Local newspaper launches strip by local cartoonist

Budding local cartoonist Annamaria Ward has her first comic strip published in the most recent edition of the Fauquier (Va.) Times. Check out "Kairos" each week, and visit Ward's Tumblr page to see her wonderful artistic range.

Reprinted with Ward's permission

Bill Watterson’s return to comics: Pearls Before Swine comic art auctioned for Parkinson’s research

For Immediate Release
July 22, 2014

For more information:
Noah Fleisher, Public Relations Director
212-486-3510; NoahF@HA.com

Bill Watterson's return to comics: Pearls Before Swine comic art auctioned for Parkinson's research

The reclusive creator's artwork from the recently finished three-day collaboration with Stephen Pastis on Pearls Before Swine will sell Aug. 8, 2014 at Heritage Auctions, proceeds to benefit the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research; on display through Sunday, July 27, at ComicCon in San Diego

DALLAS – The original artwork for the recent three comic strip collaboration between Bill Watterson, the reclusive genius behind the much-loved Calvin and Hobbes comic strip, and Pearls Before Swine cartoonist Stephen Pastis – taking place in a three day run in June 2014 in Pearls – will be sold at Heritage Auctions on Aug. 8, 2014, with proceeds from the sale benefitting The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research.
 All three comic strips will be on display through Sunday, July 27, 2014, at San Diego ComicCon.

 "Anytime original Bill Watterson comic art shows up for auction it's a big deal," said Todd Hignite, Vice President at Heritage Auctions. "His collaboration with Stephan Pastis was an unexpected treat for his millions of fans. Now, thanks to this auction, fans will get to take the original art home while raising money for a great cause."

 The collaboration between the two artists came at the suggestion of Watterson and was immediately embraced by an overwhelmed Pastis, who, like some many modern cartoonists, was greatly influenced by Watterson and Calvin and Hobbes. The trajectory of the three strip arc follows Pastis' comic strip alter-ego as he turns the drawing of the comic over to a precocious second-grader named Libby for three days. The results are both wickedly funny and uniquely Watterson, while remaining true to the sharp humor that defines the Pearls Before Swine strip.

 At Watterson's request, the artwork is being sold on behalf of Team Cul de Sac, a non-profit charity established by editor/designer Chris Sparks on behalf of Cul de Sac cartoonist Richard Thompson, who is battling Parkinson's Disease – a piece of artwork done by Watterson depicting one of Thompson's Cul de Sac characters sold in 2012 as part of a charity auction to benefit Team Cul de Sac – and the profits from the sale of the original art (Heritage is waiving the seller's fee on the artwork and will also contribute half of the Buyer's Premium) will be donated to the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research.

Heritage Auctions is the largest auction house founded in the United States and the world's third largest, with annual sales of more than $900 million, and 850,000+ online bidder members. For more information about Heritage Auctions, and to join and receive access to a complete record of prices realized, with full-color, enlargeable photos of each lot, please visit HA.com.
 Want to get the up-to-the-minute updates and breaking news stories about Heritage Auctions? Get them as they happen at: HA.com/Twitter; Facebook: HA.com/Facebook. To view a complete archive of Heritage press releases go to: HA.com/PR. To link to this press release on your blog or Website: HA.com/PR-2222.

 

July 23: Batman day at 3rd Eye Comics

This Wednesday is BATMAN DAY! Get a FREE Batman 75th Anniversary Comic!

Score a BATMAN mask!

Save BIG with our BATMAN Sale!

We'll be offering up a TON of cool free swag, along with a very special edition of the very first issue of BATMAN ever: DETECTIVE COMICS #27. 

 

This new, special edition is strictly limited, is completely free, and features a brand new re-design by superstar graphic designer CHIP KIDD with a new script by BRAD MELTZER. 

 

In addition, we'll be giving you a FREE Batman 75th Anniversary gift bag with ANY purchase on Wednesday 7/23, while supplies last! 

 

PLUS: with any purchase of a BATMAN graphic novel (softcover or hardcover), we'll give you a FREE Batman mask, each one spotlights a different incarnation of the character's past looks - and you can collect them all, but supplies are limited! 

