History and Politics in French-Language Comics and Graphic Novels press release

Here's some PR from my, uh-hmm, publisher. I know Mark and a lot of the authors in this book and I'm sure it's a good one. I'll be buying a copy when it's in paper.

History and Politics in French-Language Comics and Graphic Novels
Edited by Mark McKinney
University Press of Mississippi
ISBN 978-1-60473-004-3, hardback, $50

Book News for Immediate Release

French, Belgian comics have long been outlets of historical, political expression

Cartoonists have long created graphic narratives that provide engaging perspectives on the world’s historical and political events. In France and Belgium in particular, many well-known comics artists have focused their attention–explicitly and implicitly–on events that have affected these countries.

History and Politics in French-Language Comics and Graphic Novels (University Press of Mississippi) collects new essays that address French-language comics from a variety of theoretical perspectives. This anthology edited by Mark McKinney establishes the French comics tradition as one rich with historical and political inquiry and is one of the first English-language collections to explore this subject

In works ranging from comic books and graphic novels to newspaper strips and editorial cartoons, French-language cartoonists have addressed such controversial topics as French and Belgian collaboration and resistance during World War II; European colonialism and U.S. imperialism; anti-Semitism in France; the integration of African immigrant groups in Europe; May 1968 in France; and the ecology and feminist movements.

The essays range from discussion of the canonical (Hergé’s Tintin series, Rodolphe Töpffer’s picture-stories) to the contemporary (Jean-Philippe Stassen’s Déogratias, about the 1994 Rwandan genocide).

Several essays are close readings of specific comics series and graphic novels, such as Cécile Danehy’s examination of Cosey’s Saigon-Hanoi, about French involvement in Vietnam during the 1950s.

With essays by Baru, Bart Beaty, Cécile Vernier, Danehy, Hugo Frey, Pascal LefPvre, Fabrice Leroy, Amanda Macdonald, Mark McKinney, Ann Miller, and Clare Tufts.

History and Politics in French-Language Comics and Graphic Novels is one of the first English-language works to address history and politics in French-language comics and graphic novels and features over 60 illustrations of the works being discussed

Mark McKinney is associate professor of French at Miami University, Ohio. With Alec G. Hargreaves, he edited Post-Colonial Cultures in France.

–30–

For more information contact Clint Kimberling, Publicist, ckimberling@mississippi.edu

Read more about History and Politics in French-Language Comics and Graphic Novels at http://www.upress.state.ms.us/books/1111

Local food fluffer Lisa Cherkasky on meeting a star

My neighbor Lisa does a lot of food styling for the Washington Post and I always look forward to seeing the Food section on Wednesday. Here's her blog post about running into another local Post celebrity - Our Man Thompson.
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Boy, this is incestuous, isn't it?

Cavna's interview two-fer - Thompson and BK Vaughan

Sure, Cavna and Betancourt have got the Washington Post behind them so they can interview big names like Richard Thompson and Brian K Vaughan...

QUICK REVIEWS FOR COMICS DUE 08-20-08

QUICK REVIEWS FOR COMICS DUE 08-20-08
By John Judy

AIR #1 by G. Willow Wilson and M.K. Perker. Something about air travel, terrorism and countries that don’t exist. Okay. Sure looks pretty though. Not for kids.

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #568 by Dan Slott and John Romita R with a back-up by Mark Waid and Adi Granov. Ominous doings with the Osborn boys and the man once known as Venom gets reflective. Pretty darn good issue.

BRAVE AND THE BOLD #16 by Mark Waid and Scott Kolins. Superman and Catwoman! They’re just trying to make Batman jealous…

CAPTAIN AMERICA #41 by Ed Brubaker and Steve Epting. Cap may be “dead” but his villains have never been more interesting. Sucks to be Sharon Carter though…

FINAL CRISIS: LEGION OF THREE WORLDS #1 of 5 by Geoff Johns and George Perez. Time-Trapper, Superboy-Prime, Huge Fights! It’s Perez so you know it’ll look great and Johns so you know it’ll make sense! Recommended!

GHOST RIDER #26 by Jason Aaron and Tan Eng Huat. Danny Ketch is back, no doubt to get his flaming skull handed to him by the real Ghost Rider. From the author of SCALPED! Recommended!

HERBIE ARCHIVES VOL.1 HC by Shane O’Shea (Richard Hughes) and Ogden Whitney. Collecting the earliest adventures of The Fat Fury and his magic lollipops. Hey, it was the sixties and he went after Castro! Did you ever go after Castro? Weird stuff for them that likes it. Go Herbie!

IRON FIST: ORIGIN OF DANNY RAND by Lotsa People including Matt Fraction and Kano. He knows kung-fu!

JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA #24 by Dwayne McDuffie and Ed Benes. Okay, normally I wouldn’t care who had control of the Tantu Totem but this story has actually maintained my interest. Fun stuff! Tantus all around!

PUNISHER #61 by Greg Hurwitz and Laurence Campbell. The post-Ennis era starts here and it ain’t half-bad. Let’s give these plucky lads their fair shake, eh? Recommended.

SANDMAN PRESENTS: DEAD BOY DETECTIVES SC by Ed Brubaker, Bryan Talbot and Steve Leialoha. Collecting the first bunch of stories from back before everyone knew how awesome Brubaker was. Gotta look!

SCALPED #20 by Jason Aaron and Davide Furno. More revelations from the twisted past of Dash’s crackhead significant other, Carol. Everyone should be reading this series, except for kids. Highly recommended.

SHOWCASE PRESENTS: THE ATOM VOL. 2 SC by Gardner Fox, Dennis O’Neil, Gil Kane, Murphy Anderson and Others. Collecting the Silver-Age adventures of the Mighty Mite from ATOM #18-38 and ATOM AND HAWKMAN #39-45. Expensive comics found cheaply here!

UNCANNY X-MEN #501 by Ed Brubaker, Matt Fraction and Greg Land. I tried reading this but was blinded by the rows of white teeth Greg Land traced from fashion magazines and various soft-core websites. The new drinking game is: Every time you recognize a starlet Land traced for an Emma Frost pose you have to drink. Hide your car keys before playing.

X-FACTOR #34 by Peter David and Larry Stroman. She-Hulk! Long-Shot! Skrulls! Hijinks galore!

X-FACTOR SPECIAL: LAYLA MILLER #1 by Peter David and Valentine DeLandro. A one-shot based upon a character who is clearly one of PAD’s favorites. Really good stuff even though I usually hate dystopian alternate future stories. Worth a read.

www.johnjudy.net

Small Press Expo Announces Bryan Lee O’Malley and Hope Larson as Guests for SPX 2008

Small Press Expo Announces Bryan Lee O’Malley and Hope Larson as Guests for SPX 2008

For Immediate Release
Contact: Warren Bernard
Phone: 301-537-4615 E-Mail:webernard@mindspring.com

Bethesda, Maryland; August 19, 2008 - The Small Press Expo (SPX), the preeminent showcase for the exhibition of independent comic books, graphic novels and alternative political cartoons, is proud to announce Bryan Lee O’Malley and Hope Larson as guests for SPX 2008.

Bryan Lee O’Malley is the creator of the Scott Pilgrim (http://www.scottpilgrim.com) series of books issued by Oni Press. Scott Pilgrim was named Best Indy Comic of the Year by Entertainment Weekly and was recently optioned as a motion picture by Universal Studios. Bryan has been nominated for both the Eisner and Harvey Awards and is a past recipient of the Joe Schuster Award for Best Canadian Cartoonist and the Doug Wright Award for Best Emerging Talent. Bryan’s web site is http://www.radiomaru.com/.

Hope Larson is the creator of the recently released book, Chiggers, published by the Atheneum imprint of Simon & Schuster. She was the recipient of the 2006 Ignatz Award in the category Promising New Talent and the Eisner Award for Special Recognition in 2007. Her previous works include Gray Horses published by Oni Press and Salamander Dreams, her web comic subsequently published by Adhouse Books. Hope’s web site is
http://www.hopelarson.com/.

Hope and Bryan are in addition to the previously announced Joost Swarte, who will be making a rare American appearance at this year's SPX.

Additional guests will be added over the next few weeks, please stay tuned for those announcements.

This year, SPX will be held Saturday, October 4 from 11AM to 7PM and Sunday, October 5 noon-6PM at The North Bethesda Marriott Convention Center in Bethesda, Maryland. Admission is $8 for a single day and $15 for both days.

For further information on the artists or to request an interview, please contact Warren Bernard at webernard@spxpo.com.

SPX, a non-profit organization, brings together more than 300 artists and publishers to meet their readers, booksellers and distributors each year. Graphic novels, political cartoon books and alternative comics will all be on display and for sale by their authors and illustrators. A series of panel discussions will also be held of interest to readers, academicians and creators of graphic novels and political cartoons.

SPX culminates with the presentation of the 12th Annual Ignatz Awards for outstanding achievement in comics and cartooning that will occur Saturday night, October 4. The Ignatz is the first Festival Prize in the US comic book industry, with winners chosen by balloting during the SPX.

As in previous years, all profits from the SPX will go to support the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund (CBLDF), protecting the First Amendment rights of comic book readers and professionals. For more information on the CBLDF, go to their website at
http://www.cbldf.org/.

Founded in 1994, SPX is North America's premier alternative comic-book and graphic novel festival. This annual event brings together comic creators, publishers and fans together to celebrate the art of visual storytelling.

Couple of comic art things in NY Times

One story on the Family Guy animator "Serving 3 Brands: Burger King, Google and Seth MacFarlane," By BROOKS BARNES, New York Times August 18, 2008 and that bastard mix of art and commerce to quote Mr. Spiegelman.

Another story is on some Watchmen movie nonsense - "Judge Backs Fox on Rights to Superhero Movie," By MICHAEL CIEPLY, New York Times August 19, 2008.

