Dave Sheridan (June 7, 1943 – March 28, 1982) was an American cartoonist and

underground comix Underground comix are small press or self-published comic books that are often socially relevant or satirical in nature. They differ from mainstream comics in depicting content forbidden to mainstream publications by the Comics Code Authority, ...

artist. He was the creator of ''Dealer McDope'' and collaborated with

Gilbert Shelton Gilbert Shelton (born May 31, 1940) is an American cartoonist and a key member of the underground comix movement. He is the creator of the iconic underground characters '' The Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers'', ''Fat Freddy's Cat'', and ''Wonder W ...

and Paul Mavrides on ''

The Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers ''The Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers'' is an underground comic about a fictional trio of stoner characters, created by the American artist Gilbert Shelton. The Freak Brothers first appeared in ''The Rag'', an underground newspaper published in A ...

''. As creative partner with fellow underground creator Fred Schrier, using the name "Overland Vegetable Stagecoach," they worked on ''Mother's Oats Funnies'', published by

Rip Off Press Rip Off Press Inc. is a comic book mail order retailer and distributor, better known as the former publisher of adult-themed series like '' The Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers'' and ''Rip Off Comix'', as well as many other seminal publications from ...

from 1970 to 1976.

Biography

Born in 1943 and raised in the Cleveland, Ohio area, Sheridan arrived in

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...

, California in 1969 after having graduated from the

Cleveland Institute of Art The Cleveland Institute of Art, previously Cleveland School of Art, is a private college focused on art and design and located in Cleveland, Ohio. History The college was founded in 1882 as the Western Reserve School of Design for Women, at fir ...

and serving time in the military in

Ethiopia Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...

. In California, he collaborated with fellow midwesterner Fred Schrier as the "Overland Vegetable Stagecoach" on three issues of ''Mother's Oats Comix'', two of ''Meef Comix'', and a one-shot title called ''The Balloon Vendor'', published by

and The

Print Mint The Print Mint, Inc. was a major publisher and distributor of underground comix based in the San Francisco Bay Area during the genre's late 1960s-early 1970s heyday. Starting as a retailer of psychedelic posters, the Print Mint soon evolved into ...

. Sheridan was the art editor for three issues of '' The Rip Off Review of Western Culture'' in 1972, a magazine published by the

. His solo comix work can be seen in ''

Slow Death ''Slow Death'' is an underground comix anthology published by Last Gasp, the first title published by the San Francisco Bay Area-based press. Conceived as an ecologically themed comics magazine (in conjunction with the first Earth Day), the titl ...

, Skull Comix, Hydrogen Bomb and Biochemical Warfare Funnies #1, San Francisco Comic Book #1,'' ''

Tales from the Leather Nun ''Tales from the Leather Nun'' was an American underground comics, underground comic published by Last Gasp (publisher), Last Gasp in 1973. It was a one-shot anthology of bizarre, violent, and perverted stories featuring nuns by Dave Sheridan (art ...

'', ''

Rip Off Comix ''Rip Off Comix'' was an underground comix anthology published between 1977 and 1991 by Rip Off Press. As time passed, the sensibility of the anthology changed from underground to alternative comics. The anthology was originally a byproduct of th ...

'', and ''

High Times ''High Times'' is an American monthly magazine (and cannabis brand) that advocates the legalization of cannabis as well as other counterculture ideas. The magazine was founded in 1974 by Tom Forcade.Danko, Danny"Norml Founder Retires – Exha ...

'', and in cartoons he made for the ''

Berkeley Barb The ''Berkeley Barb'' was a weekly underground newspaper published in Berkeley, California, during the years 1965 to 1980. It was one of the first and most influential of the counterculture newspapers, covering such subjects as the anti-war move ...

'' and ''

Playboy ''Playboy'' is an American men's Lifestyle magazine, lifestyle and entertainment magazine, formerly in print and currently online. It was founded in Chicago in 1953, by Hugh Hefner and his associates, and funded in part by a $1,000 loan from H ...

