I’ve been a huge fan of Box Brown’s work for quite a few years now. His graphic novels, illustrated with his trademark cartoon style, always seem to appeal to my exact niche interests. Pro wrestling, videogames, stand up comedy, and more weave their way into and out of Brown’s work. I was lucky enough to recently talk with Box about his past, present, and future.
Q: You've been publishing books for a few years now, but obviously have been in the industry for a long a time before then. When and where did you get your start cartooning?
I drew so much as a child and into my adolescence but in adolescence I began to see drawing and creating as childish. I also felt I'd never be good enough to be a serious artist so I quit. I avoided all art classes in high school and college and was on the way to never drawing again. The problem was that during college in class I would doodle and draw while I was supposed to be taking notes. Slowly that evolved into making up single panel gag strips and then in 2004 or 2005 I discovered James Kochalka and other autobiographical comics and felt compelled to make my own. The rest as we say, is history.
I drew so much as a child and into my adolescence but in adolescence I began to see drawing and creating as childish. I also felt I'd never be good enough to be a serious artist so I quit. I avoided all art classes in high school and college and was on the way to never drawing again. The problem was that during college in class I would doodle and draw while I was supposed to be taking notes. Slowly that evolved into making up single panel gag strips and then in 2004 or 2005 I discovered James Kochalka and other autobiographical comics and felt compelled to make my own. The rest as we say, is history.
Q: People in the creative fields are often badgered with the dreaded "How do I get your job?!" question...so...are there any secrets besides hard work and perseverance?
Making friends with other creators and people in the field is really important! You can ALWAYS learn from whomever is around you and reaching out to other cartoonists helped me make fast friends. I think people sometimes call it "networking" which is a very cold and calculated term for "making real earnest friendships with your peers."
Making friends with other creators and people in the field is really important! You can ALWAYS learn from whomever is around you and reaching out to other cartoonists helped me make fast friends. I think people sometimes call it "networking" which is a very cold and calculated term for "making real earnest friendships with your peers."
Q: Two of your books, Andre the Giant: Life and Legend and Is This Guy for Real? prominently feature professional wrestling. How did your love of the king of sports come about?
I started watching pro-wrestling around 1990 when I was 10. I had a friend in class who was a big fan and we would watch VHS tapes he had all the time. I was way into it. Cut to 20 years later and I delved back into wrestling from an analytical standpoint and found out there was a LOT going on that I was unaware of. This type of thing fascinated me. When I was a kid Andre was really old and retired and died not long after I started watching. His career was always mysterious to me. He also reminded me a lot of my grandpa who was a strong, hardworking guy who then lost all of his strength to injury in his old age. His story was beautiful and tragic. I have total admiration for him.
I started watching pro-wrestling around 1990 when I was 10. I had a friend in class who was a big fan and we would watch VHS tapes he had all the time. I was way into it. Cut to 20 years later and I delved back into wrestling from an analytical standpoint and found out there was a LOT going on that I was unaware of. This type of thing fascinated me. When I was a kid Andre was really old and retired and died not long after I started watching. His career was always mysterious to me. He also reminded me a lot of my grandpa who was a strong, hardworking guy who then lost all of his strength to injury in his old age. His story was beautiful and tragic. I have total admiration for him.
Q: As a follow up, do you have any thoughts on the recently announced All Elite Wrestling? Do you think they'll be a strong competitor to Vince McMahon's WWE?
I hope so. WWE's monopoly on wrestling has been terrible. I really think they've got the best shot at taking down Goliath I have seen in my lifetime. Perhaps better than WCW. WCW had lots of money, but really piss poor management and creative talent. AEW seems to have it all going for it. I really feel they could run Monday night head-to-head shows on YouTube and still beat RAW's viewership every week.
Q: Do you have an all-time favorite professional wrestler? Perhaps a childhood favorite, and someone currently active?
Really loving Daniel Bryan's current run. His hemp belt is so great. I also love that he's about my age and height and the best in the business. When I was about 18 I thought about getting into wrestling but was discouraged because I knew my height would prevent me going very far. I was very wrong. My fav of all time is Bret Hart! I wish they were all Bret Harts!
Q: Your new title Cannabis: The Illegalization of Weed in America is coming out very soon. On social media, you're obviously passionate about the legalization of pot and access to a fair and open market for it. Do you see legal weed in America becoming the norm in the near future?
Yes and no. It's a real mess. I feel that we'll see national decriminalization but that many states and localities will continue to prohibit on all different levels. The point of my book (I think) is to point out how much of a sham the entire illegalization of cannabis was even way back in 1937. We really shouldn't have to build all these new punitive legalization laws, we should just revert back to what it was like before prohibition. I want people to walk away from my book knowing how cannabis never should have been made illegal in the first place and only stayed that way for so long because incompetent leaders gained from its illegality. It's my hope that shining a new light on these past travesties will make people see that this is a moral crusade and not just a money grab.
Really loving Daniel Bryan's current run. His hemp belt is so great. I also love that he's about my age and height and the best in the business. When I was about 18 I thought about getting into wrestling but was discouraged because I knew my height would prevent me going very far. I was very wrong. My fav of all time is Bret Hart! I wish they were all Bret Harts!
Q: Your new title Cannabis: The Illegalization of Weed in America is coming out very soon. On social media, you're obviously passionate about the legalization of pot and access to a fair and open market for it. Do you see legal weed in America becoming the norm in the near future?
