Cohen workshop at Art Enables, April 12

Andrew Cohen will hold a workshop on making your own superhero April 12 from 1-4 p.m. at Art Enables in Washington, D.C. The event is free but space is limited so reservations are encouraged. Email: bbaldwin@art-enables.org

"Andrew Cohen is a comic booker in Washington, DC. In addition to his self-published comics, such as Howzit Funnies and Dr. W, he has also created comics for the Washington Bach Consort and the Washington Mandarin Oriental Hotel. His book Surrealia: Chapter One, with Billy Lopez, appeared in Mount Hope, the literary journal of Roger Williams University, and his comic for the Harvey Award nominated District Comics, was featured in the Washington City Paper. He is an original member of the D.C. Conspiracy, a local comics collective, and helps put out the free comics newspaper, Magic Bullet.

This workshop is free to the community and all materials are provided."

SPX's Ignatz Award nominations open

2014 Ignatz Awards Submissions Are Open!

Tis the time to submit your comics for consideration in Small Press Expo’s festival prize, the Ignatz Award. Submissions are open to all independent comics creators and publishers. 

Note: You do not need to be an SPX 2014 exhibitor to submit, nor do you need to attend Small Press Expo to win.

Fame, fortune, glory and drink tickets galore await you!

Ignatz nominees are selected by a super-secret jury of creators (a new group each year) and voted on by attendees and exhibitors of Small Press Expo 2014.  

As a part of the SPX Permanent Collection at the Library of Congress, all Ignatz nominees will automatically be sent to the LOC for permanent preservation.

Previous Ignatz winners include Kate Beaton, Michael DeForge, Lisa Hanawalt, Jaime Hernandez, Kevin Huizenga, Jillian Tamaki and Craig Thompson to name just a few!

The Ignatz Categories

All work will be eligible in all applicable categories, which include:

• Outstanding Artist
• Outstanding Anthology or Collection
• Outstanding Graphic Novel
• Outstanding Story
• Promising New Talent
• Outstanding Series
• Outstanding Comic
• Outstanding Minicomic
• Outstanding Online Comic

Dat Rat

Speaking of “Promising New Talent,” starting in 2012 we began asking the winner of this particular award to create their own version of George Herriman’s brick-throwing rat (thank you Daryl Ayo and Lale Westvind!).

Last years’ well-deserved winner, Sam Alden produced the wonderful illustration above for our use in 2014.

The Ignatz Submission Process

In order to be considered for an Ignatz nomination, six copies of a work published between June 1, 2013 and May 31, 2014 should be sent to:

SPX Ignatz Awards
c/o Big Planet Comics
4849 Cordell Ave.
Bethesda, MD 20814

USA

** Please note this is a different address from last year. ** 

Links to comics eligible for the Outstanding Online Comic category should be emailed to spxignatz@gmail.com.  

All submissions must be received by June 7, 2014.

Full guidelines are available at http://www.spxpo.com/ignatz-guidelines.

All questions should be sent to the Ignatz Award coordinator, Eden Miller, at spxignatz@gmail.com.

Batman 1960's TV show writer dies

Screenwriter Lorenzo Semple Jr. dies at 91; worked on blockbuster movies, TV’s ‘Batman’

By David Colker, Washington Post April 3 2014

http://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/screenwriter-lorenzo-semple-jr-dies-at-91-worked-on-blockbuster-movies-tvs-batman/2014/04/01/27146a04-b8f9-11e3-9a05-c739f29ccb08_story.html

Comic Riffs talks to Archie Comics

How the Archie Comics CEO rescued ol’ Riverdale High from being ‘old school’

BY DAVID BETANCOURT

Washington Post Comic Riffs blog April 2 2014

http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/comic-riffs/wp/2014/04/02/how-the-archie-comics-ceo-rescued-ol-riverdale-high-from-being-old-school/

"Herblock Looks at 1964" Exhibition Opens April 5

Library of Congress
101 Independence Ave. SE
Washington DC   20540

April 3, 2014

Public contact:  Sara Duke (202) 707-3630, sduk@loc.gov

“Herblock Looks at 1964” Exhibition Opens April 5 

The Civil Rights Movement and the struggle to pass the Civil Rights Act will be the main focus of a 10-cartoon display of Herblock drawings at the Library of Congress.  Herblock was the Pulitzer-Prize winning political cartoonist at the Washington Post for more than 55 years.