Honorary Washingtonian Von Allan has a comic

Here's his press release:

Canadian artist Von Allan publishes his first graphic novel

Ottawa, Ontario, Canada (August 17, 2008) – Comic books and graphic novels have, over the past twenty years, become a widely embraced medium in book publishing. Initially dismissed as children’s entertainment, comics have now developed a maturity and range of vision that rivals other forms of art and literature. Graphic novels are read by people from all walks of life and have reached a level of critical acceptance that was unheard of decades ago. This resurgence has been led by a number of young artists who bring unique voices to the medium. Von Allan, an Ottawa-based artist and graphic novelist, joins this group with his recently published graphic novel “Li’l Kids: road to god knows… adventures!”

“Graphic novels offer a combination of words and images that speak to us on a very fundamental level,” says Allan. “In a way I think it’s storytelling at its most primal form. It allows an author to engage with a reader in a way that’s similar to literature and yet very, very different. Comics, when you come right down to it, are just ink marks on a piece of paper. That a reader can interpret that into a fully formed story is really quite remarkable. On top of it, so much of what makes sequential art come alive is defined by what’s not there. The gutter space between each panel of art is very important. This is where the reader’s imagination and personality comes into play. It’s a beautiful medium and one I love exploring. Hopefully that sense of exploration comes across in ‘Li’l Kids.’”

Another unique aspect of the graphic novel is its availability in multiple channels. “Li’l Kids” is downloadable as a free PDF eBook on the artist’s website. In addition, a free torrent version is available via LegalTorrents.com. The graphic novel is distributed under a Creative Commons Canada licence that grants readers the ability to distribute the online versions of the book for free. “I believe in both print publishing and bookstores and I always have,” says Allan. “But I also believe that obscurity is one of the hardest things for young artists to avoid. By using a variety of online distribution tools as well as more traditional print publishing, I’m hoping more people will get to know both myself and my work. I believe that this helps build a platform for my continued development as an artist and helps grow my audience at the same time. I’m also very pleased to see that the book is already available through a number of channels, notably online at both Amazon and Barnes & Noble.”

“Li’l Kids” is a collection of three interlocked short stories that focus on elements from a young girl’s life. We see Marie, the main character in each story, develop and grow; from meeting a new friend to her burgeoning awareness of both her family’s poverty and her mom’s mental illness. This later theme is more fully explored in the graphic novel “the road to god knows…;” Marie is only eight years old at the time of these three stories. As a result, she is only just beginning to be aware of the world around her and her place in it. Each story stands on its own but, when taken together, they demonstrate that childhood, like most aspects of life, can have its ups and downs. Being a child can be fun, scary, and magical; but sometimes the things that seem very little at the time can have a profound effect on you later on in life. That’s certainly true for Marie and her experiences in these stories help to bear that out. Later, in “the road to god knows…,” we see just how significant some of those events can be.

In addition to the three stories, this collection includes a large amount of supporting material. Concept and thumbnail art illustrate how each story was put together. Allan also discusses where each story’s inspiration came from and how each story’s initial idea formed. Lastly, he shows each step from story outline to completed script.

“Li’l Kids: road to god knows… adventures!” is an 88 page graphic novel and has an ISBN of 978-0-9781237-1-0. The suggested retail price is $13.95 US.

About Von Allan: Von Allan was born red-headed and freckled in Arnprior, Ontario, just in time for “Star Wars: A New Hope.” He managed Perfect Books, an independent bookstore in Ottawa, for many years while working on story ideas in his spare time; eventually, he decided to make the leap to a creative life, and “the road to god knows…” was the result. Additional information about the graphic novel can be found at vonallan.com.

--
Von Allan

My first graphic novel, Li'l Kids (ISBN: 978-0-9781237-1-0) is now available! Links for a free PDF Ebook and to online retailers for a physical copy are at http://www.vonallan.com/shop.html

And my original graphic novel the road to god knows... (ISBN: 978-0-9781237-0-3) can be now read entirely online at http://www.girlamatic.com/comics/godknows.php

Von Allan Studio
P.O. Box 20520, 390 Rideau Street, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. K1N 1A3
Phone: 613-236-9957
Email: von@vonallan.com
Web: http://www.vonallan.com
Blog: http://vonandmoggy.livejournal.com

August 29: Death Note showing

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT: Chris Wanamaker, (202) 262 2083 president@dcanimeclub.org

DC Anime Club and Japan Information and Culture Center, Embassy of Japan Present:

DeathNote

The DC Anime Club and the Japan Information and Culture Center (JICC), Embassy of Japan Present the DeathNote on Friday August 29, 2008 at 6:30pm as part of the Anime Summer Series. A live action film based on the extremely popular manga, starring Tatsuya Fujiwara from the Battle Royale films. The Death Note is a notebook of the gods of death. Anyone whose name is written in it will die. The screening will be held at the Japanese Information and Culture Center, Embassy of Japan located at Lafayette Center III, 1155 21st Street, NW Washington, DC 20036-3308. Seating for the screening of DeathNote is limited and attendees are encouraged to rsvp by sending an e-mail to jiccrsvpspring08@embjapan.org.

This program is free and open to the public. For more information please visit the Japanese Information and Culture Center website at http://www.us.embjapan.go.jp/jicc/ or visit the DC Anime Club website at http://dcanimeclub.org.

About DC Anime Club:
DCAC was established in 2003 to introduce and educate people in the Washington,DC area about East Asian culture, through viewing and discussion of Japanese animation (also known as anime) and Japanese comics (manga). DCAC is a 501(c)(3) not for profit organization, contributions to DC Anime Club are taxed deductible to the extent allowable under the law.

The club also works to provide a positive, alternative activity to the youth in the area by exposing them to foreign culture, encouraging artistic expression and creativity, and providing opportunities for participation in community activities and leadership.

In addition to our weekly meetings, the club holds an Annual Art Show, an Annual Costume fundraising event, and visits local schools to do presentations on anime. The club also works with the Smithsonian Freer Gallery and DC Asian Pacific American Film Festival on their anime screenings, and has helped locally promote performances for Japanese bands such as Puffy Ami Yumi and Pine am. DC Anime Club was founded by Chris Wanamaker (President), Jules Chang (Vice President) and Craig Vaughn (Sgt in ARMS) on Saturday June 5, 2003. We have a strong membership that continues to grow -- most of which are teenagers.

About Japan Information and Culture Center:
The Japan Information and Culture Center (JICC) is the cultural and public affairs section of the Embassy of Japan in Washington D.C. Our primary role is to promote better understanding of Japan and Japanese culture by providing a wide range of
information, educational services and programs to the public. The JICC is located on the lower level of the glass-enclosed Galleria at Lafayette Centre III in downtown Washington, D.C. Its facilities include a research library, a 152-seat auditorium, and a 1,500-square-foot exhibition gallery where a wide variety of events sponsored by the JICC are hosted throughout the year.


--
Christopher Wanamaker
DC Anime Club President
http://www.dcanimeclub.org
202 262 2083

Another Harvey Pekar article

Here's another one that was struck from the book. It's another on Pekar's relationship with Letterman, this time after he had cancer and just before Our Cancer Year about to come out.

Harvey Pekar / Letterman
By Harvey Pekar and Joyce Brabner / 1994

From alt.fan.letterman, June 3, 1994. Reprinted with permission of Harvey Pekar.

As promised: Harvey wrote the following article for the Boston Herald. I'm posting my own notes, too. -- Joyce

On the Late Show With David Letterman
by Harvey Pekar

Yeah, that was me you saw on David Letterman's May 16 show, announcing to a guy I work with that he owed me ten bucks for mentioning his name on national TV, telling Dave I was getting twenty five more for wearing a T-shirt with a Cleveland Free Times logo on it. Nickel and diming, but it adds up.

I've made a cottage industry out of Dave's program-- appearing on it eight times, six during a two year period, then writing about my experiences for various newspapers. For this I've received, by my standards, decent money. My standards are those of someone who has been a file clerk for the Cleveland VA hospital since 1966.

Steve O'Donnell, once Letterman's head writer and another Clevelander, got me on Late Night in October 1986, because he liked my autobiographical comic book series American Splendor.

I did a self-parody of a working stiff on the show and Dave was so impressed that he had me on again in January, March, July and November of 1987, and, after a six month's writers' strike, August of 1988. However, our relationship soured.

Dave was happy to have me come on like a rust belt "dese an' doser" but I tired of it and brought politics into the act by talking about the conflict of interest involved in the chronically corrupt and extremely powerful General Electric corporation's ownership of NBC, Letterman's employer at the time. GE has been convicted numerous times of violating anti-trust laws. They get caught, pay the fine and do it again, a profitable policy.

They are also a huge arms manufacturer and, by owning NBC, are in a position to influence public opinion regarding weapons sales. Obviously, they shouldn't be allowed to own a major TV news source.

When GE was being sued for over a billion dollars in 1987 by three Ohio utility companies for selling them a nuclear reactor GE's own engineers and scientists considered defective, NBC didn't mention the story for months, and then only under pressure, and they didn't pursue it.

Meanwhile, I saw Dave making personal cracks about Robert Wright, the GE-installed NBC president, and thought he'd dig it if I joined in the fun by bringing up GE's long criminal record. Was I ever wrong.

The first time I mentioned the issue Dave switched to a commercial, after which he brought someone else on. When I wouldn't stop ragging on GE during a July '87 show, we got into a spirited on the air argument, which, however, the audience enjoyed.

As far as I'm concerned that should be enough for Dave. He considers Late Night/Late Show (the CBS version) a comedy program in a talk show format. We got laughs while we were squabbling about GE, but he still wasn't satisfied. He only wants light weight comedy and avoids serious political or social issues like the plague (AIDS, for example, is never mentioned).

Dave is bright and talented, but seriously interested in nothing but beating Jay Leno in the ratings. He deserves a kick in the butt for his anti-intellectualism. Make anything but a quick reference to a heavy issue and he's nervous. "This isn't Meet the Press," Letterman staffers tell you. "Don't stay on any subject too long, don't get serious about anything."

