Frequently Asked Questions: Answered!

Q: Who is Nathaniel Jones?
A: I am Nathaniel Jones. I'm currently a student at Western Washington University in Bellingham, Washington, studying theater and creative writing so that one day I may be a screen/children's book writer and star in a big fancy Broadway Musical. In my free time when I'm not at rehearsal and I'm not doing homework, I work on my screenplays, poetry, and flash cartoons.

Q: Did I see you on television the other night?
A: It's not likely, but I did have a show on TrojanVision and LA36 in Los Angeles last year, so its hypothetically possible that they played a rerun of it with me on there.

Q: Why "Guy With The Coat?"
A: Because I am often recognized by the blazer with lapel pins that I wear, and when people see me walking around they shout "hey! It's the Guy with the Coat!"

Q: Why do you have so many lapel pins on your coat?
A: Some of the pins are souvenirs from my travels, but mostly I consider the pins the same way that many might consider a yearbook or something like that - friends give me pins for the coat, and they're kind of like forget-me-nots. Most of my pins have a specific connection to one person or event, so I like to have them as reminders.

Q: How many pins do you have?
A: At last count there were 37 pins on my coat, and although this is the same number of 'pieces of flair' as the guy in Office Space, it is purely coincidental. Although that is a good movie.

Q: How long did this website take you, and how long have you been making cartoons?
A: The oldest parts of the website come from as far back as 1997, although most of it is only one or two years old. Over the years it has had many incarnations and many servers, the longest running one being geocities.com - it has only been www.GuyWithTheCoat.com since March of 2003. As far as cartoons go, I've been drawing cartoons ever since I can remember, and in elementary school I would even teach other kids how to draw cartoons for a penny each. Then I got into computer animation with the macintosh program 'hypercard,' and later on 'mario paint' on my super nintendo. Flash animation is relatively new to me - the first flash cartoon I made was in October of 2002. Of the cartoons on the website, the oldest is Moses Goes Shopping, made on October 17, 2002.

Q: Do you maintain any websites aside from guywiththecoat.com?
A: Yes - I also have my two other personal sites, www.cantantecomico.com and www.pennilesswriter.com, and for other people I have www.etravelswithetrules.com and www.upfronttheatre.com.

Q: Can I hire you to make a cartoon / write something / design a logo / build a website for me or my business?
A: Yes - please send all business questions to me by e-mail.

Q: Do you get paid for all the hours you put in on this website?
A: Only when people donate or buy merchandise.

Q: What programs do you use to make all this website stuff?
A: For the website itself I use dreamworks and basic html. For most of the pictures I use flash and photoshop, and for cartoons I use flash. For stories and poems I use microsoft word, and for scripts I use Final Draft.

Q: When will you next be performing live?
A: The best way to find out is to keep an eye on the GuyWithTheCoat Blog. If there are any upcoming shows, I'll be posting them on there before anywhere else.

Q: You look like someone famous - who is it?
A: I've heard I look like Jack Black, Kevin Smith, Brian O'Halloran, and occasionally Elton John, Chris Farley, Jim Carrey, and 'a guy I used to know'. Take your pick.

Q: Are you that guy that I saw the other night?
A: Could be.

Q: I have more questions - can you answer another one for me?
A: Send me your questions in an e-mail, and I'll try to get back to you soon.