re-issued MacDoodle St. New York Review of Comics
Penguin Random House Canada
Yellow Yellow reissued by Drawn and Quarterly
Mark Alan Stamaty on Bullseye with Jesse Thorn
Mark Alan Stamaty on All of It with Alison Stewart
Mark Alan Stamaty on Leonard Lopate At Large on WBAI
