Chad Carpenter, the creator of Tundra, wanted a piece of himself in his comic strip. However, due to the fact he was unwilling to relinquish any body parts, he opted to pen a character in his own image. This character, aptly named Chad the cartoonist, ironically plays the role of a struggling cartoonist. Chad is the constant victim of Dudley and Sherman's exploits not to mention their constant complaints about the comic strips use of low-brow puns.

Chad's legacy began when during a camping trip in the woods with his parents, he inadvertently wandered off only to be found years later learning the daily rituals of his new Artesian six-toed sloth family. He was quickly whisked away to the Gangrene Gulch School of Puns for eight months of intensive reprogramming. After a brief job venture as Inspector #14, Chad received a finger painting kit from an unknown admirer and thus began his life long pursuit of illustrated wisecracking anecdotes. Chad's turn on's include shiny objects and anything with sour cream. Chad's turn offs include non-shiny objects and anything with guacamole.