Product Description
With easy-to-follow instructions and his trademark sense of humor, Gautier shares his caricature techniques with people of all levels and abilities--from the compulsive doodler to the serious artist, showing how to make every image instantly recognizable--and instantly amusing. 400 b&w illustrations. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Not quite what I had hoped for.
This book was typical of the many caricature instruction books I have seen over the years. The 'basic' section was nothing new to me.I learned that years ago.The rest of the book highlighted the author's caricature skills, but failed to give much 'instruction' that could be used by a beginner or even someone like me trying to improve my skills.
I really liked the book from an entertainment viewpoint.It is a great book to document the authors success, but doesn't help me with mine.

Drawing and Cartooninh 1,001 caricatures
Dick Gautier presents strong ideas on the art of caricature.He provides lots of illustrations based on his interpretations of famous and not so famous people that he has caricaturized.This book is a good resource for anyone serious on learning how to caricature people.

Drawing and cartooning 1001 caricatures
I enjoyed the book, its drawings and notes.The reading is also enjoyable.However, the art work, technique and examples, although instructive, I believe still require a bit more of sophistication. ... Read more

Product Description
In the tradition of numerous Perigee art instruction books, Dick Gautier introduces aspiring artists to the wide variety of ways to draw and cartoon faces. Guided by step-by-step procedures, thorough explanations, and hundreds of illustrations, readers will discover the secrets of mastering drawing techniques. Halftones and line drawings. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Dull
There are many, many, many good books on how to draw faces. This isn't one of them. The illustrations lead you to believe that the guy has a hard time drawing himself. I was very disappointed.

THE BEST
i'm very interested in drawing all sorts of things , i can't say i'm an expert or anything like that but after borrowing this book from a friend i was hooked on caricatures , its so interesting ,its bound to keep you buzyfor ages,this book is the best of its kind , i went out and got my own copyof the book which now is one of my most treasured books. ... Read more

Product Description
An engaging and practical instructional guide to one of the most popular yet challenging subjects for young artists--learning to express realistic body language or humorous, exaggerated movements, while keeping all the body measurements in proportion. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Mr. Gautier's books are delightful!
Mr. Gautier's books are delightful! They are not only filled with
step by step instructions-- but they are entertaining to read
and are very informative! ... Read more

Product Description
An easy, fun guide to the popular art of cartooning. All the fundamentals are here--materials, basic techniques, and a host of crazy characters to copy. Step-by-step instructions teach the reader to develop hand-eye coordination and confidence. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

A Beginners Cartooning Book
First off I'd like to say that this book does *not* have anything to do with Caricatures. That subject matter is not covered in the book index, or anywhere in the book itself. I assume the other reviewer confused this book with one of the authors other books, the "Art of Caricature". I actually took a gamble and bought this book to help me with caricatures, which this book doesn't have a single word about it, so I just purchased the "Art of Caricature" (Paperback) by Dick Gautier.

Overall as a how to guide on making cartoons it is about average, and would be okay for a beginner in cartoons. It covers how to make cartoon faces (using shapes, letters, and objects) and then jumps to making a completed figure cartoon. Then after that it does a quick how to on hands and feet. It would be more helpful to have the hands and feet pages before the completed cartoon figure chapter - this seems to be a trend in the book (covering material *after* you already supposed to have created it in a previous chapter). It also shows some completed images of animals but no steps on how to create them. Then it shows images of some different techniques (once again with no how to). Seems he focused on a few things in the beginning of the book and then threw images only of things afterwards.

I have read the entire book and nothing really stands out. If you are interested in making cartoons buying the book used wouldn't hurt, but if you have other books on cartooning I doubt this book would help you as the other books would have everything this one does and more. I have been flipping though the book as I write this review hoping to add a reason to buy it, but can not. It covers facial expressions and such decent, but then that is more reason to buy his other book.

