Award-Winning Cartoonist Larry Feign signs up to Mental Ideas Podcast!
American-born cartoonist and author Larry Feign is an award-winning cartoonist, artist and writer, best known as the creator of the ‘Lily Wong’ series of cartoons and books. His work has appeared in L’Hebdo, the Times, the Atlantic, the Economist, the New York Times, the LA Times, Fortune, the Sydney Morning Herald & South China Morning Post. He’s the author-illustrator of SIX bestselling books and has written screenplays and created animation for Disney & the Cartoon Network.
Larry Feign has been disappointing his mother, who still wishes he’d become a brain surgeon, since the age of seven, when he began writing stories and cartoons for his primary school magazine. Mama is not satisfied that his cartoons have appeared in such insignificant journals as Time, The Economist, Fortune, and the New York Times. Or that he’s directed animated cartoons for obscure little companies like Cartoon Network and Disney Television. She’s not happy that he’s published only 15 books or received a variety of awards and fellowships. All of this only postpones her goal of being able to utter the magic words: “My son, the doctor!”
Larry Feign began his career as a caricature artist at Honolulu’s Waikiki Beach, later moving to Los Angeles to work for a Hollywood animation studio. In 1985 he visited Hong Kong, intending to stay for two weeks, and ended up staying and making a name for himself as a cartoonist. His Lily Wong daily comic strip was considered a bellwether of life and politics in the territory, and was reprinted widely around the world. His first book, Aieeyaaa!, became the best-selling English-language book in Hong Kong publishing history. In 1997 Larry was commissioned by Britain’s The Independent to chronicle in cartoons Hong Kong’s final 100 days under British rule. His satirical commentary about the Hong Kong handover was Time Magazine’s first-ever full-page cartoon essay.
During a two-year hiatus in London, Feign illustrated for various magazines, before returning to Hong Kong to write, produce, and direct animation for television and other media, as well as write for magazines. In 2011 he received a MacDowell Fellowship from America’s oldest artist colony. He is currently working on several books, including both humor and serious historical fiction.
Larry has been married for over three decades to the clinical psychologist Dr. Cathy Tsang-Feign (Mom’s happy that there’s at least one doctor in the family). Together they have two perfect children, three dogs, and the occasional snake in the garden. In his spare time, Larry enjoys cycling and playing saxophone, though rarely at the same time.
Larry will be a guest on the Mental Ideas Podcast, talking about his journey as a cartoonist in Episode 1: The Depressed Comedian. We can’t wait!!!
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