Dave is so contradictory. He makes all this money but lives modestly and could get along with far less. Money is just a success symbol to him. He despises show biz phoniness and stupidity, but interviews vacuous movie and TV stars night after night so that he can appear on Time Magazine covers. It's hard to believe he doesn't realize that having the most popular late night talk show means nothing if it stinks. Does he really believe he's doing anything creative by interviewing talentless celebrities, being increasingly nice to people he doesn't respect so he can please his closer-to-prime time audience?

Disgusted with the scene, I decided to end my TV career by goading Dave into a nasty argument during his August, '88 show. It was so ugly I figured I would never be asked back. Amazingly, a year later, his people invited me to return. I refused. The next year they asked again, but that's when I was a cancer patient undergoing chemotherapy and radiation treatments. I couldn't have gone back if I'd wanted.

In early 1993, in remission for some time, I was offered another invitation. They were paying $600, covering airfare for two, a limo and our hotel costs. This was too good to be ignored so I made an appearance, got some laughs and went home.

The show is still nowhere. Occasionally, I've seen Letterman do fine satire, but that's pretty much behind him now that he's trying to impress Peoria.

Dave raps with giddy stars and starlets five nights a week, gets in his car and races home, dodging fans. But, I'll take his money. What else is he good for?

Here's Joyce's version of the same event...

We don't watch Letterman unless Harvey's on the show. Someone usually tapes it for us at home. We sometimes stay up to watch Harvey when we're in New York and the show is aired later that same night. Doing LS/DL is a lot like being 11 years old and visiting relatives you don't care to know once or twice each year. One meets vaguely familiar people who ask the same questions and say the same things. You have nothing in common but, on the way over, you've been drilled in what/what not to talk about.

You show up because they always hand out money and terrible gifts that can be brought back to the store. For some reason, there is also a pumped and primed audience-- we always hear them practice laughing—but it's all over in only a few minutes and you don't have to swallow meatloaf and mashed potatoes.

Instead of exchanging ugly shirts and sweaters for department store refunds, Harvey collects bags full of whatever books and CDs people send Letterman and unloads them at used book and record stores for extra cash.

Sometimes Joyce trades DL merchandise, weird souvenirs, backstage passes or tickets for computer supplies and materials needed by the kids she's writing her own comic books with, usually by chatting up alt.fan.letterman readers on Usenet. Harvey writes about Letterman in his own autobiographical comic book series American Splendor, so he always has something to promote on the show-- a comic book about the last show. I forget what you call that kind of self-contained economic system. Maybe it's just plain television.

We used to think the Letterman show was a talk show, until its various producers explained "It's a comedy show that looks like a talk show. No one talks." We're not supposed to tell you which casual throwaway lines, lightning quick put downs, leading questions, canny insights and spontaneous discussions were mapped out ahead of time on those blue index cards Dave holds. Afterwards, the cards are carefully collected and unused banter gets stored by writers for later use.

Every so often Harvey and Dave say something unexpected to each other. That's called "a real moment" and often excites sophisticated people with lots of excuses for watching the show, as in "I only turned it on because Harvey..." After the show, everyone's a critic, evenly divided between those certain Harvey missed some wonderful opportunity to talk about comics as an adult art form-- or his chance to promote tourism in and around the city of Cleveland (where we live)-- and those who see Harvey as ugly little David up against smugly mugging Goliath. Or Mammon.

It's nothing more than meatloaf and potatos, served up by someone we think really does read Harvey's comics, since they made such a big deal about it last time: "Dave wants his own copy. He's decided to hold the comic book on camera." There's not much they can talk (not talk) about. Letterman knows Harvey's been sidelined by cancer and reconstructive surgery but that's not to be mentioned at the table.

"It bums people out," we're told. "Not when people tell the truth," we argue, convinced there's at least one guy out there going through chemotherapy with a really bad attitude, scared he won't get well because he hasn't turned his non-Hodgkins lymphoma into an opportunity for personal growth. On TV we're shown serene "before" pictures of Jackie O.

Harvey's scowling face is what "after" that same cancer sometimes looks like-- ragged hairline, bushy eyebrows and all. It grows back, you see. Not everyone dies.

Who's scamming who? LS/DL wanted Harvey to be red-faced and rude, to add a touch of color to beige and blonde Heather Locklear. If she didn't show, Harvey expected to be bumped. I'm Harvey's entourage. His wife.

So, they sat me next to 5 women, all wearing the same perfectly bleached and bell shaped hairdo and anxiously watching HL on the monitor backstage. One turned and trilled to the rest "Her makeup looks so good!" Then, all the Heathers sighed.

Being Heather is their job, just like being Dave is a job. Being Harvey Pekar, a very minor cult figure who writes himself into comics and sometimes turns up on TV is, well... Easy on the meatloaf. Who knows what that stuff is made of?

Educational editorial cartoons

My, that title sounded boring, didn't it? Actually I wanted to mention the American Association of Editorial Cartoonist's Cartoons for the Classroom site. Every week or so, they pick an editorial cartoon, write some explanatory text about it and put up a downloadable version that teachers can use. I like this a lot - in fact, we used one in the museum I work in last year. They've got 127 that you can download as of today, by a wide variety of cartoonists.

Otakon followup article

See "Otakon convention: 'Halloween gone mad' ensues as animation fans hit Baltimore," Sarah Moses, Cumberland Times-News August 15 2008 and there's photos too.

Fiction House artwork on display at Geppi's museum

In his Scoop newsletter column, Curator Arnold Blumberg says they've put on display original art from "an installment in an ongoing strip, “Simba, King of the Beasts,” published by Fiction House in Jungle Comics... with art by William Allison."

August 16: Berryman exhibit closes

Tomorrow's the last day of the Clifford Berryman political cartoon exhibit at the National Archives on 9th and Pennsylvania Ave, NW. It's a good show.

NY Times notices Ditko

Boy, the world has gotten to be a strange, yet better, place - "From Spider-Man to Ayn Rand," By DOUGLAS WOLK, New York Times August 17, 2008 reviews the book STRANGE AND STRANGER: The World of Steve Ditko, By Blake Bell, Illustrated. 216 pp. Fantagraphics Books. $39.99.

Cul de Sac collection - I got a sneak peak

I just saw Our Man Thompson and got a sneak peek at the Cul de Sac book collection that Andrews McMeel is doing. It looks great - there's a ton of the Sunday strips that had only appeared in the Post, and they're still in color. You're going to want this one, even if there isn't a Petey temporary tattoo enclosed (I'd been hoping...).

Richard will be making appearances to sign them in the DC region this fall - he's still working out when and where. Buy 5 and give them for holiday gifts. I'm going to.

The Family Circus is in DC, and didn't even call

I've been looking at these all week and didn't even think to do a post on them until Thursday's Washington Times ran a photograph by Barbara Salisbury (which isn't online) showing two Congressman holding a copy of one of the panels and inviting Bil Keane to visit the Capitol.

Anyway, the strips can be seen here - Monday 8/11, Tuesday 8/12, Wednesday 8/13, Thursday 8/14, Friday 8/15, Saturday 8/16. You can tell they're in Washington because our obelisk is taller than anyone else's.

Zadzooks on Hellboy videogame

"ZADZOOKS: Hellboy players on the attack," Joseph Szadkowski, Washington Times Thursday, August 14, 2008.

Quick Reviews comment

John Judy would like to make a priority claim for his Quick Reviews:

Did I call this one first?

Yes.

Yes I did.

Okay, it's Colbert rather than Fox.

Give 'em time.

Sherrilynn Kenyon and Brad Meltzer Book Signings

I almost didn't even notice this, but The Onion has a tiny notation for Monday, August 18th in their Calendar section that Sherrilynn Kenyon, writer of Marvel's Lords of Avalon: Sword of Darkness series, will be at Barnes and Noble in Clarendon at 6pm!

She is, in fact, an author of novels (under her own name and also Kinley MacGregor), and is promoting her latest book, Acheron.

While checking to see if this store had anything else interesting coming up, I found that Brad Meltzer, ex-DC resident, is coming back to the Barnes and Noble in Bethesda on September 3rd at 7:30pm to promote his latest, The Book of Lies. Schedule permitting, I'll definitely see you there!

(Mike here - Big Planet Comics owner Joel Pollack wrote in to say that Brad will also be at Politics and Prose in DC on Thursday September 4th at 7 pm.)

(Mike here again - Brad will also be ... in a grocery store? ... at Sterling, VA, Saturday, September 20 - 1:00 pm, Wegman's, 45131 Columbia Place)

The week's animation - Fly Me to the Moon and Star Wars

Nobody's particularly liked the 3-D Fly Me to the Moon.

"Swats New? Not Much in 'Fly'; In Yet Another Cute-Yucky-Critter Tale, the Only Buzz Is in the 3-D," By Michael O'Sullivan, Washington Post Staff Writer, Friday, August 15, 2008; Page C05.
""The insect adventurers of the 3-D adventure “Fly Me to the Moon,” By NATHAN LEE, New York Times August 15, 2008.

Zadzooks wrote more about Hellboy toys in Thursday's paper, but it's not online apparently. Here he is on Friday writing on animation - "BEYOND: Living inside 3-D drama," by Joseph Szadkowski, Washington Times Friday, August 15, 2008, is actually about the movie director and not the film.

They've particularly disliked Clone Wars.

"'Clone' of a fabled franchise," Christian Toto, Washington Times Friday, August 15, 2008.

"No Chip Off The Old Blockbuster," By Hank Stuever, Washington Post Staff Writer, Friday, August 15, 2008; C01.

"An Animated Force," By NATHAN LEE, New York Times August 15, 2008.

Borders comic book displays and George Pelecanos

I was at Borders in Bailey's Cross Roads, VA for George Pelecanos's talk about his new book The Turnaround and I also took some pictures of clever parts of their comic book displays. Also note that they have the Masters of Comic Art catalogue for $10 and Jeff Danziger's last book for $3. I paid full price for both. They've also got a DC Superheroes How to Draw Kit for $4.


A 4-sided stand, cleverly arranged.


"Indescribable? Insatiable? No, Incredible" Hulk books.


"Holy comic books, Batman!"


