-It was thirty years ago today a Rich Karlis kick went astray It hit an upright from nearly a mile Then came a toon guaranteed to raise a smile So may I reintroduce to you The toon you recall after all these years I’m a Richie Karlis Killer Uprights Faaaannn!- For me December 4th, 1984 was the day my career changed. I had held my position at the Rocky Mountain News the way Rich Karlis was currently holding his with the Broncos. Precariously. After hitting the uprights in back to back games during that 2004 season Karlis became prime fodder for a young cartoonist who was still looking to make his mark. I knew the topic on that Monday morning after the game was all about the Broncos barefoot kicker who seemed to have developed an affinity for kicking the ball where he shouldn’t, right into the goalposts. So drawing for Tuesday would give me chance to be timely and topical, two key ingredients for cartoons to resonate with readers. Throw in the absurdity of the situation and a funny image that popped into my head not long after I arrived at the office and I was off to the races. It printed on Tuesday, Dec 4, 1984 and as they say the rest is history. To this day I still have people I meet who talk about that cartoon and the memory of it. And I still recall the young female tellers with school girl crushes on Rich at my bank who refused to even talk to me the week it printed because they were not happy about my lampooning their make believe boyfriend. Anyway, it saved my career and allowed me to become good friends with Rich Karlis, who I still consider one of the Broncos most reliable kickers. To celebrate the occasion we are having a great DrewLittonstore.com wide 30th anniversary Killer Uprights sale with everything 30% off including an exclusive print of the dreaded “Killer Uprights” available to the public for the first time. So, hey, let’s party like it’s 1984. Buy a calendar or a print or two. Just hold off on the flock of Seagulls hair cuts.