The exhibit, “Herblock Looks at 1964: Fifty Years Ago in Editorial Cartoons,” will open Saturday, April 5, 2014, in the Herblock Gallery of the Graphic Arts Galleries, ground floor of the Thomas Jefferson Building, 10 First St. S.E., Washington, D.C.  Free and open to the public from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Saturday, the exhibit runs through Saturday, Sept. 13, 2014. 

Six of the cartoons in the exhibit deal with Civil-Rights issues.  The other four drawings cover the Barry Goldwater nomination, the ill effects of cigarettes, unregulated mail-order purchases of firearms, and the strained relationship between China and the Soviet Union.

The Herblock Gallery, part of the Graphic Arts Galleries, celebrates the work of Herbert L. Block with a rotating display of 10 original drawings.  The display changes every six months.  A second set of drawings from 1964 will be placed on exhibition from Sept. 20, 2014 to March 14, 2015.

One of the cartoons depicting the struggle to pass the Civil Rights Act is “SAFE!” published in the Washington Post on June 21, 1964.  Baseball was one of Herblock’s visual metaphors for the game of politics.  In this drawing, he used the slide into home plate as a celebration for the end of the 54-day filibuster that delayed passage of the Civil Rights Act in the Senate until June 19, 1964.  The House agreed to the Senate’s language and ended the era of Jim Crow legalized segregation.  President Lyndon Johnson signed the bill into law on July 2, 1964.

The Herb Block Foundation donated a collection of more than 14,000 original cartoon drawings and 50,000 rough sketches, as well as manuscripts, to the Library of Congress in 2002, and has generously continued to provide funds to support ongoing programming.

“Herblock Looks at 1964” is part of the Library of Congress commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the signing of the Civil Rights Act which is anchored by the web-based Civil Rights History Project and the exhibition, “The Civil Rights Act of 1964: A Long Struggle for Freedom.”  The exhibition, opening June 19, is made possible by a generous grant from Newman’s Own Foundation and with additional support from HISTORY®.

The Library has been collecting original cartoon art for more than 140 years.  It is a major center for cartoon research with holdings of more than 100,000 original cartoon drawings and prints.  These works, housed in the Prints and Photographs Division, span five centuries and range from 17th-century Dutch political prints to 21st-century contemporary comic strips.

The Prints and Photographs Division holds the largest-known collection of American political prints, the finest assemblage of British satirical prints outside Great Britain and holdings of original drawings by generations of America’s best cartoonists and illustrators that are unequaled in breadth and depth.  Extensive runs of rare satirical and comic journals from Europe and the United States represent another distinguishing facet.  The Library acquired these materials through a variety of sources including artists’ gifts, donations by private collectors, selective purchases and copyright registration.

The Library of Congress, the nation’s oldest federal cultural institution and the largest library in the world, holds more than 158 million items in various languages, disciplines and formats.  The Library serves the U.S. Congress and the nation both on-site in its reading rooms on Capitol Hill and through its award-winning website at www.loc.gov.

# # #

PR14-58
4/3/14
ISSN: 0731-3527

Bob Mankoff talk pictures

 Bruce Guthrie's pictures from Bob Mankoff's talk at Politics and Prose last night are up on his site.  The direct link is http://www.bguthriephotos.com/graphlib.nsf/keys/2014_04_02G_Mankoff

As usual, Mankoff was very amusing and very generous with his time.