"Ozzy would be proud" an Iron Man movie reference.


"Best underoos ever." Poor Spider-Man.


Naruto manga stand from Viz.


"Eat your fruits and vegetables" Fruitbasket. I haven't read that yet - any good?


"Sink your teeth in" to Vampire Hunter D.

Helen Thomas and Chip Bok do children's book

Editorial cartoonist Chip Bok's actually based in Ohio, I think, but here's the article: "A Capital Caper from Two D.C. Insiders," By Sally Lodge, Children's Bookshelf -- Publishers Weekly, 8/14/2008.

Baltimore Sun drops comics

Alan Gardener at the Daily Cartoonist has the story on the Baltimore Sun dropping a page of comics. Alan links to the Comics Curmudgeon's blog too.

Christopher Skokna of the Baltimore City Paper specifically mourns Zippy and also demands Our Man Thompson's Cul de Sac.

After they let KAL go, can there be any surprise in news like this?

Gene Colan, Alex Robinson, Rags Morales, and Sean McKeever Come to Baltimore!

Straight repro of their press release, but isn't it great that Gene Colan is well enough to attend?:

Gene Colan, Alex Robinson, Rags Morales, and Sean McKeever Come to Baltimore!

Baltimore, Maryland - August 11, 2008 - The Baltimore Comic-Con has just added 4 more guests to its already-packed list of attendees!

Gene Colan (Daredevil, Tomb of Dracula), Alex Robinson (Too Cool to be Forgotten, Box Office Poison), Rags Morales (Identity Crisis, Batman Confidential), and Sean McKeever (Teen Titans, Countdown) have all signed on to attend 2008's Baltimore Comic-Con.

"It's an honor and a privilege to welcome Genial Gene Colan to our show," said show promoter Marc Nathan, "and it's a real pleasure to have Alex, Rags, and Sean as returning guests this year!"

A full list of retailers can now be found on our website.

Swamp Thing co-creator and Frankenstein artist Bernie Wrightson will be the show's Guest of Honor.

He headlines a guest list that includes, in alphabetical order, Michael Bair (Identity Crisis, 52), Kyle Baker (Nat Turner, The Bakers), Brian Michael Bendis (Ultimate Spider-Man, Secret Invasion), Ivan Brandon (NYC Mech, Marvel Comics Presents), Buzz (JSA), Jim Calafiore (Exiles, Countdown), Dennis Calero (X-Factor, Countdown), Tommy Castillo (Grimm Fairy Tales, Kong: King of Skull Island), Howard Chaykin (Wolverine, American Flagg), Cliff Chiang (Green Arrow & Black Canary), Darwyn Cooke (New Frontier, The Spirit), Frank Cho (Liberty Meadows, Mighty Avengers), Steve Conley (Star Trek, The Escapist), Amanda Conner (Green Arrow/Black Canary, JSA Classified), Todd Dezago (Perhapanauts, Tellos), Steve Dillon (Punisher, Preacher), David Finch (World War Hulk, New Avengers), Ramona Fradon (Aquaman, Mermaidman and Barnacleboy), John Gallagher (Buzzboy, Roboy Red), Ron Garney (Wolverine, Skaar: Son of Hulk), Michael Golden (Micronauts, The 'Nam), Bryan J.L. Glass (Mice Templar), Mike Grell (John Sable, Iron Man), Cully Hamner (Blue Beetle, Black Lightning), Dean Haspiel (American Splendor, Brawl), Adam Hughes (Catwoman), Stuart Immonen (Ultimate Spider-Man), Geoff Johns (Green Lantern, Action Comics), J.G. Jones (52, Wonder Woman), Robert Kirkman (Invincible, Ultimate X-Men), Barry Kitson (Amazing Spider-Man, Empire), Rich Koslowski (Marvel Comics Presents, Sonic the Hedgehog), Scott Kurtz (PvP), Erik Larsen (Savage Dragon, Image EIC), Jim Lee (All Star Batman & Robin, Wildcats), Norman Lee (Marvel Adventures: Spider-Man, Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane), the Luna Brothers (The Sword, Girls), David Mack (Kabuki, Daredevil), Mark McKenna (Banana-Tail, Annihilation: Conquest), Bob McLeod (New Mutants, Spider-Man), Pop Mhan (Blank, Marvel Adventures: Spider-Man), Carla Speed McNeil (Finder), Mike Mignola (Hellboy, Disney's Atlantis), Mark Morales (Civil War, Secret Invasion), Phil Noto (Danger Girl, Jonah Hex), Michael Avon Oeming (Mice Templar, Powers), Mike Okamoto (Hellraiser, Chaos! Quarterly), Jimmy Palmiotti (Painkiller Jane, Jonah Hex), David Petersen (Mouse Guard), Brandon Peterson (Ultimate X-Men, Strange), Eric Powell (The Goon), Tom Raney (Annihilation: Conquest, Ultimate Secrets), James Robinson (Superman, JSA), John Romita Sr. (Amazing Spider-Man), Don Rosa (Uncle Scrooge), Craig Rousseau (Perhapanauts, X-Men: First Class), Andy Runton (Owly), Tim Sale (Batman: The Long Halloween, Heroes), Alex Saviuk (Web of Spider-Man, Feast of the Seven Fishes), Jim Shooter (Legion of Super-Heroes), John K. Snyder III (Grendel), Mark Sparacio (Heroes for Hire, Captain Action), Robert Tinnell (EZ Street), Peter Tomasi (Nightwing, Green Lantern Corps), Herb Trimpe (Incredible Hulk), Timothy Truman (Conan, Grimjack), Billy Tucci (Shi, Sgt. Rock - The Lost Battalion), Neil Vokes (The Black Forest, The Wicked West), Matt Wagner (Zorro, Grendel), Mark Waid (Flash, Boom! Studios), Mark Wheatley (Frankenstein Mobster, Mighty Motor Sapiens), Ron Wilson (The Thing), and Thom Zahler (Love and Capes).

The Harvey Awards will return to the Baltimore Comic-Con for the third consecutive year. The awards dinner and ceremony will be held Saturday night, September 27, 2008, following the convention's normal hours. As in 2007, the first 300 paid attendees and honorees at the 2008 Harvey Awards Ceremonies will receive a Hollywood-style bag of swag. Last year's bag included The EC Archives: Two-Fisted Tales - Volume 1 from Gemstone Publishing, a complete base set of the soon-to-be-released Jericho Season One trading cards from Inkworks, an exclusive pin from AdHouse Books, a Comic-Con exclusive edition of 30 Days of Night: Red Snow 1 from IDW Publishing, a Toon Tumbler from Popfun Merchandising, and an exclusive Harvey Awards keychain from LaserMach. Final ballots are presently online at www.harveyawards.org. Kyle Baker will return as Master of Ceremonies for the evening's events.

Tickets are now available for sale. For more information about the Baltimore Comic-Con, email cardscomicscollectilbes@yahoo.com or call (410) 526-7410. The guest list, ticket information, directions, and other information can be found on the convention's website or on its MySpace page.

For more information about the Harvey Awards, including sponsorship opportunities, e-mail baltimorecomiccon@yahoo.com.

Local Maryland family creates comic magazine

In addition to Bash!, JJ Express is a magazine based in suburban Maryland for and by children - see "Brother and sister team up to create literary magazine: Wootton High duo wants youth to affect social change," by Erin Donaghue, The Gazette August 1 2008. Jack and Jenny Chen created the magazine and it's available for order online. The current issue has a comic strip on radium women workers which interests me.

Washington City Paper Cover Illustration

Today's City Paper cover story is illustrated by Danny Hellman.

OT: Comic book books by my friends

Gene Kannenberg's got his book "500 Essential Graphic Novels: The Ultimate Guide" out - he didn't write or pick all of the entries as the publisher had a strong voice in this - but I'm sure there's plenty to pick a fight with him about it it anyway.

Similarly, Paul Gravett's The Mammoth Book of Best Crime Comics appeared in my comics store today. There's a long interview with Paul on the Forbidden Planet blog.

Buy them both - you won't be sorry.

Jason Rodriguez and Chris Piers Article

Jason Rodriguez and Chris Piers are featured in an article about careers - "Getting Ahead: The Write Stuff," by Rachel Kaufman Express, August 13, 2008.

http://www.expressnightout.com/content/2008/08/wednesday_getting_ahead_the_write_stuff.php

Over in the Examiner, they note Jim Henson's career, including some of his works as a University of Maryland student cartoonist along with the Muppets, are on exhibit at the Smithsonian's Ripley Center (the underground one). The article isn't online.

The Pekar book uncorrected proof

I visited John Lent's house to look at his collection of books yesterday, along with librarians (small l!) of Congress Sara and Martha and our Secret History of Comics poster Warren Bernard. John's the publisher of the International Journal of Comic Art so he had a advance uncorrected proof of the Pekar book and I got to see it for the first time.

How's that for an author photo?!

Publishers Weekly on Baltimore's Otakon

See "Fans Flock to Baltimore's Otakon," By Kai-Ming Cha and Erin Finnegan, PW Comics Week August 12, 2008.

OT: New National Geographic exhibit and book

Mark Jenkins, a buddy of mine at National Geographic, has a new exhibit on photographers going up in the lobby of the building at 16th and M St, NW. Here's blurb for the book that will follow later:

ODYSSEYS AND PHOTOGRAPHS (ISBN: 978-1-4262-0172-1; Nov. 11, 2008; $40) chronicles the rich and surprising history of four iconic National Geographic field men -- Maynard Owen Williams, Luis Marden, Volkmar Wentzel and Thomas Abercrombie -- told by those who knew them best, along with 200 stellar images, many never before published.

Comics blogs proliferate at media sites

I guess all the superhero movies have gotten old media paying attention to comics. The Wall Street Journal has run an astounding amount of articles on them lately for example. Blogs at major media sites specifically on comics are popping up like superhero movies too.

I've linked to the new Washington Post Comic Riffs, Zadzooks at the Washington Times and Examiner blogs recently, but there's some other new ones popping up, like the Los Angeles Times Hero Complex which just celebrated a birthday - Hero Complex: The first month, Aug 12 2008.