 

Finally, we'll have some very rad BATMAN 75th anniversary capes available for purchase - these are a very special promotional item, and are very limited, so make sure you get here early to hook yourself up! 

 

And, what's that.. a giant BAT-SALE? That's right, Third Eye Faithful, we'll be offering a special 20% OFF discount on ALL Batman-related graphic novels, and merchandise! 

 

So join us on BATMAN DAY to celebrate one of the most bad-ass characters in the history of comics!

 

Click here for event info!

July 23: Free Batman comic available at Big Planet Comics and Barnes & Noble stores

It's a reprint of the recent Detective Comics 27 story by Brad Meltzer.

John Held, Jr. artwork on card game

I picked up this card game, Pit, in New Jersey last weekend. John Held Jr. did the artwork. It's copyrighted 1919, which I think may be for the game, not the artwork, but I also think the game may still be sold.

Add a footnote to the Secret History of Comics...

DC Conspiracy exhibit pictures

I was able to see the DC Conspiracy exhibit on Capitol Hill over the weekend. Here are some more photographs.

The latest Magic Bullet comic book came out today.

July 23: Batman day at comic book stores and Barnes & Noble

Click through for the details from Previewsworld:

It's Batman Day on Wednesday, July 23rd!
Get to your local shop for a FREE limited edition of Detective Comics #27 and more!

A Post blog on Marvel's character swapping

On the new female Thor and the black Captain America

By Alexandra Petri Washington Post ComPost blog July 18 2014
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/compost/wp/2014/07/18/on-the-new-female-thor-and-the-black-captain-america/

Bill Watterson and Stephan Pastis comic strips now on sale

The Bill Watterson and Stephan Pastis "Pearls Before Swine" comic strips have opened for bidding on Heritage Auctions.  They are being sold to raise money for the Parkinsons charity, Team Cul de Sac, and as TCDS founder Chris Sparks notes, the bidding is already over $20,000 cumulative, after less than one day.

Bid early and often!

Batman 75th anniversary exhibit at Library of Congress

Megan Halsband of the Newspapers and Periodicals division has put up a small exhibit of Batman comic books in the Madison Building. Here are some pictures that she provided.

August 14: Civil War veterans Swann Lecture at Library of Congress

Free   and   Open   to   the   Public

Empty Sleeves and Bloody Shirts: Disabled Civil War Veterans and Presidential Campaigns, 1864-1880

An Illustrated Lecture by  Erin Corrales-Diaz

Swann Foundation Fellow, 2013-2014

Thursday, August 14, 2014, at 12 noon

In West Dining Room, Madison Building, 6^th Floor

Sponsored by the Swann Foundation for Caricature and Cartoon

and the Prints & Photographs Division

Request ADA accommodation five days in advance at 202.707.6362 or ADA@loc.gov;  for additional information

Contact Martha Kennedy at mkenn@loc.gov or 202.707-9115

The Post reviews latest Planes cartoon

'Planes: Fire & Rescue' movie review

By Jen Chaney  Washington Post July 17 2014

July 19: Andy Smith to Sign Adventure Time Exclusive Cover at Cards, Comics & Collectibles!

Andy Smith at Cards, Comics & Collectibles

Press Release For Immediate Release

Andy Smith to Sign Adventure Time Exclusive Cover at Cards, Comics &  Collectibles! From the Store that Brings You the Baltimore Comic-Con... Andy Smith Adventure Time Variant Don't forget! Cards, Comics & Collectibles, the official retailer and news source for the Baltimore Comic-Con, is happy to announce that accomplished artist Andy Smith, who is inking over Jim Starlin on Marvel's Thanos: The Infinity Revelation, penciling DC's Future's End, and who has provided art on many titles in the past, including DC Comics' Batman and Marvel Comics' X-Men Forever, will be signing in-store on Saturday, July 19, 2014 from 12pm to 3pm.  Carolyn Belefski Adventure Time variant In addition to Smith's signing, Cards, Comics & Collectibles is also proud to present a store variant Andy Smith cover to Adventure Time from BOOM! Studios, which will be available at the store on Saturday. Steve Conley Adventure Time variant But wait, there's more! In addition to his Saturday signing in-store at Cards, Comics & Collectibles in Reisterstown, MD, we're bringing Andy with us to Leesburg, VA on Sunday, July 20th for the SuperNoVa Comicon at the Leesburg Volunteer Firehouse (215 Loudoun Street SW, Leesburg, VA  20175), where he will be joined by fellow Adventure Time exclusive artists Carolyn Belefski (Curls) and Steve Conley (Bloop). Pick up your copies of all variant covers at the Cards, Comics & Collectibles booth!  Stop by to meet Andy at the store, and all 3 creators at the show, and check the show's website for details on other guests too! Cards, Comics & Collectibles is located at 100A Chartley Drive, Reisterstown, MD. For more information, please visit cardscomicscollectibles.com or call 410-526-7410.

