Background
Conklin was born in Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey in 1941.
Conklin was born in Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey in 1941.
He attended Spring Valley High School in New York, and Calvin College in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
He worked as a cartoonist for the college newspaper. He was inducted into the army in 1965, married, and worked painting murals on mess halls in South of Korea. He moved to San Francisco after his discharge, and began creating concert posters for the growing music scene from 1968 to 1970.
He moved to New York in 1972, working at various jobs to support his family.
Conklin returned to creating art full-time in 1990.