About GamutMagazine.org

In October of 2021, while hunting through long and short boxes at a small comic book show, I stumbled upon a copy of the first issue of Gamut. I had no idea what I was looking at; I’d never heard of the book. But the striking Mike Ploog cover – a menacing ogre towering over a buxom blonde barbarian – immediately caught my attention, and I knew it was coming home with me.

When I got the book home and opened it up, I was amazed by the work on the inside. Much of the work was by artists unknown to me, but it was interspersed with pinups and sketches from artists like Neal Adams and Bernie Wrightson (credited as “Berni Wrightson” in the book, something Wrightson did in his early career to distinguish himself from a contemporary Olympic diver with the same name), including a rough sketch page from one of my all-time favorite comic stories, Wrightson’s “The Gourmet” from DC Comics’ Plop! issue number one.

The indicia on the back inside cover of the first issue of Gamut reads “GAMUT is published by Tabloid Press on behalf of the Cartooning Program at Sheridan College, Oakville, Ontario, Canada.”

Armed with this info, I took to the internet to learn more about this cool treasure I had discovered. Unfortunately, aside from an outstanding article by Brian Campbell on ComicBookDaily.com and another well-done piece by Brad Middleton on his blog, there wasn’t a lot of info to be had. While both articles provided some great insights, I wanted to know more about the students and program at Sheridan and how it led to the creation of Gamut.

In my internet search, I learned of cartoonist and animator Jeff Wilson, a Sheridan alum who worked on the fourth and final issue of Gamut. I reached out to Jeff out of the blue, hoping for answers to a couple of questions I had about the magazine, as I had been toying with the idea of writing my own article about the publication.

Jeff responded, and his responses and enthusiasm about the project were so gracious and energetic that I was inspired to turn my Gamut article idea into a full-fledged website.

Jeff was kind enough to grant me the first interview for GamutMagazine.org, which you can read here on the site.

This site is my effort to pick up the torch from Brian and Brad in order to learn more and to share what information I can find with others who may also one day stumble across a copy of such a cool piece of comics and cartooning history.

Important note: If you were part of Sheridan College from 1975-1979 – specifically faculty or students in the Cartooning Program, or anyone involved in the creation of Gamut – please reach out to me. I’d love to hear and share your stories. You can reach me at jesse@gamutmagazine.org.

-Jesse
www.GamutMagazine.org