Ben Towle
@benzilla.bsky.social
Cartoonist, five-time-time Eisner nominee, programming co-chair Cartoon Crossroads Columbus (CXC), adjunct comics prof @ CCAD, intergalactic trader & general nuisance. Four-Fisted Tales, Oyster War, etc.
Columbus, OH (Comics City, USA!)/Palm Springs, CA
Columbus, OH (Comics City, USA!)/Palm Springs, CA
Yeah, *heavy* stock... which feels great in the hand!
January 15, 2026 at 8:57 PM
Yeah, *heavy* stock... which feels great in the hand!
Lunchtime mini Comics reading. No idea where I got this, but it's beautifully drawn and the production value is really nice. I love square single image per page comics.
January 15, 2026 at 8:53 PM
Lunchtime mini Comics reading. No idea where I got this, but it's beautifully drawn and the production value is really nice. I love square single image per page comics.
I remember back in grad school there was start-up comics publisher that tried to revive having an actual bullpen--CrossGen? They hired at least one guy I kinda knew at SCAD and he had to move to Florida to work.
January 15, 2026 at 8:30 PM
I remember back in grad school there was start-up comics publisher that tried to revive having an actual bullpen--CrossGen? They hired at least one guy I kinda knew at SCAD and he had to move to Florida to work.
Been listening to a baseball history podcast called Rounders and this ep is about the history of terminology, including one word germane to comics: "bullpen". (And I'm assuming "bullpen" as used in comics, was borrowed from baseball.)
youtu.be/HhoE1OBTWmo
youtu.be/HhoE1OBTWmo
Episode 19: Baseball Terms from Yesteryear
YouTube video by RoundersPodcast
youtu.be
January 15, 2026 at 7:35 PM
Been listening to a baseball history podcast called Rounders and this ep is about the history of terminology, including one word germane to comics: "bullpen". (And I'm assuming "bullpen" as used in comics, was borrowed from baseball.)
youtu.be/HhoE1OBTWmo
youtu.be/HhoE1OBTWmo
Aw yiss! Fishbone in Columbus in the spring!
January 15, 2026 at 6:27 PM
Aw yiss! Fishbone in Columbus in the spring!
On this day of Scott Adams's passing, please enjoy this deep dive into the history of the now-forgotten "Dilburrito," Adams's mass-marketed burrito topped with vitamin powder, which supposedly supplied 100% of a human's daily nutritional needs.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=S5RC...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=S5RC...
The Suspicious History Of The Dilberito
YouTube video by The Life Professor
www.youtube.com
January 13, 2026 at 7:41 PM
On this day of Scott Adams's passing, please enjoy this deep dive into the history of the now-forgotten "Dilburrito," Adams's mass-marketed burrito topped with vitamin powder, which supposedly supplied 100% of a human's daily nutritional needs.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=S5RC...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=S5RC...
I dunno who's out there scanning old sewing patterns, but they're doing god's work. Absolute gold for period clothing reference.
January 12, 2026 at 7:32 PM
I dunno who's out there scanning old sewing patterns, but they're doing god's work. Absolute gold for period clothing reference.
We (Ohio baseball fans) don't deserve José--the absolute GOAT. So wholesome.
www.reddit.com/r/baseball/c...
www.reddit.com/r/baseball/c...
From the baseball community on Reddit: Jose Ramirez breaks silence on signing below market extension from Guardians: “I owe this city a lot. Since the day I arrived, I’ve never once been booed by thes...
Explore this post and more from the baseball community
www.reddit.com
January 11, 2026 at 5:33 AM
We (Ohio baseball fans) don't deserve José--the absolute GOAT. So wholesome.
www.reddit.com/r/baseball/c...
www.reddit.com/r/baseball/c...
Hahaha catching up on Mary Worth and glad I did or I'd have missed Ian releasing a random cat into the house to kill and/or chase away his wife's beloved parrot.
January 11, 2026 at 2:55 AM
Hahaha catching up on Mary Worth and glad I did or I'd have missed Ian releasing a random cat into the house to kill and/or chase away his wife's beloved parrot.
Truth.
Also: this is why I tell my students learning perspective is absolutely essential. If you can rotate basic shapes in your head and draw them from any angle, you can draw literally ANYTHING. Perspective isn't just a weird math thing for drawing buildings, etc.
Also: this is why I tell my students learning perspective is absolutely essential. If you can rotate basic shapes in your head and draw them from any angle, you can draw literally ANYTHING. Perspective isn't just a weird math thing for drawing buildings, etc.
We all know how difficult it is to rotate a cube in your mind. Now imagine rotating a much more complex shape, such as a chair or a human head. Now you can begin to understand the immense brainpower required of even the merest cartoonist
January 11, 2026 at 2:42 AM
Truth.
Also: this is why I tell my students learning perspective is absolutely essential. If you can rotate basic shapes in your head and draw them from any angle, you can draw literally ANYTHING. Perspective isn't just a weird math thing for drawing buildings, etc.
Also: this is why I tell my students learning perspective is absolutely essential. If you can rotate basic shapes in your head and draw them from any angle, you can draw literally ANYTHING. Perspective isn't just a weird math thing for drawing buildings, etc.