One I just found today is MTV's Splash Page - of which they claim, "You've turned the page to the place where panels and popcorn meet. From coverage of comic-inspired flicks to that buzzed-about graphic novel that's being primed for the big-screen, you'll find it all here at MTV's Splash Page. Check throughout the day for breaking news, exclusive chats with Hollywood stars and comic legends, and first looks at the blockbusters of tomorrow."

Steve Duin's blog at the Oregonian has been going a while, but is one of the best.

OT: Aug 12, 14: Crime writer George Pelecanos appearances

One of Washington's best crime fiction writers, George Pelecanos, will be speaking tonight at Politics and Prose in DC at 7 pm (202-364-1919) and on Thursday at 7:30 pm at Borders in Bailey's Crossroads just outside of Arlington (703-998-0404). Pelecanos is also known for his writing on the tv show The Wire, but his novels have all been set in DC and are full of the region outside of the monuments. The City Paper has a cover story article on him by Mark Athitakis, who said such nice things about this blog, and the Express has an online interview in which he says, "When I'm writing, I'm writing for Washingtonians."

I'll be going to the Thursday signing at Borders if anyone wants to meet up.

Cavna's Luckovich interview

Missed this one last Friday somehow - "The Interview: Political Cartoonist Mike Luckovich," Washington Post Comic Riffs blog (August 8).

Examiner starts comics blog too

I think this one is based out of Texas, but Brian Steinberg is writing the Comics Examiner blog as of August 6th apparently. He links to Cavna's Comic Riffs blog, but through a Houston paper link.

Express recommends anime program at Smithsonian

... In the "Anime: Young Artists Residency" program, from Aug. 11 to Aug. 14 in the Sackler Gallery. See "Beyond Pokemon: Anime for Young Artists," by Express contributor Roxana Hadadi, Express.com (August 11 2008).

Frank Cho interview

Maryland cartoonist Frank Cho spoke to Newsarama recently - "Frank Cho Re-Ups with Marvel for Exclusive," By Benjamin Ong Pang Kean, Newsarama 2008-07-29.

Make Mine Marvel - 1968!

I bought an interesting book today at the local con - The Full-Color Guide to Marvel Silver AGe Collectibles from M.M.M.S. to Marvelmania by J. Ballman (Totalmojo Productions, 2007, $29.95). I just love books like this that list the little-known byways of our hobby. As the title promises, this is full of color photographs of all the tchotchkes and merchandising Marvel did in the 1960s. There's stuff in here I never knew existed. Comics have never existed independently of merchandising, and this is a nice overview of Marvel's early modern years.

J. Ballman's from Maryland and is working on a 2nd edition of this book, but I'm glad I noticed and picked up this one. I'd recommend it to any Marvel or merchandising fan. I don't know if he goes to the Dunn Loring CapCon show regularly, but you can probably catch him there and check out some of the neat Marvel toys at his table too.

Brad Meltzer interview

Here's a longish (for Wizard) interview with our former local writer, "WIZARD Q&A: BRAD MELTZER
The best-selling author kills the DC Universe in 'Last Will and Testament' and tells the truth about his latest novel, 'The Book of Lies'" By Andy Serwin, 8/08/2008.

Suprise appearance by Pekar on NPR

Harvey speaks briefly in this "Remembering The Birth Of Superman," by Daniel Barnett,
National Public Radio's Weekend Edition Saturday, August 9, 2008.

Time-Warner about to get it wrong again?

An extensive article discusses possible plans by Time-Warner, the behemoth that owns DC Comics as well as Batman - according to this article "Holy Cash Cow, Batman! Content Is Back," By TIM ARANGO, New York Times August 10, 2008, they're suddenly convinced that owning content and not distribution systems is the way to make money.

The article, and perhaps the chief executive, seem to miss the point. First we read:

For now, Mr. Bewkes is staking the company’s future on three big content providers: Warner Brothers, Turner Broadcasting (which includes TNT, TBS and CNN) and HBO. To ramp things up on the entertainment front, he’s also been overseeing internal discussions about acquisitions in film and television — including a possible takeover of NBC Universal, should its parent, General Electric, decide to sell, according to executives and bankers who requested anonymity because they were not authorized to disclose details of the discussions.

and then this follows:

It is less clear how the Time Inc. unit, which publishes magazines like Time, People, In Style, Fortune and Sports Illustrated, meshes with Mr. Bewkes’s strategy. According to Time Warner insiders, the company is likely to shrink the publishing unit to just a handful of the most profitable titles. Some analysts predict that Time Warner might try to sell the publishing unit en masse, but only if market conditions improve.

I'm not sure what that means for DC Comics, but I think it's worth noting that Warner Bros. wouldn't have had Batman to make a movie about if it wasn't for the comic book company. They've already sold Warner Books, presumably another source of content and one that is doing graphic novels now.

Pay me a few million dollars and I'll come up with some good ideas like making cable companies profitable by providing good service and shows people want to see.

Legendary comic book store owner Greg Bennett makes recommendations

So I popped over to Zadzooks' new Washington Times website to add a link over there on the right and was startled to find "Legendary comic book store owner Greg Bennett provides a pair of recommendations for comic book lovers every week." So far he's provided recs for August 3, July 27, July 20 and July 13.

Geez. I don't know why I even started this blog. Greg runs the Georgetown Big Planet these days, and I probably see him once a month. But do I hear about this? Noooo...

Zadzooks on DC's Chemistry Set comic book writer

See "ZADZOOKS: Chemistry Set writer Dougan has lots of stories to tell," by Joseph Szadkowski, Washington Times Thursday, August 7, 2008.

Richmond's Jen Sorenson on women political cartoonists

Dave Astor pointed out the story initially - here's Jen Sorenson's take on women political cartoonists - "Wanted: Female Cartoonist; Slowpoke artist Jen Sorensen explains why comics have historically been a nerdy guy thing and how we can change that," By Jen Sorensen, Campus Progress August 8, 2008.

Jen will undoubtedly be at the Small Press Expo again this year, and I think people should go up and engage her on this point. She's also appearing in Bash, the new DC comics tabloid.

QUICK REVIEWS FOR COMICS DUE 08-13-08

QUICK REVIEWS FOR COMICS DUE 08-13-08
By John Judy

ABSOLUTE LEAGUE OF EXTRAORDINARY GENTLEMEN: THE BLACK DOSSIER HC by Alan Moore and Kevin O’Neill. A year later I’m still trying to get through the regular version. Anybody got a record player and some hard drugs?

ACTION COMICS #868 by Geoff Johns and Gary Frank. Superman meets Brainiac and it’s really creepy.

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #567 by Marc Guggenheim and Phil Jimenez. Spidey and his drug-crazed roommate beat on the albino Kraven-chick with the bad make-up and hair gel addiction.

ANGEL: AFTER THE FALL #11 by Brian Lynch and Nick Runge. I think Angel and Gunn are gonna kiss. About time!

ASTONISHING X-MEN #26 by Warren Ellis and Simone Bianchi. It’s mutants! Internet-Jesus style! Skrull-free! There’s preview pages up on comicbookresources.com some with actual dialogue. Good stuff. Recommended.

BATMAN #679 by Grant Morrison and Tony Daniel. When your villains have names like Hunchback, King Kraken and Charlie Caligula who needs a story you can actually follow?

BPRD: THE WARNING #2 of 5 by Mike Mignola, John Arcudi and Guy Davis. Your snow-bound, moose carcass-pondering, Abe Sapien action starts here, people!

FANTASTIC FOUR #559 by Mark Millar and Bryan Hitch. In which the Human Torch’s girlfriend problems threaten the entire team with destruction! Oh sure, like it’s never happened to you…

FINAL CRISIS: REVELATIONS #1 of 5 by Greg Rucka and Philip Tan. It’s Rucka writing two of his best characters, Crispus Allen and Rene Montoya, these days known as The Spectre and The Question. I sense a titanic team-up in the offing! Recommended!

THE GOON #27 written and drawn by Eric Powell and Guests. Three twisted tales from the Gooniverse. Recommended!

HELLBOY: THE CROOKED MAN #2 of 3 by Mike Mignola and Richard Corben. HB tries to reclaim a soul from a hill-billy devil. Maybe he can trade it for a can of chaw and those back issues of “American Spectator” they got behind the outhouse.

MAMMOTH BOOK OF BEST CRIME COMICS SC by Many People including Eisner, Moore, Gaiman, Spillane, Chandler, Krigstein and pre-21st Century Frank Miller (before he went insane)! Twenty-five of the best crime comics ever published. Gotta look!

PUNISHER #60 by Garth Ennis and Goran Parlov. It’s the end of an era (and a whole lot of punks) as Garth Ennis goes out in style. Plus, a preview of next issue’s new creative team. Salud!

SECRET INVASION #5 of 8 by Brian Michael Bendis and Leinil Francis Yu. The Skrulls want Earth to “embrace change.” There’s your proof: Barack Obama is a Skrull. This will appear on FoxNews as a headline. Just wait….

TRANSFORMERS ANIMATED: ARRIVAL #1 by Marty Isenberg and Dario Brizuela. My kid wants one of these. Yours probably does too. By the head writer of the TV series which is actually quite good. Recommended for younger readers.

WALKING DEAD #51 by Robert Kirkman and Charles Adlard. Lookin’ like someone took his eye off the undead cannibals. Tsk, tsk. Yeah, put your hands up. That’ll help. Recommended. Not for kids.

WELCOME TO HOXFORD #1 of 4 written and drawn by Ben Frickin’ Templesmith! Meet Ray. Ray lives in a mental institution for the violently freaky. Ray is written and drawn by the guy who did 30 DAYS OF NIGHT and FELL. You want this, but if you’re a kid you can’t have it. Recommended.

WONDER WOMAN #23 by Gail Simone and Aaron Lopresti. Wonder Woman returns to Earth and beats the bejeebers out of some big nasty with Roman hands and Russian fingers! What more could we ask?