Cartoonists Joe Sutliff, Steve Artley, Bob Mankoff, Al Goodwyn, comics historian Mike Rhode and comics curator Sara Duke.

__,_._,___

'Spider-Man 2' promos get rolling

A U.S. Postal Service truck on K St. bearing a promo for the 'Spider-Man 2' movie.

Comic Riffs talks to Stripped movie creators

‘STRIPPED’ Q&A: As new docu tops iTunes, filmmakers wax passionate about their ‘love letter’ to comic strips

BY MICHAEL CAVNA

Washington Post Comic Riffs April 2 2014

 http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/comic-riffs/wp/2014/04/02/stripped-qa-as-new-docu-tops-itunes-filmmakers-wax-passionate-about-their-love-letter-to-comic-strips/

Cavna reviews 'The Harlem Hellfighters' in The Post

‘The Harlem Hellfighters,’ written by Max Brooks and illustrated by Caanan White

By Michael Cavna, Washington Post April 2 2014

http://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/books/the-harlem-hellfighters-written-by-max-brooks-and-illustrated-by-caanan-white/2014/04/01/9999ec58-b5f1-11e3-8cb6-284052554d74_story.html

Beyond Text and Line: A Discussion on the Art of Comic Books

In conjunction with its new art exhibit, “A Shared Universe: The Art of Comic Books” (which runs April 12-June 8), Strathmore in North Bethesda, Md., will host a panel discussion with local comics folks on April 27 at 2 p.m. titled “Beyond Text andLine: A Discussion on the Art of Comic Books.” Tickets are $5.

“Join the colorful conversation moderated by Greg McElhatton, former Executive Director of the Small Press Expo (SPX,) a founding freelancer for Wizard, and a current reviewer on iComics.com. Panelists include: Emily Gillis of Wayward Studios; JD Deardourff, a local comic-inspired artist; Rafer Roberts of Plastic Farm Press; and Monica Gallagher of EatYourLipstick.com.”

Photo: Strathmore

May 31: Box Brown at Big Planet Comics DC

NPR on Captain America film's DC locations

Captain America On The Potomac

by LINDA HOLMES

National Public Radio's Monkey See blog April 01, 2014

http://www.npr.org/blogs/monkeysee/2014/04/01/297704279/captain-america-on-the-potomac

Bob Mankoff asks, "How About Wednesday - Is Wednesday Good For You?"

Robert Mankoff is the New Yorker's cartoon editor and a very smart man. He'll be at Politics and Prose on Wednesday, April 2, at 7 pm to discuss his new book, How About Never - Is Never Good for You? My Life In Cartoons (Henry Holt, $32.50).

The book is a breezy, extremely well-illustrated autobiography / history of New Yorker cartooning / treatise on gag cartooning that is a quick, but worthwhile read. The style is one that Mankoff perfected on his From the Desk of Bob Mankoff blog: short, pithy, humorous essays well illustrated by cartoons. By this point, in 20 years of being the cartoon editor, he's selected over 14,000 for the magazine, many of which aren't by him. That's actually a sample of the type of humor in the book by the way.

My suspicion is that parts of this book actually appeared there first, which in no way undermines its value. The introduction is actually useful for anyone who picks up the book and is unfamiliar with Mankoff's role in cartooning. He then begins with a superficial look at his early interest in cartooning, relating that to the currently-fashionable theory that Jews produced much of the 20th century's comic art.* And honestly, that is all we really need about his teenage years, and the book picks up steam when he writes about attempting to break into Lee Lorenz's cartoonist stable. His discussion of the need for a distinctive style, and developing his pointillist version, is quite interesting. Mankoff's look at the first cartoons by him, Jack Zeigler, Michael Maslin, Roz Chast and Mick Stevens is clever, and his discussion of the changing nature of New Yorker cartoons is a must-read.