Ack... and next to me is Rebecca!
January 9, 2026 at 2:32 AM
Ack... and next to me is Rebecca!
Also, here is Jhonen Vasquez signing on of the 452,000 pieces of Invader Zim merch he was asked by fans to sign.
January 9, 2026 at 2:29 AM
Also, here is Jhonen Vasquez signing on of the 452,000 pieces of Invader Zim merch he was asked by fans to sign.
Moving phone pics to the computer and found this from CXC '25. Check this gang of comics folks! Clockwise from left, that's me, Tony Moore, Tony's partner (ack--forgot her name), Frederik L. Schodt, Charles Burns, Chris Pitzer (Adhouse), and Eric Reynolds (Fanta). A great evening out!
January 9, 2026 at 2:28 AM
Moving phone pics to the computer and found this from CXC '25. Check this gang of comics folks! Clockwise from left, that's me, Tony Moore, Tony's partner (ack--forgot her name), Frederik L. Schodt, Charles Burns, Chris Pitzer (Adhouse), and Eric Reynolds (Fanta). A great evening out!
This and "Mystery Melody" (also featuring the Sea Hag) are my absolute fave Thimble Theater stories--amazing stuff!
The Plunder Island sequence of Thimble Theatre Sundays ran from December 1933 to July 1934. It featured one of E.C. Segar’s most successful villains, the Sea Hag. She really had an eye for Wimpy.
#WyrdWednesday #Popeye
#WyrdWednesday #Popeye
January 9, 2026 at 12:40 AM
This and "Mystery Melody" (also featuring the Sea Hag) are my absolute fave Thimble Theater stories--amazing stuff!
Cintiq acquired! Now I've got a real studio going out here. 🌴🌴🌴
January 9, 2026 at 12:37 AM
Cintiq acquired! Now I've got a real studio going out here. 🌴🌴🌴
Next read from the mini-comics shelf. I love Shawn's work and his minis are always so beautifully put together.
January 8, 2026 at 6:13 PM
Next read from the mini-comics shelf. I love Shawn's work and his minis are always so beautifully put together.
Beautiful morning in Palm Springs!
Getting back to a project that I kinda fell off of around CXC time: a group chat/reread of Jim sterenko's History of Comics.
Getting back to a project that I kinda fell off of around CXC time: a group chat/reread of Jim sterenko's History of Comics.
January 8, 2026 at 5:11 PM
Beautiful morning in Palm Springs!
Getting back to a project that I kinda fell off of around CXC time: a group chat/reread of Jim sterenko's History of Comics.
Getting back to a project that I kinda fell off of around CXC time: a group chat/reread of Jim sterenko's History of Comics.
And yet, the strip seems to be enduringly/inexplicably popular.
January 7, 2026 at 9:49 PM
And yet, the strip seems to be enduringly/inexplicably popular.
OK point taken re. "legacy" strips like Beetle Bailey. Feel, though, like the article ignores the recent surge of interesting stuff going on w strips: interesting new creators on old strips (Nancy, Flash Gordon), great new-ish strips (Wallace the Brave, Crabgrass), etc.
www.tcj.com/mort-walker-...
www.tcj.com/mort-walker-...
January 7, 2026 at 9:17 PM
OK point taken re. "legacy" strips like Beetle Bailey. Feel, though, like the article ignores the recent surge of interesting stuff going on w strips: interesting new creators on old strips (Nancy, Flash Gordon), great new-ish strips (Wallace the Brave, Crabgrass), etc.
www.tcj.com/mort-walker-...
www.tcj.com/mort-walker-...
Some recent reading:
January 7, 2026 at 6:55 PM
Some recent reading:
Still getting the studio set up out here in Palm Springs. Just ordered a cintiq but still a little bit sparse decor-wise. Can't beat the view though!
January 7, 2026 at 6:52 PM
Still getting the studio set up out here in Palm Springs. Just ordered a cintiq but still a little bit sparse decor-wise. Can't beat the view though!
Finally getting some time to dig in to my stack of minis. This one a friend brought me back from a trip to Paris. Loving this one (not surprising given the artists). Left-facing pages are conversation. Right-facing are showing a parallel event.
January 7, 2026 at 6:39 AM
Finally getting some time to dig in to my stack of minis. This one a friend brought me back from a trip to Paris. Loving this one (not surprising given the artists). Left-facing pages are conversation. Right-facing are showing a parallel event.
Now my phone is grinding salt into the wound.
January 4, 2026 at 12:41 AM
Now my phone is grinding salt into the wound.
Yes, he's apparently "still ill".
January 2, 2026 at 10:43 PM
Yes, he's apparently "still ill".
Thankfully this show is in Rancho Mirage, a few minutes from our house in Palm Springs. Good thing I didn't go with my initial plan of flying to *Atlanta* to see him. Good grief this guy and his show-cancelling.
January 2, 2026 at 10:41 PM
Thankfully this show is in Rancho Mirage, a few minutes from our house in Palm Springs. Good thing I didn't go with my initial plan of flying to *Atlanta* to see him. Good grief this guy and his show-cancelling.