YOUNG LIARS #6 written and drawn by David Lapham. I’m mentioning this comic again because, even though it’s kind of confusing and all over the place, last issue Lapham castrated his male lead. I mean, come on, you have to respect that kind of effort. Not for kids.

www.johnjudy.net

Baltimore Comic-Con tickets on sale

Here's their PR:

Tickets Now Available for the Baltimore Comic-Con!

Baltimore, Maryland - August 8, 2008 -
The Baltimore Comic-Con is proud to announce that tickets for the show are now available for sale. From the show's website, fans can now click on the Tickets link to reach TicketMaster and purchase tickets for Saturday, Sunday, or both!

In addition to a great guest list, the Baltimore Comic-Con offers an amazingly diverse list of vendors from all around the country! They'll be bringing their Golden Age, Silver Age, Bronze Age, and Modern Age comics, graphic novels, trade paperbacks, statues, action figures, collectible cards, original art, and much, much more!

"If you are looking for something particular, chances are it will be in the room," said show promoter Marc Nathan. "The strength of any great convention is the dealers area, and this year we have some of the best any room can offer."

A full list of retailers can now be found on our website.

Swamp Thing co-creator and Frankenstein artist Bernie Wrightson will be the show's Guest of Honor.

He headlines a guest list that includes, in alphabetical order, Michael Bair (Identity Crisis, 52), Kyle Baker (Nat Turner, The Bakers), Brian Michael Bendis (Ultimate Spider-Man, Secret Invasion), Ivan Brandon (NYC Mech, Marvel Comics Presents), Buzz (JSA), Jim Calafiore (Exiles, Countdown), Dennis Calero (X-Factor, Countdown), Tommy Castillo (Grimm Fairy Tales, Kong: King of Skull Island), Howard Chaykin (Wolverine, American Flagg), Cliff Chiang (Green Arrow & Black Canary), Darwyn Cooke (New Frontier, The Spirit), Frank Cho (Liberty Meadows, Mighty Avengers), Steve Conley (Star Trek, The Escapist), Amanda Conner (Green Arrow/Black Canary, JSA Classified), Todd Dezago (Perhapanauts, Tellos), Steve Dillon (Punisher, Preacher), David Finch (World War Hulk, New Avengers), Ramona Fradon (Aquaman, Mermaidman and Barnacleboy), John Gallagher (Buzzboy, Roboy Red), Ron Garney (Wolverine, Skaar: Son of Hulk), Michael Golden (Micronauts, The 'Nam), Bryan J.L. Glass (Mice Templar), Mike Grell (John Sable, Iron Man), Cully Hamner (Blue Beetle, Black Lightning), Dean Haspiel (American Splendor, Brawl), Adam Hughes (Catwoman), Stuart Immonen (Ultimate Spider-Man), Geoff Johns (Green Lantern, Action Comics), J.G. Jones (52, Wonder Woman), Robert Kirkman (Invincible, Ultimate X-Men), Barry Kitson (Amazing Spider-Man, Empire), Rich Koslowski (Marvel Comics Presents, Sonic the Hedgehog), Scott Kurtz (PvP), Erik Larsen (Savage Dragon, Image EIC), Jim Lee (All Star Batman & Robin, Wildcats), Norman Lee (Marvel Adventures: Spider-Man, Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane), the Luna Brothers (The Sword, Girls), David Mack (Kabuki, Daredevil), Mark McKenna (Banana-Tail, Annihilation: Conquest), Bob McLeod (New Mutants, Spider-Man), Pop Mhan (Blank, Marvel Adventures: Spider-Man), Carla Speed McNeil (Finder), Mike Mignola (Hellboy, Disney's Atlantis), Mark Morales (Civil War, Secret Invasion), Phil Noto (Danger Girl, Jonah Hex), Michael Avon Oeming (Mice Templar, Powers), Mike Okamoto (Hellraiser, Chaos! Quarterly), Jimmy Palmiotti (Painkiller Jane, Jonah Hex), David Petersen (Mouse Guard), Brandon Peterson (Ultimate X-Men, Strange), Eric Powell (The Goon), Tom Raney (Annihilation: Conquest, Ultimate Secrets), James Robinson (Superman, JSA), John Romita Sr. (Amazing Spider-Man), Don Rosa (Uncle Scrooge), Craig Rousseau (Perhapanauts, X-Men: First Class), Andy Runton (Owly), Tim Sale (Batman: The Long Halloween, Heroes), Alex Saviuk (Web of Spider-Man, Feast of the Seven Fishes), Jim Shooter (Legion of Super-Heroes), John K. Snyder III (Grendel), Mark Sparacio (Heroes for Hire, Captain Action), Robert Tinnell (EZ Street), Peter Tomasi (Nightwing, Green Lantern Corps), Herb Trimpe (Incredible Hulk), Timothy Truman (Conan, Grimjack), Billy Tucci (Shi, Sgt. Rock - The Lost Battalion), Neil Vokes (The Black Forest, The Wicked West), Matt Wagner (Zorro, Grendel), Mark Waid (Flash, Boom! Studios), Mark Wheatley (Frankenstein Mobster, Mighty Motor Sapiens), Ron Wilson (The Thing), and Thom Zahler (Love and Capes).

The Harvey Awards will return to the Baltimore Comic-Con for the third consecutive year. The awards dinner and ceremony will be held Saturday night, September 27, 2008, following the convention's normal hours. As in 2007, the first 300 paid attendees and honorees at the 2008 Harvey Awards Ceremonies will receive a Hollywood-style bag of swag. Last year's bag included The EC Archives: Two-Fisted Tales - Volume 1 from Gemstone Publishing, a complete base set of the soon-to-be-released Jericho Season One trading cards from Inkworks, an exclusive pin from AdHouse Books, a Comic-Con exclusive edition of 30 Days of Night: Red Snow 1 from IDW Publishing, a Toon Tumbler from Popfun Merchandising, and an exclusive Harvey Awards keychain from LaserMach. Nominating ballots are presently online at www.harveyawards.org. Kyle Baker will return as Master of Ceremonies for the evening's events.

For more information about the Baltimore Comic-Con, e-mail cardscomicscollectilbes@yahoo.com or call (410) 526-7410. The guest list and other information can be found on the convention's website or on its MySpace page.

For more information about the Harvey Awards, including sponsorship opportunities, e-mail baltimorecomiccon@yahoo.com.

Adams, Kubert do comic book story on Holocaust survivor

Today's NY Times has an article about Neal Adams and Joe Kubert drawing a story to aid Dina Gottliebova Babbitt, a Holocaust survivor and animator get some original artwork returned. Stan Lee also participated. See "Comic-Book Idols Rally to Aid a Holocaust Artist," By GEORGE GENE GUSTINES, New York Times August 9, 2008. You can download the comic story as well.

Early articles on this issue, courtesy of my Comics Research Bibliography research, are

Wyman Institute. 2006.
450 Cartoonists Urge Poland to Return Auschwitz Paintings [by animator Dina Babbitt].
Kansas City infoZine (September 21):
http://www.infozine.com/news/stories/op/storiesView/sid/17845/

Brady, Matt. 2006.
JOE KUBERT RALLIES THE CREATIVE COMMUNTY FOR DINA BABBIT.
Newsrama (September 12): http://forum.newsarama.com/showthread.php?t=83781

August 10: Capital Associates comic book con

$3 and at the Dunn Loring fire dept. See www.capicons.com for details. I'll be there around the opening at 10 am.

OT: Out of Sequence: Underrepresented Voices in American Comics exhibit

A couple of guys I know from ICAF, John Jennings and Damian Duffy, have some interesting ideas on exhibiting comics. They've curated a new exhibit, "Out of Sequence: Underrepresented Voices in American Comics," which argues:

Despite recent attention to the history and development of comics, the steps required to create a new canon have been limited and incomplete. Out of Sequence continues and expands on investigations such as Masters of American Comics, presented in 2005 by UCLA's Hammer Museum and the Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles, by showcasing areas of sequential art that might otherwise be overlooked or underappreciated. These areas include the work of women and minority artists and small press and webcomics creators. The exhibition will explore alternate histories of American comics and suggest some of the limitless possibilities for the medium in the past, present, and future, from early newspaper strips to the Internet and virtual narratives in simulated three-dimensional space.

The exhibit includes a catalog as well.

It's booked for display in two places so far:

Krannert Art Museum and Kinkead Pavilion
October 24, 2008 to January 4, 2009

The Laboratory of Art and Ideas at Belmar (The Lab), Belmar, CO
January 28, 2008 to April 26, 2009

Check out this checklist of art as well. This looks like an excellent exhibit. I hope it wanders to the East Coast too.

Otakon anime fest in Baltimore this weekend

Here's another article on Otakon in Baltimore this weekend - "Wide-eyed wonder: Otakon draws fans of exotically simple anime," By Julia Marie Simpson, Howard County Times 8/07/08.

Cavna's Signe Wilkinson interview

The Philadelphia cartoonist is on the Comic Riff's blog at "The Interview: Political Cartoonist Signe Wilkinson," By Michael Cavna August 7, 2008.

"Spadefoot' trade for FREE on Wowio.com

Matt Dembicki's sent along a note about his new comic book:

Just wanted to drop a quick note that Spadefoot, an 84-page graphic novel about a space frog and his merry band of misfits prophesized to conquer an evil emperor, a salamander named Hellbender, is available to read online for FREE at Wowio.com. (Type "Spadefoot" in the search function.) It's a whacky, good old-fashioned space opera! (If you want to download it, it's $4; that's something new with Wowio since it was recently bought by another company.)

If the comic hits a target number of visits, AlternaComics has agreed to publish a print version, which, of course, is any creator's goal. So, please check it out and, if you think it's good, please recommend friends to read it, too.