A chapter looks at how he began the Cartoon Bank, an electronic database / syndication service for cartoons the New Yorker rejected, sold that to the magazine which expanded it, and indexed and digitized all the cartoons the magazine had ever run. The way the magazine handled this before was a scrapbook for each cartoonist with clippings pasted in them. One can easily see the possibilities that having a computer-searchable catalog opened up for licensing and reprint books.

Perhaps a little too much space is devoted to the Seinfeld episode which focussed on the New Yorker's cartoon choices, but Mankoff uses that as a stepping off place to write about the nature of cartoon humor. As I said, he's a very smart man. Mankoff also looks at the joys and difficulties of developing his own stable of newer cartoonists, how and why cartoons are selected, editor-in-chief David Remnick's role in the final selection, the cartoon contest is the magazine's back pages, and closes with a look at the newest cartoonists to join the magazine.

Overall, if one is interested in either gag cartooning, the New Yorker, or the nature of humor, this is a must-have book.

*Not that there's anything wrong with that, to quote another comedic Jew, Jerry Seinfeld.

Game On! Comics Graphic Novel Trade-In Day this Saturday

Got some old Graphic Novels sitting around? 

 Trade them in for store credit! 

 Do you have old graphic novels sitting around unread, and you want to clear up some space for new collections? Bring your used graphic novels in this Saturday, April 5, from Noon-4pm, for our new Trade-In Day!

We will give you store credit based on the resale value and condition of your books that you can use immediately, or in the future, on any store product (even books in your subscription box)!

Graphic Novel Trade-In Day! This Saturday April 5th All Day

We will be exchanging store credit for your used trades!   

Here is how it works:

Value of your graphic novel

$1-$20 = $5 store credit token

$21-$40= $10 store credit tokens

$41-$60= $15 store credit tokens

$61-$80= $20 store credit tokens

$81-$100= $25 store credit tokens

That's it!  Just bring them in and trade!

*We do reserve the right to decline graphic novels based on condition, popularity, and current stock.

The Post censors Pearls Before Swine, reports on itself doing so

PEARLS BEFORE ‘NEIN’: Stephan Pastis finds irony in Post nixing strip about word choice…because of word choice.

BY MICHAEL CAVNA

March 31 2014 http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/comic-riffs/wp/2014/03/31/pearls-before-nein-stephan-pastis-finds-irony-in-post-nixing-strip-about-word-choice-because-of-word-choice/

Comic Riffs on new comics syndicate for charity

Upon National Kidney Month, cartoonist launches syndicate site fueled by son’s disease

    By Michael Cavna     

    Washington Post Comic Riffs blog March 31 2014

    http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/comic-riffs/wp/2014/03/31/upon-national-kidney-month-toronto-cartoonist-launches-syndicate-site-fueled-by-sons-disease/

Frozen videogame review in The Post

Frozen Free Fall: Familiar, if basic, fun [online as Pass the time with Frozen Free Fall, which follows tried-and-true puzzle formats]

By Hayley Tsukayama,

Washington Post March 30 2013

http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/techbit-pass-the-time-with-frozen-free-fall-which-follows-tried-and-true-puzzle-formats/2014/03/26/dd85fd78-b3b0-11e3-8cb6-284052554d74_story.html

That Darn Prickly City, continued

A Natural home for politics [online as,The comics have always been home to politics]

Washington Post March 29 2014, p. A13

http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/the-comics-have-always-been-home-to-politics/2014/03/28/2b6d8fb2-b297-11e3-bab2-b9602293021d_story.html

Ladies' Night at Fantom Comics tomorrow

Fantom Comics this Sunday is holding its second bimonthly Ladies' Night of the year from 6-9 p.m. The theme for this one will be cosplay.

"Awesome Con will be right around the corner in April, so this will be an entire evening discussing the fantastic sartorial choices available to us as comic book fans," according to Fantom's Facebook event page. 

Cohen's birds on exhibit in B'more

Local cartoonist Andrew Cohen has some of his bird drawings as part of the new "From Fur to Feathers" exhibit at the Schuler School in Baltimore.

New Big Planet shirts are coming!