If you are interested in Caricatures, look elsewhere this one does not cover the subject at all. If you are looking to make cartoons I would highly suggest two of the many books I have gotten from Amazon such as "The Everything Cartooning Book" by Brad J. Guigar -- or another great book is "The Big Book of Cartooning" by Bruce Blitz. The last book by Bruce Blitz even covers a bit on making Caricatures. It doesn't get too much into exaggerating the faces or a how to guide, but does show photographs of the people, his drawing steps, and final images of the 23 people he did for the book.

Do you want to learn the art of caricature?
If you want to learn to draw charicatures, this is the best book I've found so far.It has step by step lessons, as well as SO many great charicatures by Robert Gautier.He explains the process in great detail, shows examples of what to do as well as what not to do, how to get the look you're after - whether it's more realistic, or more free flowing.And he also explains why certain materials will produce the look you want to achieve moreso than others. ... Read more

Product Description
From cats to dogs to trees to the mailman, you can make comic characters out of just about anyone or anything!By following Dick Gautier's easy, step-by-step instruction, budding artists can create like never before-with special attention to the dreaded sameness syndrome, the graphic equivalent to writer's block. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Creating Comic Characters- Poor Content, Deceiving Title
The title says 'Creating Comic Characters' what anyone would understand as drawing head, body and limbs of a created entity. But do not expect that here, instead this book spends 95% of its content on drawing faces, faces and faces.

Some creative planning and drawing is briefly discussed but unfortunately the content doesn't surpass the surface. Nothing like 'maintaining the look coherence of a character from different points-of-views' or 'how to apply proportion and disproportion in characters', etc...

The book lacks consistency and would benefit readers if it used a set of defined characters and how they could be changed under different techniques, styles and all that stuff you really want to know.

If you are interested in the French Revolution this book might prove to be useful though: not even books on the subject will provide such a galore of cut off heads.

Great fun!
What a hoot! Dick Gautier shows you how to draw faces of people you know, or see at malls (what a great way to wait for kids or spouses). He uses simple shapes like circles to start you off and provides lots of different features for you to practice before setting out to delight (or annoy) the world. With a bit of practice even the seriously unco-ordinated pencil-holding human can create funny faces. ... Read more

Product Description
In The Creative Cartoonist and The Art of Caricature, Gautier taught artists the techniques of cartooning and caricature. Now he shows them how to take the next step: selling their work. Here is everything amateur cartoonists need to enhance their skills and successfully break into the cartooning business. Over 150 drawings throughout. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Look Elsewhere
I wrote a review of this book a while back, but Amazon opted not to print it, apparently because it wasn't permissible to comment about the author him/herself but only the material. (Amazon was a lot more uptight then.) However, when an author is unqualified to write a book, this becomes pertinent information to potential buyers.

Aspiring cartoonists should know that Gautier is a cartooning HOBBYIST and not a "career cartoonist."He earned a living as an actor, playing, among other things, "Hymie" the robot on the old series "Get Smart."He may have had a cartoon published here and there (he never says, but my guess would be no), but he didn't write cartoons for a living, nor could he, with his limited talent, have ever come close to doing so. Would you buy a book called "How to Earn $1,000,000 in Five Years" by someone who earned 30 grand a year?It's the same thing here.

Gautier frequently cites as examples his own cartoons, which are horrible.He draws better than the average guy off the street, but his captions are unthinkably bad and serve EXTREMELY poorly in a how-to capacity.

Example: 1) A cockroach and a rat are eating dinner.The rat says, "I feel I was destined for the finer things in life."2) The two are shown chewing.3) The cockroach says, "Shut up and eat your garbage."

Please... you wouldn't even give this a "pity laugh" if your mother drew it!

The other cartoons he includes are as bad is his, if such a thing is possible.Example: a a self-portrait of an strikingly unattractive cartoonist in a bunny suit with the caption "Bustering with pride!"

Valuable information concerning what format various kinds of work should be in when sent to different publishers is absent. The information regarding selling your material is outdated and can today be easily accessed via the Internet, although of course this is no fault of Gautier's.