Thanks!
Matt Dembicki
http://threecrowspress.blogspot.com
http://trickster-anthology.blogspot.com

OT: Flu comic book

In my professional life, I dabble in medical history. Dave Lasky's done a comic book "No Ordinary Flu" about the 1918 influenza epidemic for King County in Washington State. You can download it as a pdf in multiple languages. Their website reads:

To promote pandemic flu preparedness, Public Health - Seattle & King County has developed a 12-page comic book on pandemic flu. Targeting readers of all ages, this story tells the tale of a family’s experience of the 1918 influenza pandemic. It also explains the threat of pandemic flu today, illustrates what to expect during a pandemic (such as school closures), and offers tips to help households prepare.

You can also hear Lasky on KUOW's Sound Focus for August 6th - "No Ordinary Flu and Recipes for Peaches." Here's a direct link.

Thanks to cartoonists Scott Gilbert and Scott Faulkner for the tips!

Richard Thompson Interview On-Line

Chris Mautner has a look at Cul de Sac at "Graphic Lit: An interview with Richard Thompson,"Panels and Pixels Tuesday, August 05, 2008.

http://panelsandpixels.blogspot.com/2008/08/graphic-lit-interview-with-richard.html

Richard's got a comment about it on his blog now too. His post is better because he can draw Alice. --Mike

Bush political cartoon ad

The NRDC Action Fund paid for a full-page caricature/political cartoon ad in today's Washington Post showing George W bush as a snake-oil salesman. It's a lovely piece and they've put a pdf online - I can't recall anything similar since Pat Oliphant did a series of full page ads about airlines at least a decade ago.

August 8: Otakon anime fest in Baltimore

For more information, see "Otakon draws people together," By SALLY NEWLIN, Herald-Mail August 5 2008.

I've lifted the relevant physical info from the end of the article:

Otakon
9 a.m. Friday, Aug. 8, to 2 a.m. Saturday, Aug. 9, and 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday, Aug.10
Baltimore Convention Center, 1 W. Pratt St., Baltimore
$65 each day for Friday and Saturday; $25 for Sunday
Visit www.otakon.com for more information and for a complete schedule.

NY Times on French cartoonist Sine's resignation UPDATEd

A Scooter, a Sarkozy and Rancor Collide
By STEVEN ERLANGER
Published: August 5, 2008
A scandal has emerged in France involving the president’s son, his wealthy fiancée, a much-beloved and scabrous magazine, a crusty cartoonist and humid charges of anti-Semitism.

I don't have a deep interest in this, but I've run across a few more articles for my Comics Research Bibliography, so here's links:

Satirical jab at Sarkozy's son sparks cries of anti-Semitism
By Haaretz Service and News Agencies August 4 2008

Cartoonist gets death threats over Sarkozy 'Jew' quip
Adam Sage in Paris
The Times August 6, 2008

Muslims, Jews and the free speech debate
By Sarah El Sirgany
Daily News Egypt August 5, 2008

French satirist sparks uproar with Sarkozy son Jewish jibe
by: Emma Charlton
05/Aug/2008 16:58 (AFP)

'Anti-Semitic' satire divides liberal Paris
Controversial columnist's aside about Sarkozy's son and a Jewish heiress reignites old embers
Jason Burke in Paris
The Observer, Sunday August 3 2008

French cartoonist fired for anti-Semitic remarks towards Sarkozy's son
EJP 29/Jul/2008

Rob Ullman comic reviewed by Comics Reporter

Tom Spurgeon looks at Rob Ullman's minicomic Crustacean Frustration. I must confess that I now barely glance at Savage Love in the City Paper without Rob's illustrations.

Cavna's Steve Breen interview

Comic Riffs has a longer interview with editorial cartoonist Steve Breen up today - see "The Interview: Political Cartoonist Steve Breen."

Hoo-hah! Pekar book news and an unused piece by Harvey

My buddy John Lent, editor and publisher of the International Journal of Comic Art called today and told me he had my Harvey Pekar: Conversations book in his hand. I argued with him because the press just emailed me that it would be out in November. He insisted and eventually I conceded - he's got an advance uncorrected proof. Darn! A collectible I don't own!

Harvey's working with DC Comics now - the first miniseries American Splendor: Another Day was just collected and is some of his best stuff. Vol. 2 is out as individual comics, and you can find them on Amazon or at a local comic book store.

I called Harvey and let him know the book's becoming more real and also asked his permission to republish some of his stuff that the Press cut from the book on this blog. Here's a 1987 piece Harvey wrote about being interviewed by David Letterman. I didn't even try to get permission to use those interviews. It appears here courtesy of and copyright by Harvey Pekar. Print it out and put it in the appropriate place in the book, after the 1987 interview by Henry Allen of the Washington Post:

Late Night of the Soul with David Letterman

Harvey Pekar / 1987

From The Village Voice, August 25, 1987, pp. 45-46. Reprinted with permission of Harvey Pekar.

Compared to many artists I'm in good shape. I've got a civil service job in Cleveland that pays me enough to write and publish, without making compromises, a comic book called American Splendor. In April '86, Doubleday issued an anthology of my work and it received gratifying critical response. Then, last summer, an assistant producer from Late Night With David Letterman contacted me about making an appearance on the show. It turns out that Letterman's head writer is from Cleveland and had recommended me as a guest. I was scheduled for October 15 and told, "Above all, don't get too serious."

Trouble was, I'd never been on TV. I knew nothing about Letterman except that he was a renowned put-down artist, and had no idea what to expect. I figured it'd be a one-shot; I'd answer a few questions and go home. All I wanted to do was sell a few books and avoid embarrassment.

I guess I'm jaded—I live in Cleveland and I've seen it all—so I wasn't surprised when Letterman started asking me these dumb questions, like "How are things in Cleveland?" They were so silly I started giving him incredulous looks and ridiculing him, saying he was a show biz phony and complaining about the lousy money he paid ($100 for the first appearance). The audience ate it up. Here was this sour faced, sloppily dressed file clerk turning the tables on Mr. Condescending Wise Guy. Letterman, who's, off camera, a quiet, thoughtful man, held me over five minutes and publicly asked me to return.

They raised the amount I got for the next show to $490. That plus free plane rides and a hotel room for my wife and myself made doing Late Night again worthwhile. I wasn't selling out, was I? The thought bothered me, and, as my next appearance, on January 6, approached, I began to consider injecting some substance into my slapstick act. For some time, I'd been reading disturbing reports about the state of affairs at NBC, which, with the rest of RCA, had been purchased by General Electric in December '85. GE sent their man Robert Wright over to assume the NBC presidency in September '86. Wright quickly made his presence felt by cutting the budget 5 per cent, laying off around 300 people. In December there was another stunner: Wrright had issued a secret memo in which he advocated setting up a political action committee at NBC. "Employees who elect not to participate in a giving program should question their dedication to the company and their expectations," he'd written.

This looked like material for my next Letterman spot. After all, Dave was already making cutesy quips about Wright's mental capacities. I'd improve on his act. I'd dig up a lot of solid, hard formation on GE and spill it on the show. On top of that, I'd be cocky and funny. I'd offer Wright equal time, and challenge him to a debate for money, marbles, or chalk.

So I went to the library looking for dirt. It was all over the place. While researching a 1961 price-fixing conspiracy GE had been involved in, I found an article stating that the company had been convicted of antitrust violations in 29 of the previous 50 years. They were still doing questionable things in the '80s. I ran across articles with titles like "Defense Department Disqualifies GE From New Work," "GE Pleads Guilty to False Claims, Statements," and "Foul Play on a Mega-merger? (Inside Traders and the GE-RCA Deal)." Armed with this information, I'd square up in front of the TV cameras and take on the beast in its lair.

I talked about my GE-bashing ideas to a couple of Letterman staffers and they thought it would be okay, so I was surprised when head producer Barry Sand pleaded with me an hour before the show not to talk about GE. He said it would be inappropriate: "This isn't Meet the Press." Beyond that, he said he'd checked with the legal department and there might be dire consequences for me and members of the Letterman staff if I condemned GE in a serious way. I had trouble believing Sand, but I knew Wright could make it rough for him and his co-workers, whom I liked, so I decided to shelve my plans and do about what I'd done on my first show – mess around.

The January program was loose, a lot of fun. Letterman and I visited a Live at Five broadcast, which aired while we were on the set. I saw weatherman Al Roker, who'd previously worked in Cleveland, and got into a noisy discussion with him about the old days and great weathermen of the past. (Cleveland is a spawning ground for outstanding meteorologists of every description.) Once in a while, the camera would cut to guest Ruth Westheimer, who sat in the corner looking puzzled. Later in the segment, Letterman asked if I liked him and I replied, "Man, I don't even know you!"

Laughs came so easily that night! I felt pretty good about myself. But the next day I was embarrassed when a buddy asked, "Hey, big shot, I thought you were gonna talk about GE. What happened?" What happened was that I'd demonstrated I could get laughs by acting like "the lunatic from Cleveland." Was it possible to have a normal, interesting conversation on Late Night? The segment producer told me only celebrities could get away with it. Maybe not even celebrities. If Einstein returned from the other side with the answer to the origin of the universe and made his initial appearance on Late Night, Letterman would chide him about his baggy clothes.

Late Night would wind up a trap for me if I played along. I'd gotten indications that even Letterman, a quick-witted, perceptive guy but no intellectual, may be annoyed by the show's bright-eyed vacuousness. Once during a commercial he said to me, "Do you believe I get paid for this?" But the money's good, be gets a lot of days off, obviously likes doing comedy, and is good at it. Does anyone think he's going back to Ball State for his Ph.D. in meteorology?

Meanwhile, my life was beginning to change. A filmmaker offered me $1000 a day for a walk-on. A director wanted to dramatize some of my stories and have me act in the production. A TV producer pitched me to the Fox network as a talk show host. I told him I wasn't interested, I didn't want to waste my time in lightweight conversation with celebrities and live in a fishbowl. The producer laughed at me and went on negotiating. He set up a deal for me to go out to L.A. and do a couple of pilots for Fox. I said I still wasn't interested. He couldn't believe it. He got his friends and business associates to try to talk me into it. When I wouldn't change my mind, they couldn't believe it. Why do so many Americans think the greatest thing in the world is to be on TV, that the more people see you the better off you are?