New Big Planet shirts are coming!

If you would like a particular size (men's, women's, kid's), let us know so we make sure to get enough! Email vienna@bigplanetcomics.com

(lifted from their Facebook page)

The Post on Mankoff and Chast

For cartoon editor, a New Yorker state of mind

By Michael Cavna, Washington Post March 29 2014

http://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/for-cartoon-editor-a-new-yorker-state-of-mind/2014/03/27/a54d2a5c-b5d7-11e3-b899-20667de76985_story.html

In veteran cartoonist Roz Chast’s hands, tale of aging parents is far from the same old story

By Michael Cavna, 

Washington Post March 29 2014

http://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/in-veteran-cartoonist-roz-chasts-hands-tale-of-aging-parents-is-far-from-the-same-old-story/2014/03/27/dfe7962e-b5ec-11e3-b899-20667de76985_story.html

Lost Art Books reviewed

SPX Pulls: The Lost Art Collections

by David Anderson

The Post reviews Big Planet Comics' Greg Bennett's new (music) album

The Jet Age album review: ‘Jukebox Memoir’

D. Wade - The group The Jet Age will be performing in the Washington, DC area. Left to Right: Greg Bennett (bass); Eric Tischler (guitar, vocals); Pete Nuwayser (drums).

By Mark Jenkins, Washington Post March 28 2014

The band is playing in DC tomorrow night at Comet Ping Pong:

Saturday, March 29th
The Jet Age, The Caribbean and Early American 
$10, 10pm and All Ages at Comet Ping Pong 

French cartoon reviewed in The Post

A forbidden, painted love [‘Ernest & Celestine’ movie review]

By Michael O’Sullivan, 

Washington Post : March 28 2014

http://www.washingtonpost.com/goingoutguide/movies/ernest-and-celestine-movie-review/2014/03/26/00a39aac-b43a-11e3-8cb6-284052554d74_story.html

French cartoon Ernest & Celestine reviewed by City Paper

Ernest & Celestine

By Tricia Olszewski • Washington City Paper March 28, 2014 p. 42

http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/articles/45595/honey-and-ernest-amp-celestine-reviewed-in-honey-can-a/

New book on Winsor McCay from local professor

Wide Awake in SlumberlandFantasy, Mass Culture, and Modernism in the Art Of Winsor McCay By Katherine Roeder 240 PAGES (APPROX.), 8 1/2 X 11 INCHES, 81 B&W AND COLOR PHOTOGRAPHS, BIBLIOGRAPHY, INDEX 9781617039607 PRINTED CASEBINDING $60.00S

THE FIRST STUDY TO PLACE THIS GENIUS OF MODERN COMICS CREATION IN HIS HISTORICAL CONTEXT Cartoonist Winsor McCay (1869-1934) is rightfully celebrated for the skillful draftmanship and inventive design sense he displayed in the comic strips Little Nemo in Slumberland and Dream of the Rarebit Fiend. McCay crafted narratives of anticipation, abundance, and unfulfilled longing. This book explores McCay's interest in dream imagery in relation to the larger preoccupation with fantasy that dominated the popular culture of early twentieth-century urban America. McCay's role as a pioneer of early comics has been documented; yet, no existing study approaches him and his work from an art historical perspective, giving close readings of individual artworks while situating his output within the larger visual culture and the rise of modernism. From circus posters and vaudeville skits to department store window displays and amusement park rides, McCay found fantastical inspiration in New York City's burgeoning entertainment and retail districts. Wide Awake in Slumberland connects McCay's work to relevant children's literature, advertising, architecture, and motion pictures in order to demonstrate the artist's sophisticated blending and remixing of multiple forms from mass culture. Studying this interconnection in McCay's work and, by extension, the work of other early twentieth-century cartoonists, Roeder traces the web of relationships connecting fantasy, leisure, and consumption. Readings of McCay's drawings and the eighty-one black and white and color illustrations reveal a man who was both a ready participant and an incisive critic of the rising culture of fantasy and consumerism. KATHERINE ROEDER, Fairfax, Virginia, teaches courses at George Mason University. She is a contributor to The Comics of Chris Ware: Drawing Is a Way of Thinking (University Press of Mississippi) and A New Literary History of America. She is also a contributor to the Comics Journal and American Art. 240 PAGES (APPROX.), 8 1/2 X 11 INCHES, 81 B&W AND COLOR PHOTOGRAPHS, BIBLIOGRAPHY, INDEX

