Sunday, December 2, 2018

Playboy Cartoon: December 2013

caption:  "How many times do you have to sleep with someone before you put them on your Christmas card list?"


Approved - "OK HMH" in red pencil - Playboy loose-style gag rough; full-page color cartoon was published on p. 85 in the December 2013 issue.


(blog entries by Heidi Hutson)

Playboy Cartoon With Prelims: December 2012

caption:  "Every year I leave Cookie out for Santa."


Since the early 1960s, Doug's submitted thousands of loose-style gag roughs to Playboy; close to 500 were approved by Hef for final art and ultimate publication.

After receiving the notice for an upcoming cartoon meeting, Doug would immediately call and/or email his writers with the requested topics - sports, entertainment, holidays, etc. - and the due date.  He liked to receive their gag lines two weeks before the deadline.  When they arrived, he'd take a couple of days to read them over and select those he thought would be visually interesting and also get a good laugh.

Once the best gags were chosen, he'd go to the drawing board in his studio overlooking Lake Couchiching in Orillia, Ontario and began to work.

The process started with a quick, loose sketch in pencil on standard 8 1/2 x 11 copy paper, to block out the characters and set the scene.  When these were finished, he'd go back, using a black Sharpie permanent marker, and add the caption and details.  Sometimes he'd overlay changes by cutting out a piece of paper, gluing it down, and then drawing over it.  Although some artists work with graphics programs, all of Doug's work was done by hand.  If there was time, he might also decide to enhance the roughs by adding color - first the flesh tones then the other colors, one by one.  He'd lay out six to eight at a time on a work table and add highlights using Dr. Ph. Martin's aniline dyes, which Doug used to render all of his Playboy originals.  This added step made it easier for Hef to quickly visualize the essence of the gag during a meeting that involved hundreds of cartoon roughs from several different artists.

Also at this time, Doug added his signature, generally in a lower corner, with the writer's initials under it.  This identification was important since Playboy paid the gag writers directly, it allowed the magazine to match initials with mailing addresses and issue checks to the right people.

Approved - "OK color page H" in black Sharpie - loose-style gag rough original, cartoon published in the December 2012 issue on p. 87.


early pencil rough (image area 8 x 8 1/2 on heavy tracing vellum)


later pencil/black Sharpie rough (image area 7 1/2 x 9 1/2 on heavy tracing vellum)



To see available Playboy cartoon originals, approved loose-style Hef gag roughs and pencil and color prelims, visit the Doug Sneyd Premium Gallery at:


(blog entries by Heidi Hutson)

Doug's First Christmas Cartoon - December 1964, p. 117

caption:  "I understand you've been a bad little girl . . .!"


In 1964, a one-year subscription was $8.00 or $20.00 for 3 years.


(blog entries by Heidi Hutson)

Gag Rough Original from Secret Sneyd

Loose-style color gag rough - Chapter 9, Santa Baby, p. 235 - from Secret Sneyd:  The Unpublished Cartoons of Doug Sneyd.

The 280-page hardcover book, published by Dark Horse Books in April 2017, features 250 of Doug's favorite loose-style gag roughs, 8 1/2 x 11, from the thousands he's submitted to Playboy since the early 1960s.


The 280-page hardcover book can be purchased at:



The Secret Sneyd gallery room at CAF - www.comicartfans.com - features a selection of both color and black and white (8 1/2 x 11) loose-style cartoon rough originals published in 10 chapters:  Conversations, Hookers, Just Sex, Fun and Games, Relationships, Once Upon A Time, Inappropriate Behavior, Happy Holidays, Santa Baby and Potpourri.

If you have a copy of Secret Sneyd and find a favorite cartoon rough not posted at the CAF gallery room, please email through CAF for additional information on availability.

(blog entries by Heidi Hutson)