But a little show biz doesn't represent a commitment, right? So I was going back on Late Night March 24. What would I talk about? You guessed it, GE! Was I obsessed? Well, yes and yes. Yes, I am obsessive. Yes, it's always worthwhile to focus the public's attention on outfits like GE. And yes, it's okay to bite the hand that holds out $490.

I devised a new strategy for the March 24 show. I'd begin my segment as usual, then craftily lead the conversation around to GE and explode. I wouldn't tell the producers my plan, so they couldn't stop me. It didn't work out too well. I opened with a strident pitch for my second Doubleday anthology, shouting, flapping my arms, waving off Letterman's attempt to stop me. I got some yuks, but it occurred to me that a lot of people thought I was a lunatic. Our conversation didn't flow, it ground along. I was depressed and Letterman seemed melancholy. Still, he was convulsing people with remarks like "Where'd you get those eyebrows? You look like Zero Mostel."

I was getting shakier and more frustrated by the minute. Then I remembered there was something bigger here than my ego; the world had to be saved from GE. "Stop your slide, man, dig in your heels and make your move." I mentioned that as youths Tom Brokaw, Robert Redford, and I had roamed the Pacific Northwest, rock climbing and white water rafting, then said, "Speaking of Tom, I hear he's upset about working at NBC News because there's a conflict of interest between them and GE. GE's the third largest defense contractor, you know." The crowd was silent, puzzled. Letterman shifted to a commercial.

GE and NBC got plenty of attention this spring and summer. Its subsidiary, Kidder, Peabody, & Co., was fined $25.3 million for securities violations. In late May, the Cleveland Plain Dealer broke a story concerning three southern Ohio power companies suing GE for over $1 billion for selling them a defective nuclear reactor. GE had sold reactors of the same type, all with design flaws that made them unsafe, unreliable, and costly to operate, to other utility companies around the country. Billions of dollars have been spent trying to repair them and bring them up to standard, money that rate payers ultimately supply. Amazingly, it was discovered that GE had a report, compiled by their engineers in 1975, identifying the reactors' defects. GE executives decided to sell them anyway and let a purchasers/pay for most of the repairing and upgrading.

The GE reactor story is an important and ongoing story, yet NBC national news hadn't covered it by July 31, when I made my last appearance on Late Night. That reminded me of the congressional hearings that had been held in April, concerning problems inherent in TV networks being owned by conglomerates. Wright and NBC News chief Lawrence Grossman testified that GE couldn't possibly get away with forcing the network to alter the content of its news broadcasts. Any attempt to do so, they claimed, would result in an uproar so great that it as bound to fail.

I vowed to bring the subject up on my next appearance. What if I just jumped up and down and started yelling about GE without a lead-in? What could Letterman do, not ask me back? So what; I had a decent job, a place to stay. I had to do something constructive on TV, if not for the good of humanity then just to feel at peace with myself. Get the GE monkey off my back.

Before the show I ran into Letterman. We had a chat and he told me I had star potential, but during my last appearance we'd gotten bogged down in bickering. It was okay to insult him, since Late Night resembles professional wrestling, but if I did, the crowd would be on his side since it was his show.

I said, "Okay, but I want to talk about GE."

He said, "This isn't Meet the Press."

I insisted, so he finally agreed to let me do it if I didn’t stay on the subject too long. His bottom line was, “I’ll ask the questions, you answer ‘em."

Before the show, the segment producer came up to me with a list of eight questions. I noticed that GE was number seven and smelled a rat. So I went over to Letterman and asked him to move it to number two, so we could get it in.

The show starts. First is a harried zoo-keeper from Columbus who inadvertently loses track of some snakes and a hummingbird. Then Chris Elliott does a Marion Brando imitation. Next is a Gomer Pyle-type guy, supposedly doing a remote from Pittsburgh about an Arena Football game. Then I walk in, scowling. Letterman asks me about the TV talk show offer. I tell him I turned it down. "Why?" he asks. "Because," I tell him, "I been watching you up here." Hilarity breaks loose. The first five minutes are magic. During the commercial Letterman leans down and says, "perfect."

He isn't going to ask about GE. I've got to act alone. After the break I start shouting denunciations of GE. Letterman tries to interrupt. "Shaddup," I say, "I'm doing my thing."

Letterman complains that what I'm doing is inappropriate, that I, as a guest in his house, shouldn't be sneezing in the hors d'oeuvres. "Bullshit, where's the hors d'oeuvres," I say. The bit ends.

I'd wondered what would happen if I seriously bad-mouthed GE on NBC. Now I know. David Letterman can put down their lightbulbs, but I can't criticize their nuclear reactors.

There's plenty more to come in the book, and I'll have 2 more pieces Harvey wrote to post here in the next two months.

QUICK REVIEWS FOR COMICS DUE 08-06-08

QUICK REVIEWS FOR COMICS DUE 08-06-08
By John Judy

AVENGERS INVADERS #4 of 12 by Alex Ross, Jim Krueger and Steve Sadowski. Only eight more issues for theses crazy kids to realize they should be working TOGETHER! It’s all a misunderstanding, you see…

BOYS #21 by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson. Hot on the heels of their hilarious, trademark-maiming cameo in LIBERTY COMICS, the Boys are back to their old mischief. Not for kids. Recommended.

BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER #17 by Joss Whedon and Karl Moline. Back to the future with Fray and cars that fly!

COMIC BOOK COMICS #2 by Fred Van Lente and Ryan Dunlavey. “Our Artists at War” featuring the early WWII adventures of Siegel and Shuster, Simon and Kirby, Stan Lee and Walt Disney! From EvilTwin Comics, the geniuses behind ACTION PHILOSOPHERS! Highly recommended!

CRIMINAL 2 #4 by Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips. A new 4-parter starts here! Let us bow our unworthy heads and give thanks for this series. Highly recommended.

DMZ VOL. 5: THE HIDDEN WAR SC by Brian Wood and Riccardo Burchielli. Collecting issues #23-28 of a series that’s half “Heart of Darkness” and half Woodward & Bernstein. Recommended.

ESSENTIAL MAN-THING, VOL. 2 SC by Everyone Who Was Available in the Mid-70s. For those who like their Man-Things “Giant-Size” or not at all!

FINAL CRISIS #3 of 7 by Grant Morrison and J.G. Jones. Crazed Morrisonian action where un-dead is this year’s Black. Best of all? It ain’t TRINITY!

GRENDEL: GOD AND THE DEVIL SC by Matt Wagner and John K. Snyder III. A future Grendel tale in which he goes after the Pope. Gotta look!

HELLBLAZER PRESENTS: CHAS THE KNOWLEDGE #2 of 5 by Simon Oliver and Goran Sudzuka. The fate of London rests in the hands of John Constantine’s cabbie. Finally! TEEN TITANS done right!.

HOW TO LOVE HC by Actus Independent Comics. A collection of stories exploring some of the more unconventional facts of love. And it ain’t porn!

HULK #5 by Jeph Loeb and Ed McGuinness. In which the Red Hulk who can jump to the moon fights the Thor who still speaks Shakespearean English and who can do so in the vacuum of space. Must… suspend… disbelief….ARGH!!!!

STORMING PARADISE #2 of 6 by Chuck Dixon and Butch Guice. Part two of this alternate history in which the bomb failed and the US had to invade Japan to end WWII. Part one showed a lot of promise. Worth a look if history and war comics are your thing. Teens and up.

THE TWELVE #7 of 12 by J. Michael Straczynski and Chris Weston. This issue focuses on Captain Wonder and his old pal Tim. Also, the Blue Blade finally makes it big! Recommended!

ULTIMATE ORIGINS #3 of 5 by Brian Michael Bendis and Butch Guice. How Charles and Magneto opened their first franchise in the Savage Land.

VENOM: DARK ORIGIN #1 of 5 by Zeb Wells and Angel Medina. A creepy-looking story of how Eddie Brock has always been pretty creepy even before his tongue got ten feet long. A must for Venom fans.

www.johnjudy.net

Breen, Wilkinson and Luckovich interviewed by Cavna in Post

Editorial cartoonists Breen, Wilkinson and Luckovich are interviewed by Michael Cavna in "Line by Punch Line," Washington Post Sunday, August 3, 2008; M06

Further information can be seen at "Cartooning the Candidates," a video in which "Editorial cartoonist Steve Breen describes his method of sketching Sen. Barack Obama and Sen. John McCain. Video by Liz Kelly."

The Art of Political Caricature slide show.

In the same section of the paper, Nick Galifianakis drew himself and his ex-wife Carolyn Hax in her advice column. It's a meta-commentary since the drawing is about how ex's can stay friends, which the two of them have done.

Cul de Sac reintroduces characters

This past week in Cul de Sac, Our Man Thompson's brought back Mr. Danders, the over-educated guinea pig in his dailies, and the kid who's even weirder than Petey in today's Sunday strip. Those of us who have been reading the strip in the Washington Post for years get to see old favorites, and new readers should enjoy them.

There was no Richard's Poor Almanac yesterday since he's on vacation.

Tim Truman and son at Baltimore Comic-Con

On a yahoo list devoted to Robert E. Howard's comic books, Tim Truman mentioned his new project with his son that he hopes to debut at Baltimore:

If all goes well, Ben Truman will be joining me at my booth, and we'll be giving folks a sneak peek at a new series that we're doing, tentatively titled The Inner Station-- a real deep science fiction take on Joseph Conrad's "Heart of Darkness". I'm real excited about it. Ben's script is something else. While I'll continue to write Conan, of course (a contract is in the pipeline for 18 more issues), the Inner Station will be my big art project for Winter 2008-Summer 2009.

Plus, of course, I'll have samples of upcoming Conan art from Giorello and Corben.

-Timothy Truman
http://www.timothytruman.com

NY Times on Whedon

In Online Musical, the Mad Doctor Is In
By MIKE HALE
Published: August 2, 2008
Joss Whedon’s “Dr. Horrible” functions as an experiment in online content creation -- a test of what people will pay money to watch on their computers.