For the past 18 years Jim Toomey has been writing and drawing the daily comic strip Sherman’s Lagoon, which is syndicated to over 250 newspapers in North America, including the Washington Post, the Chicago Tribune, the San Francisco Chronicle, and the Toronto Star. It also appears in over 30 foreign countries, in French, Portuguese, Spanish, Norwegian and Swedish. Jim has just completed his eighteenth book, published by Andrews McMeel.
Sherman’s Lagoon combines two of his life-long passions: art and the sea. In addition to drawing his comic strip, Jim is active in marine conservation. The conservation message in his comic strip earned him the Environmental Hero Award, in 2000, presented by NOAA on behalf of Vice President Al Gore “for using art and humor to conserve and protect our marine heritage,” and again in 2010. His comic characters and other illustrations appear in educational materials published by NOAA, the UN, and a variety of non-profit organizations for the purpose of raising awareness of the oceans. Jim routinely speaks in front of younger audiences, at aquariums and conferences, using live drawing and humor to convey the importance of protecting our oceans. In April, 2010, he was invited to join a group of noted marine biologists, Hollywood celebrities, and business leaders in an ocean-themed TED conference in the Galapagos. His TED Talk can be viewed at http://www.ted.com. He has given similar talks at a variety of venues, from the Royal Society in London to Harvard University to the Monterey Bay Aquarium to his daughter’s kindergarten class. Jim has been featured in many of his client newspapers, Wired Magazine, National Public Radio, and Discovery Channel’s Shark Week.
Jim holds a Bachelor of Science in mechanical engineering from Duke University, a Master of Arts from Stanford University, and recently returned to Duke to earn a Masters of Environmental Management.
Jim currently lives in Annapolis, Maryland, with his wife and two children.