Meet a Local Cartoonist: A Chat with Diego Quintanilla

Diego Quintanilla was a new face at the first Smudge Expo last month. He’s a college student who is studying animation and just getting into creating minicomics. I bought his mini, and he kindly answered my usual questions via email.

What type of comic work or cartooning do you do?

I mostly sketch in my book, I draw for personal projects and all that.

How do you do it? Traditional pen and ink, computer or a combination?

I use pens. Nothing fancy, just rollerball pens that you can get anywhere. Sometimes I'll use Microns though.

When (within a decade is fine) and where were you born?

I was born here in D.C. at some point in the 90s.

Why are you in Washington now?  What neighborhood or area do you live in?

Well, I don't really live in the D.C. area, unless you count Wheaton as part of D.C. I don't know why you would, but if you do, then there you go. As for why, our family was living with this other Latino family in a cramped apartment space back in D.C. and when my mom got pregnant with my sister, that's when my parents decided to find a nice place in the suburbs.

What is your training and/or education in cartooning?

I'm in school right now, learning all this on the go, trying to learn things in my spare time too of course.

Who are your influences?

I'm very influenced by films.  I like movies. Arthouse films like The Holy Mountain, Brand upon the Brain. Movies like Bad Boy Bubby and Irreversible. Like, I really love visuals, you know? Looking at interesting things and all that, images that provoke, something that makes you think what the symbolism behind it is. I also like animated films too; my favorite is The Triplets of Belleville.

If you could, what in your career would you do-over or change?

I've just started this career, having done my first Smudge Expo just recently, so can't really say I'd change anything.

What work are you best-known for?

I got this comic called Tough and Stuff about a boy with two moms. Almost half of my class knows about it (a lot of them skipped class the day I gave out copies) along with whoever bought it at Smudge.

How can people order your comics, or do they have to buy them from you in person?

People can buy them from me in person, there is no other way.

What work are you most proud of?

I've made three comics, two are creation myths that I made up and one a "how a jaguar lost its spots" sort of stories. I also liked the mini comics I made. I've just started so my options are limited here. That isn't to say I don't like my work - I just think I can go no other way then up.

What would you like to do or work on in the future?

In terms of comics, I've already got two ideas in my mind. One's about a horny lizard taking care of a fox and an episodic story about Nollywood. I'm real excited and I hope to put them on print real soon!

What do you do when you're in a rut or have writer's block?

I'm not sure, I guess my answer would be, "don't worry, it comes when it comes." That's my answer to a lot of things, it doesn't work with everyone, I know.

What do you think will be the future of your field?

Do you mean, what will happen to me in the comic book field, or what will happen to the comic book field? If it's the first, I'm not expecting anything grand. I imagine myself in my sixties still selling my comics. I think I'd be more focused on making animation, but I'm guessing I'm getting off topic.

What local cons do you attend? The Small Press Expo, Intervention, or others? Any comments about attending them?

I'm expecting to go to Small Press Expo, just as a guy looking around and stuff, not an exhibitor.

What's your favorite thing about DC?

The museums! I love The Museum of African Art, The Museum of the American Indian, and The National Gallery of Art are some of my favorites. I remember watching a whole bunch of Jan Svankmajer films which was fantastic.

 Least favorite?

This is just a personal opinion; I'm not city folk, I enjoy the suburbs. I love D.C. but I wouldn't be in the epicenter of all the political and social hubbbub, it would be overwhelming.

