John Marshall (cartoonist) - Blondie

Marshall began assisting Denis Lebrun on Blondie in December 2002. He became the strip's lead artist in May 2005, although he remained uncredited until Sunday, January 7, 2007. Former Cracked cartoonist Frank Cummings is Marshall's assistant on Blondie. Computer technology makes it possible for Marshall, Young and Cummings to collaborate even though they live in three different states. Cummings lives in Birmingham, Alabama, while Young alternates between Vermont and Florida. Young says that Marshall and Cummings are "doing a most wonderful job".

At his Binghamton basement studio, jazz buff Marshall listens to jazz while he draws Blondie. To capture the finely polished inking details seen in Blondie, Marshall works on a Wacom tablet linked to his Macintosh. First he draws a rough, sent to Young for review, and then it's back to the computer for the finished art, delivered electronically to King Features. "It's very deceiving how hard this is to draw," said Marshall in 2007. "I love to draw. I love to see that finished black on white. It's just really primal and just basic."

Young has nothing but praise for Marshall's work, commenting, "He's been doing such a great job that the Bumsteads and I couldn't be more pleased." Translated into 35 languages, Blondie is published in 2,300 newspapers in 55 countries.

Marshall views Blondie as "a dream job," even though he often works six days a week, ten hours a day. "I definitely feel I'm drawing an American institution," said Marshall in 2007.

Read more about this topic:  John Marshall (cartoonist)