Yes and no. It's a real mess. I feel that we'll see national decriminalization but that many states and localities will continue to prohibit on all different levels. The point of my book (I think) is to point out how much of a sham the entire illegalization of cannabis was even way back in 1937. We really shouldn't have to build all these new punitive legalization laws, we should just revert back to what it was like before prohibition. I want people to walk away from my book knowing how cannabis never should have been made illegal in the first place and only stayed that way for so long because incompetent leaders gained from its illegality. It's my hope that shining a new light on these past travesties will make people see that this is a moral crusade and not just a money grab.
I think we're seeing legalization with a lot of punitive measures thrown in. In reality cannabis should have the same legality as something like coffee. It's being treated like alcohol or heroin and really it's just something that helps people get through the day. We allow people to keep aspirin in their houses, which is deadly in overdose. Cannabis can never kill someone. I have a lot of issues with the current cannabis industry for sure, but do they need a makeover?
Hmm.. it's hard to say. It's marketed in a lot of different ways. The stigma is still there though. It gets better every day, but even those that support legality are often extremely misinformed about what cannabis is and does.
Q: A few companies in the legal weed market seem to be dealing in some shady business practices. Do you have any thoughts on the current recreational marijuana industry?
I think they're being scrutinized unfairly in many cases. We talk a lot about cannabis testing in California. Every single harvest or product has to be tested down to a molecular level. We don't require this of restaurants or even the food supply. Imagine if every single piece of lettuce you ingested needed to be tested to a molecular level? Restaurants are tested randomly and I think that type of think could happen in the legal cannabis market.
Some of the shadiest practices are actually coming from governments on the East Coast starting with medical cannabis. It's become an enormous scam benefitting government officials and those at the very, very tippy top of the corporate cannabis system. States set up a system where a very limited few companies are able to produce cannabis. Here in PA it's only SIX companies. They're all from out of state and they charge two to five times the black market. They're selling ONLY TO PATIENTS. This is not a rec. market. These are patients who desperately need this and they're being taken advantage of. Most importantly to capitalists: this is not a free market. It's not allowing the invisible hand to take hold, set prices, etc.
I think some people are making product that's not really up to snuff that sells mostly in illegal states. In legal states the products that are of the highest quality for the best prices are the ones that stick around.
I think they're being scrutinized unfairly in many cases. We talk a lot about cannabis testing in California. Every single harvest or product has to be tested down to a molecular level. We don't require this of restaurants or even the food supply. Imagine if every single piece of lettuce you ingested needed to be tested to a molecular level? Restaurants are tested randomly and I think that type of think could happen in the legal cannabis market.
Some of the shadiest practices are actually coming from governments on the East Coast starting with medical cannabis. It's become an enormous scam benefitting government officials and those at the very, very tippy top of the corporate cannabis system. States set up a system where a very limited few companies are able to produce cannabis. Here in PA it's only SIX companies. They're all from out of state and they charge two to five times the black market. They're selling ONLY TO PATIENTS. This is not a rec. market. These are patients who desperately need this and they're being taken advantage of. Most importantly to capitalists: this is not a free market. It's not allowing the invisible hand to take hold, set prices, etc.
I think some people are making product that's not really up to snuff that sells mostly in illegal states. In legal states the products that are of the highest quality for the best prices are the ones that stick around.
The shady businesses that make a shady product disappear, unless they're selling on the black market to illegal states. Which is why we need national legalization and legal sales over state lines and by mail. Weed is being sent over state lines and by mail (tons and tons) right now. It's how the black market exists and needs to be brought out into the light. The black market for cannabis is actually just medical cannabis from states where it is legal. This means "street weed" and "medical weed" and "recreational weed" are all 100% the same thing.
Q: You, like many other artists these days, have a Patreon in which your fans and readers can contribute money directly to you. Do you see this model as sustainable? Is it becoming easier or more difficult to make a living as a working artist?
Some artists are doing well on Patreon. I see it mostly as a tipping system for me. If you really work it, it can become a big income source, but then it's also a full-time job. It's never easy to be an artist or freelancer. I see it as one more iron in the fire, one more trickle of income. Artists have to be able to utilize ANY system of profit they can in order to stay alive.
Some artists are doing well on Patreon. I see it mostly as a tipping system for me. If you really work it, it can become a big income source, but then it's also a full-time job. It's never easy to be an artist or freelancer. I see it as one more iron in the fire, one more trickle of income. Artists have to be able to utilize ANY system of profit they can in order to stay alive.
Q: You attend a lot of conventions and often offer sketches. What is your favorite thing to sketch? Do you have a least favorite?
I pretty much ONLY draw wrestlers. For me, it's fun and easy and many I can do from memory! I'm getting a little tired of drawing Stone Cold Steve Austin and Macho Man but I never tire of drawing Andre. I used to hate sketching in public. I get too self-conscious, but I'm getting better.
I pretty much ONLY draw wrestlers. For me, it's fun and easy and many I can do from memory! I'm getting a little tired of drawing Stone Cold Steve Austin and Macho Man but I never tire of drawing Andre. I used to hate sketching in public. I get too self-conscious, but I'm getting better.
Q: So far you've written books about pro wrestling, videogames, Andy Kaufman, and now weed. Where do you go from here? Do you have future projects lined up?
I have two projects I'm currently working on. One I can talk about a little is called Child Star and it's a fictional book about an 80's child actor. In my mind a part of me always resides in the 1980's. I can never escape it.
I have two projects I'm currently working on. One I can talk about a little is called Child Star and it's a fictional book about an 80's child actor. In my mind a part of me always resides in the 1980's. I can never escape it.
Once again, we’d like to thank Box Brown for his time and his incredibly thoughtful answers.
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