''. He also did the art for ''Weed and Wine'', the first mini-album produced by Cleveland area folk singer/songwriter John Bassette, as well as album covers for Carl Oglesby, John Lee Hooker,

David Steinberg David Steinberg (born August 9, 1942) is a Canadian comedian, actor, writer, director, and author. At the height of his popularity, during the late 1960s and mid 1970s, he was one of the best-known comics in the United States. He appeared on ...

, and

Impulse! Records Impulse! Records (occasionally styled as "¡mpulse! Records" and "¡!") is an American jazz record company and label established by Creed Taylor in 1960. John Coltrane was among Impulse!'s earliest signings. Thanks to consistent sales and positiv ...

.The "Black Death Malt Liquor" shirt regularly worn by Howard Hesseman on

WKRP in Cincinnati ''WKRP in Cincinnati'' is an American sitcom television series about the misadventures of the staff of a struggling fictional radio station in Cincinnati, Ohio. The show was created by Hugh Wilson and was based upon his experiences working ...

in his role as Dr. Johnny Fever was designed and drawn by Sheridan. His illustrations appeared in ''Ramparts'', and he produced a series of cannabis labels for the fictitious California Homegrowers Association (with cartoonist Pat Ryan). Sheridan eventually settled in

San Anselmo, California San Anselmo () is an incorporated town in Marin County, California, United States. San Anselmo is located west of San Rafael, at an elevation of 46 feet (14 m). It is located about north of San Francisco. The town is bordered by San Rafael ...

. There he became a member of the Artista collective, an

artist collective An artist collective is an initiative that is the result of a group of artists working together, usually under their own management, towards shared aims. The aims of an artist collective can include almost anything that is relevant to the need ...

with its own jackets and

softball Softball is a game similar to baseball played with a larger ball on a smaller field. Softball is played competitively at club levels, the college level, and the professional level. The game was first created in 1887 in Chicago by George Hanc ...

team. During the

1972 Major League Baseball strike The 1972 Major League Baseball strike was the first players' strike in Major League Baseball history. The strike occurred from April 1 to 13, 1972. Baseball resumed when the owners and players agreed on a $500,000 increase in pension fund paym ...

, he appointed himself the head of the "Scab League", offering to have his team take the strikers' places for $100 per week and all the beer they could drink. He also befriended and worked closely with comedian

Don Novello Donald Andrew Novello (born January 1, 1943) is an American actor, comedian, singer, writer, film director and producer. He is best known for his work on NBC's ''Saturday Night Live'' from 1978 to 1980, and again from 1985 to 1986, often as the ...

, drawing the album cover for Novello's Father Guido Sarducci ''Live at St. Douglas Convent'' comedy album. A characterization of Sarducci appeared in a Dealer McDope adventure, "20,000 Kilos Beneath the Sea" in ''Mother's Oats'' #3. In 1974, Sheridan began collaborating on

's ''

'' strips. These were syndicated by Rip Off Press to alternative and college weeklies nationwide, and later collected into comix and anthologies.Fox, M. Steven
"Rip Off Comix — 1977-1991 / Rip Off Press,"
Comixjoint. Retrieved Dec. 5, 2022. His first issue of ''

'' was #4, with a many-page story-arc entitled ''The Seventh Voyage of the Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers'': escaping the landlady and her demands for rent, the hirsute trio go to Mexico where they encounter far worse perils, including a

Carlos Castaneda Carlos Castañeda (December 25, 1925 – April 27, 1998) was an American writer. Starting with ''The Teachings of Don Juan'' in 1968, Castaneda wrote a series of books that purport to describe training in shamanism that he received under the tu ...

parody A parody, also known as a spoof, a satire, a send-up, a take-off, a lampoon, a play on (something), or a caricature, is a creative work designed to imitate, comment on, and/or mock its subject by means of satiric or ironic imitation. Often its sub ...