How about a favorite local restaurant?

I don't usually eat out, but I do enjoy Los Chorros which is in my hometown, Wheaton. Try the quesdailla or pupusas! Those are what I always get so I can't vouch for what else is on the menu.

Do you have a website or blog?

I have a tumblr, Essential Avant-Garde Noise, where I post sketches, digital drawings, animations etc.  as Scrinkle: http://scrinkle.tumblr.com/

I also have a deviantart page where I post as DickQuint: http://dickquint.deviantart.com/ 

(updated 3/27/2014)

Big Planet Comics of College Park has a new exterior look

Our brand new sign is up at Big Planet Comics of College Park! Thanks again to Paulina Ganucheau for the amazing design!
http://www.paulinaganucheau.com/

(stolen from their Facebook page)

See Shannon Gallant's art in GI Joe #200

Here's an article about a big fan of the character...

MIGHTY Q&A: A G.I. Joe #200 Extravaganza!

CLAY N. FERNO 

13th Dimension blog Mar 25, 2014 

http://13thdimension.com/mighty-qa-a-g-i-joe-200-extravaganza/

March 26: Graphic Novel Bookgroup at Politics and Prose

Hey we’re meeting tomorrow for NOWHERE MEN Volume 1.

 

Same place, same time: Politics and Prose, downstairs, at 7:30.

 

This is a great intro volume (at only $10), with great design, art and story too!

 

Hope to see you!

 

Adam

 

Comic on grocery bag patent suit

Cartoonist Andy Warner does some awesome historically based comics for The Nib. Here's one that has a D.C. angle: The first American woman to win a patent suit. And it happens that her invention is on display at the Smithsonian.

Click on image to read cartoon

Frank Cho sketches

Frank Cho's sketches from a London are risque... as one would expect.

David Apatoff's brief thoughts on the Thompson exhibit

EXHIBITION OF WATTERSON AND THOMPSON ART

Illustration Art blog March 23, 2014

April 12: Chris Visions signing - Dead Letters at Big Planet Comics

• Saturday, April 12 at 12:00pm - 2:00pm

• Show Map Big Planet Comics of Vienna 426 Maple Ave. East, Vienna, Virginia 22180

Big Planet Comics is proud to welcome local Virginia artist Chris Visions for a signing of the first issue of his new series, Dead Letters!

Dead Letters is a new crime series written by Chris Sebela published by Boom Studios. Sam wakes up in a sketchy motel room with no memory, but when thugs kick in his door he knows how to react and how to use a gun. Soon two different gangs are after him, trying to use him for a job, even as he tries to figure out who is he and where he is... And the where is the most important part! 

Chris lives in Richmond, VA, and attended VCU.

Chris's website: http://www.chrisvisions.com/

Chris will also be appearing from 4-6 pm at our store in College Park, Maryland. https://www.facebook.com/events/607984869285111/

Captain America: The Winter Soldier toys

...are appearing in Target.

Shannon Gallant covers Skullkickers at Awesome Con

Shannon Gallant covers Skullkickers at Awesome Con and you can get your G.I. Joe sketches from him too!

Kleefeld on Comics on Thompson exhibit

Sean 'Kleefeld on Comics' on the Thompson exhibit opening.

The Art of Richard Thompson book has a sale date

The Art of Richard Thompson book has a sale date of November 4, 2014 according to Andrews McMeel's website.

Comic Riffs on Richard Thompson exhibit

Bill Watterson/Richard Thompson’s OSU Show: Creators are ‘honored’ and ‘gobsmacked’ at opening of museum’s exhibit

• BY MICHAEL CAVNA

• 
  

• Washington Post Comic Riffs blog March 25 2014

http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/comic-riffs/wp/2014/03/25/bill-wattersonrichard-thompsons-osu-show-creators-are-honored-and-gobsmacked-at-opening-of-museums-exhibit/

Auger one-night solo show

Local artist/cartoonist Michael Auger has a one-night solo show April 5 from 8 p.m.-1 p.m. at the Ritz Carlton in Georgetown. His glow-paint work will be featured. Tickets for "Art Soiree: Garden Edition in Glow - Exclusive Exhibit for Michael Auger" are free.