The book gets two stars because it does contain some useful information about artist's materials.Other than that, it's a bomb.Nothing against you personally, Dick.I loved "Get Smart." But your cartooning steeee-eeenks.(And yes, I bought the book, so how smart does that make me?) ... Read more

Product Description
Weird poems to amuse and amaze the reader. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

I LOVE Children's books!
As a teacher - I collect Children's Books.

Mr. Gautiers is a delight of whimsy and rhyme! ... Read more

Product Description
Somebody is viciously murdering the standup comics that appear at “The Adlibbers”, one of the many small comedy clubs that dot the landscape of West Hollywood.

“MAKE ‘EM LAUGH” follows two seasoned homicide detectives, Sam Church and Elia Munoz, as they attempt to unravel this puzzling series of bizarre killings. The victims are all young, up-and-coming performers whose mutilated bodies are found with slyly humorous, sick and twisted notes accompanying their bloody remains.

The author, DICK GAUTIER, draws upon his early years as a standup comedian in order to infuse this intriguingly dark suspense novel with an unmistakable air of authenticity.

We think you’ll get hooked on the unusual plot and be fascinated by the richly drawn, bizarre characters that people its pages.
... Read more

Product Description

“THE ROCKY ROAD TO SEMI-STARDOM” (Remembrances Carefully Chosen To Make Me Look Good)

is an anecdotal recap of DICK GAUTIER’s life and career which he prefers to call a ‘AUTOBIOGMEMOIRELLA’ (of course he coined the weird word). With his offbeat sense of humor and imaginative use of language he recounts his early years as a standup comedian and then on to his debut on Broadway in “BYE BYE BIRDIE” for which he won nominations for the “TONY AWARD” and “MOST PROMISING ACTOR”.

He guides you through the vagaries of show business, his personal life, his wives, his children, and doesn’t omit the lean years when he toiled as a self-described ‘lousy waiter’ and was even reduced to demonstrating pogo sticks at Macy’s one Christmas merely to survive.

His time spent in front of the TV and movie cameras provides fascinating insights into that unique and peculiar world. From his stint as ‘HYMIE’ in “GET SMART”, to “ROBIN HOOD” in “WHEN THINGS WERE ROTTEN”, over 500 TV guest shots and feature films and starring in five TV series, he’s had the pleasure of working with an amazing array ofluminaries. Besides the previously mentioned, he’s done numerous voiceovers for animated films, written novels, plays, movies, produced his own films, painted, cartooned, caricatured, and is the published author of fourteen books on the subject of art.

We feel confident that you’ll enjoy this fun filled, intriguing glimpse into the life of DICK GAUTIER, a true, as he likes to call himself, “RENAISSANCE DILETTANTE”.


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Customer Reviews (1)

Entertaining book by the actor, Dick Gautier
His writing style is perky, intelligent and honest. Probably gleaned from his earlier years as a stand-up comic, and later honed as a stage, tv and film actor. I liked the book...he doesn't spend too much time slogging through his childhood, which I always find boring in an autobiography.A fast and humorous read!

He also has published multiple books on cartooning, caricature drawing, and compilations of actors and musicians as artists. Thanks, Dick. ... Read more

Product Description
A n off-the-wall, quirky, satirical jab at the spate of current ‘unauthorized celebrity biographies’. It follows the life and loves and lies of arguably the universally famous, highly controversial and most remarkably talented, all round entertainer Bobby Starrett.

Here, in all its clumsily phrased and poorly written glory, is the amusing, hysterical, revealing, fascinating story of a dirt poor immigrant lad who cheats, lies, steals and commits any immoral or depraved act that you can possibly conjure up in order to succeed in the lofty, noble, lucrative, glitzy, cut-throat, tawdry world of show business.

DICK GAUTIER, writing under the pseudonym of Don Spumey (which is in itself an anagram of ‘pseudonym’) has pulled out all the stops on his creatively comedic mind and created this unforgettable fictitious super-duper star, and produced a one-of-kind, screwy, free-wheeling book with at least one guaranteed laugh on each page.


... Read more