. Sheridan's detailed graphic style lent itself well to the fantastic imagery needed to

lampoon Lampoon may refer to: *Parody *Amphol Lampoon (born 1963), Thai actor and singer *''The Harvard Lampoon'', a noted humor magazine ** ''National Lampoon'' (magazine), a defunct offshoot of ''Harvard Lampoon'' ***National Lampoon, Incorporated, a 20 ...

Castaneda's drug-related

Central America Central America ( es, América Central or ) is a subregion of the Americas. Its boundaries are defined as bordering the United States to the north, Colombia to the south, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. ...

n-cum-

New Age New Age is a range of spiritual or religious practices and beliefs which rapidly grew in Western society during the early 1970s. Its highly eclectic and unsystematic structure makes a precise definition difficult. Although many scholars consi ...

sorcery. He then continued to collaborate on the ''Freak Brothers'' comix series through issues 5, 6 and 7; the team was joined by Paul Mavrides in 1978 for issue #6. In all, Sheridan contributed to 45 Freak Brothers tales.

Death

Sheridan was diagnosed with

cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Possible signs and symptoms include a lump, abnormal b ...

on March 3, 1982, eight months after his July 4, 1981, marriage to Dava Stone. Sheridan died from a brain hemorrhage on March 28, 1982. He had been in a coma for four days at Mt. Zion Hospital in San Francisco. He was buried at sea at a memorial service the following Friday. His wife Dava gave birth to their daughter Dori on April 4, 1982, a week after Sheridan died.

Biography

full biography of Dave Sheridan
which reproduces most of his comix and graphics work, was published by Fantagraphics Books in 2018.

Bibliography

Overland Vegetable Stagecoach (with Fred Schrier)

* ''Mother's Oats Comix'' #1 – San Francisco Comic Book Company/Rip Off Press 1969 * ''Mother's Oats Comix'' #2 – San Francisco Comic Book Company/Rip Off Press 1970 * ''Skull Comics'' #1 (with

Greg Irons Greg Irons (September 29, 1947 – November 14, 1984) was an American poster artist, underground cartoonist, animator and tattoo artist. Profile Irons was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He moved to San Francisco, California, in 1967, w ...

, Jack Jackson and

Rory Hayes Rory Hayes (August 8, 1949 – August 29, 1983) was an American underground cartoonist in the late 1960s and early 1970s. His comics were drawn in an expressionistic, primitivist style and usually dealt with grim subject matter such as par ...

) – San Francisco Comic Book Company/Rip Off Press 1970 * ''The Balloon Vendor'' – San Francisco Comic Book Company/Rip Off Press 1971 * ''Meef Comix'' #1 – San Francisco Comic Book Company/Rip Off Press 1972 * ''Meef Comix'' #2 – San Francisco Comic Book Company/Rip Off Press 1973 * ''Tales of the Leather Nun'' #1 –

Last Gasp Last Gasp or The Last Gasp may refer to * Last Gasp (publisher) * ''Last Gasp'' (''Inside No. 9''), a TV episode * '' The Last Gasp'', a 2007 album by Impaled * ''The Last Gasp'' (novel) * "Last Gasp" (song) {{dab ...

Eco Funnies, 1973 * ''Mindwarp: An Anthology'' by Sheridan & Schrier —

And/Or Press And/Or Press was an independent small press publisher based in the San Francisco Bay Area that operated from 1974 to 1983. The company published books on personal development, guides to the countercultural lifestyle, and consciousness expansion. ...

, 1975 * ''Mother's Oats Comix'' #3 – San Francisco Comic Book Company/Rip Off Press 1976

Other

* ''

Slow Death Funnies ''Slow Death'' is an underground comix anthology published by Last Gasp, the first title published by the San Francisco Bay Area-based press. Conceived as an ecologically themed comics magazine (in conjunction with the first Earth Day), the title ...