Comic Riffs' contest for Galifianakis' Valentine cartoon

VALENTINE'S DAY READER CAPTION CONTEST: And the winner is...
By Michael Cavna
Washington Post Comic Riffs blog March 23 2014
http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/comic-riffs/wp/2014/03/23/valentines-day-reader-caption-contest-and-the-winner-is/

Conservative NewsBusters blog wonders about Post's Prickly City letters

WashPost Gives Trio of Readers Platform to Urge Censorship of Conservative Comic Strip

By Ken Shepherd

NewsBusters March 24, 2014

http://newsbusters.org/blogs/ken-shepherd/2014/03/22/trio-washpost-readers-call-censorship-conservative-cartoon

Richard Thompson exhibit in Columbus, OH

An excellent exhibit of Arlington, VA's Richard Thompson, curated by Caitlin McGurk, opened this past Friday. It's at Ohio State University's Billy Ireland Library and Musum. I was lucky enough to attend the opening, and largely forgot to take pictures!

Richard had a good time though, and other cartoonists and members of his family attended, as well as over 400 people whose names I didn't catch. Oh yeah, there's an also an exhibit by some guy named Watterson in the next room over.

Here's a few I pictures I did take, all of Richard and his friends ...

Box Brown interviewed on BPC podcast

The Big Planet Comics podcast interviews comic booker Box Brown about wrestling and his upcoming graphic novel about Andre the Giant. (BPC co-publishes Brown's Retrofit Comics line of monthly floppies.)

Image: Box Brown

That darn Prickly City

Letter to the Editor: Too much politics in ‘Prickly City’ for the comics page

Washington Post March 22 2014

http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/too-much-politics-in-prickly-city-for-the-comics-page/2014/03/21/c8faa3d4-ae1c-11e3-b8b3-44b1d1cd4c1f_story.html 

Film projects from local cartoonists John Dorsey and G.E. Gallas

G.E. Gallas is looking to fund her film:

Death Is No Bad Friend

A short film about Robert Louis Stevenson (Treasure Island, Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde) in San Francisco and on Mount Saint Helena.

John Dorsey, author of the minicomic 2080:Rad City, writes in about his finished film:

I'm the writer & director for "Beard Guy" a short comedy shot entirely in the DMV region using local talent & companies: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d5Xp2c42dk4

Beard guy is a screwball comedy about office stereotypes. Inspired by a Reddit it was filmed during the winter when Film Sets are typically shut down, leaving industry professionals out of work. We filmed Beard Guy, using a Red Epic camera (same camera they used House of Cards)

Bottom-line - we're pretty proud of how this short film turned out,

'Aquabats' in Silver Spring on May 10

The surf-rock-band-turned-TV-show-stars Aquabats are coming to the Filmore in Silver Spring, Md., on May 10 as part of their 20^th anniversary tour.  (I figure, they are based on comics and cartoons—and I love their show—so I oughtta mention it.)

Comic Riffs on Hellboy

Mike Mignola: As Hellboy turns 20, creator celebrates having been at ‘exact right place at the exact right time’

• By David Betancourt

• Washington Post Comic Riffs blog

  March 20 2014

• http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/comic-riffs/wp/2014/03/20/mike-mignola-as-hellboy-turns-20-creator-celebrates-having-been-at-exact-right-place-at-the-exact-right-time/
  

Awesome Con spreads its cloak

Guinness record in sights for D.C. comic book convention

Jeff Clabaugh

Broadcast/Web Reporter- Washington Business Journal March 19, 2014

http://www.bizjournals.com/washington/news/2014/03/19/guinness-record-in-sights-for-d-c-comic-book.html