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ALUM Spotlight Bill Holbrook '80

In honor of the first ever Auburn Alumni Association 25th Reunion (fall 2005), we have an additional ALUM Spotlight in honor of the Class of 1980. Twenty-five years ago Bill Holbrook was illustrating cartoons for the Plainsmen and the Glom. Those experiences combined with his AU art degree and Auburn memories have been transferred into an illustrious career creating cartoon strips. One of his characters in his online cartoon strip Kevin and Kell goes off to attend a university which bears an uncanny resemblance to Auburn.

Q. When/how did your interest for illustrating cartoons begin?

A. Drawing is something I've been doing since my earliest memories. It was always my intention to make it my career, so when I was a high school senior in 1976 I asked my art teacher which major Southern university had the best art department. Without hesitation she said Auburn. It was excellent advice, as the curriculum trained me in commercial illustration, fine arts and art history. The program was a broadening experience, and its preparation enabled me to be hired by The Atlanta Constitution six months after graduating in Dec. 1980.

Q. What was your job like at the Atlanta Constitution?

A. I worked at The Atlanta Constitution from June 1981 to Feb. 1984, leaving a few weeks before my "On the Fastrack" strip debuted in 150 papers. While at the paper I mainly did maps and charts (without computers, but by hand!), and also illustrated columns for the Op-Ed page.

Q. What was the inspiration in the creation of Kevin & Kell and Beige University?

A. "Kevin & Kell" is the strip I launched in Sept. 1995 to take advantage of the new medium of the Internet. Appearing online at www.kevinandkell.com, it tells the story of a rabbit and a wolf who meet in a chat room and fall in love before realizing that they are on opposite ends of the food chain. Overcoming prejudice and stereotypes, they marry and create a very blended family. They have an adopted hedgehog daughter named Lindesfarne who has just started college at "Beige University." Despite the name change, the Auburn community will easily recognize the buildings I place in the background; Haley Center, Samford Hall, etc. Lindesfarne, a scientific genius, is enrolled along with her boyfriend Fenton, a bat.

Q. What is your favorite AU memory from 1980?

A. Graduation is of course the moment that stands out from that year. It remains an accomplishment for which I'm very proud.

Q. You did a cartoon in the 1980 glom that was a political reflection of that year. Are you surprised of the similarities to this year?

A. A new Pope, gasoline headaches, strife in Afghanistan... It certainly does give one pause.

Q. What would you like to say to your fellow classmates of 1980?

A. I'd like to thank everyone who read my comics in The Auburn Plainsman. Having a wide audience was important to me, as the feedback went a long way to developing my art and writing. I really appreciate it.