'' #1 (with Fred Schrier, Jim Osborne and Gilbert Shelton) – Last Gasp 1970 * ''Slow Death Funnies'' #2 "The Sex Evulsors of Tecnicus" – Last Gasp 1970 * ''The Food Stamp Gourmet'' by William Brown, Illustrations by Greg Irons, Gilbert Shelton, and Dave Sheridan — Bellerophon Books, 1971. * ''The Legion of Charlies'' by Tom Veitch, Greg Irons, and Dave Sheridan (Paperback) Last Gasp, 1971 * '' Light Comitragies'' – Greg Irons — Print Mint 1971 * ''Skull Comics'' No.s 2–5 – San Francisco Comic Book Company/Rip Off Press 1971–1972 * '' Yellow Dog'' #19 (with Fred Schrier) – The Print Mint 1971 * ''Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers'' issues 4, 5, 6 (with Paul Mavrides), and 7 * ''Jayzey Lynch's Nard n' Pat'' No. 1 "We Could Get Any Artist ta Draw Us!" (1974) * ''U-Comix Sammelband Nr. 1'' (Introduction to Paperback) UPN-Volksverlag (1974) * ''U-Comix Sammelband Nr. 2'' (Introduction to Paperback) UPN-Volksverlag (1975) * ''The Seattle Simpleton'' (vol. 1 No. 3) "The Mellow Cab Man" (Freewheelin' Frank) and "The Story of Phineas and the Organic Mechanic", both by Shelton & Sheridan. Spring 1976. * ''Adventures of Fat Freddy's Cat'' Books 1–3 – with Gilbert Shelton — Rip Off Press, 1977 * ''Thoroughly Ripped with the Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers and Fat Freddy's Cat!'' by Shelton and Sheridan — Rip Off Press, 1978 * ''

'' No.s 3–9 Rip-Off Press 1978–1981 * ''The Best of

Comix, vol. 4'' (1983) including ''Dr. McDope in Peru by Siegel & Sheridan, ''The Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers'' by Shelton & Sheridan, ''The Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers and the Mysterious Visitor'' by Shelton & Sheridan, and "Notorious Norbert" by Fleagle & Fosdick (AKA Shelton & Sheridan) * ''Dealer McDope'' – Rip Off Press, 1985 (part of Underground Classics No. 2-3) * ''Time Twisted Tales'' Rip Off Press, 1986 * ''The Collected Fat Freddy's Cat. Vol. 1'' by Gilbert Shelton & Dave Sheridan — Rip Off Press, 1989. * ''The Freak Brothers Bus Line and Other Tales'' by Gilbert Shelton, Paul Mavrides and Dave Sheridan — Rip Off Press, 1990 * ''The Collected Fat Freddy's Cat'' by Gilbert Shelton & Dave Sheridan — Rip Off Press (April 1990) , * ''The Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers Library'' by Gilbert Shelton, Dave Sheridan, and Paul Mavrides Rip Off Press, Incorporated (March 1995) , * ''Dave Sheridan: Life with Dealer McDope, The Leather Nun, and the Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers'', Fantagraphics Underground, Mark Burstein (editor),

Game

* ''Dealer McDope Dealing Game'' (Print Mint, 1971)Letter by T. Elton Snatchit, creator of Dealer McDope Dealing Game
/ref>

Notes

References

External links

*
Sheridan obituary/tribute by Fred Schrier
''Changeling Times'' #6 (

ACE An ace is a playing card, die or domino with a single pip. In the standard French deck, an ace has a single suit symbol (a heart, diamond, spade, or club) located in the middle of the card, sometimes large and decorated, especially in the c ...

magazine)
Dave Sheridan Art
a Facebook page devoted to the Dave Sheridan's art. {{DEFAULTSORT:Sheridan, Dave 1943 births 1982 deaths American cartoonists Artists from Cleveland The Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers Psychedelic artists Underground cartoonists