The Misadventures of a Roving Cartoonist

The Lone Ranger was my cowboy hero growing up, so I especially enjoyed this easy, fun read as it brought back lots of memories. But the bottom line is, it's not a book for everyone.

How to decide if it's for you? Take your pick -- if you eagerly grabbed the newspaper to read the daily comics; think only of the Lone Ranger when you hear the William Tell Overture; remember the decades after World War II and hearing about USO tours; or are a comic book aficionado that knows no limits -- then this is a book for you and one that you'll enjoy reading.

From Five Star Publications:
"Before his final sunset in the Old West, Lone Ranger cartoonist Tom Gill asked his longtime friend, Tim Lasiuta, to secure a publisher for Gill's manuscript, which offered a rare look into the comic book hero and syndicated comics. Three years after Gill's death at 92, Lasiuta fulfilled his promise, getting The Misadventures of a Roving Cartoonist: The Long Ranger's Secret Sidekick published just in time for the 75th anniversary of the creation of the Lone Ranger character."

More About the Book
Longtime Lone Ranger fans will enjoy reading the story of the man who drew one of our favorite heroes and how a quiet Sunday afternoon at The Daily News (December 7, 1941) changed his life when, as Gill tells it, "all hell broke loose and I found myself making the map which broke the news of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor".

The Misadventures of a Roving Cartoonist chronicles, in his own words, the career of Tom Gill from his early days at The New York Daily News, how the comic artists visited troops worldwide, to Gill's teaching cartoonists at the Cartoonists and Illustrators School. Co-author Tim Lasiuta fills in the blanks, as well as compiling additional features including a comicography, and reminiscences from fellow artists and students.

I didn't realize, until reading the book, how popular cartoonists were with the soldiers around the world. There's lots of heartwarming personal stories of Gill and his colleagues as they toured with the USO from the 1950s through 1987. These stories bring another dimension to that time in our country, as well as bringing life to those signed names on the daily comic strips. It's all about memories and I was immediately taken back to those days when we'd go down to the candy store at night and buy the next day's edition of The Daily News. I had to get my daily fix of comics!