Mini-Comics for Halloween Now Available

In case anyone else wants to hand out comics on Halloween as I usually do.

Mike

Dear Diamond BookShelf Subscriber, We're sending this email to you because of your interest in comics and graphic novels in your school or library, and we feel this message may be of interest to you. This year Halloween ComicFest will take place on Saturday, October 25th, and you can participate by giving out free comics for a Halloween ComicFest event - or you can use the HCF Mini-Comics for your own Halloween related event that takes place before or after the Oct 25th date. Why We Recommend Getting the Comic Packs A great treat to give kids on Halloween as an alternative to candy Use the comics for your own HCF event or event on Halloween Make for great prizes for Halloween games Great to use in the classroom or after school reading program It is acceptable for the comics to be released before the HCF event date Saturday, October 25th for educational purposes The comics contain great stories for kids ages 5+ Important Information Each pack contains 20 comics of the same title. This year there are seven Halloween ComicFest Mini-Comic titles to choose from They are only available to order at comic shops If ordering from your local comic shop, the order cut-off date is July 24th For those who do not have a community comic shop, contact us back to order directly from Diamond (Minimum order is $20). Order Cut-off Date for Diamond is August 1st Comics will be available beginning of October To see details about all the Mini-Comics, go to http://bit.ly/HCFMiniComics To order, download and fill out the HCF order form and then take it to your local comic shop, and they will place the order. The comics are scheduled to arrive in comic shops the beginning of October, and you would be responsbile for retrieving them from the shop. The mini-comics can be given out before Halloween ComicFest if used for educational purposes. (They are not as exclusive as the Free Comic Book Day comics were.) Ordering the comics is the best way to participate in Halloween ComicFest as you can use the comics for your own HCF event, save them to pass out on Halloween or for your own Halloween event you may be hosting. If you plan on ordering comics from your local comic shop, please contact Halloween ComicFest coordinator Deborah Moreland and let her know so she can keep record of who is participating and also be able to send promotional items. If you do not have a comic shop in your community, please let her know so she can assist you in getting the comics directly from Diamond. For news and updates about Halloween ComicFest, go to www.halloweencomicfest.com Like HCF on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/halloweencomicfests Follow on Twitter: https://twitter.com/halloweencomic If you have any questions, please contact Halloween ComicFest coordinator Deborah Moreland at mdeborah@diamondcomics.com.

Diamond Comic Distributors, Inc., 10150 York Road, Suite 300, Hunt Valley, MD 21030

Intergalactic Nemesis returns to D.C.

The Intergalactic Nemesis show (dubbed a live-action graphic novel) returns to D.C. with the sequel to “Book One: Target Earth.” The second chapter, “Robot Planet Rising,” will run Sept. 20-21 at the Spectrum Theater in Rosslyn, Va. Order tickets ($20-$25) through the Artisphere.

Store closing sale at Fantom Comics

Fantom Comics is selling its remaining stock of graphic novels for 60 percent off as the store closes its current location at Union Station in three days and re-opens at its new Dupont Circle location next Wednesday, July 23.

DC Conspiracy exhibit opening photos

A few photos (courtesy of Michael Cowgill) from last Saturday's opening night of the "DC Conspiracy: A Retrospective" at the Capitol Hill Arts Workshop in D.C. 

Comic Riffs on Thor

THE NEW FEMALE THOR: From Asgard to new guard, 5 things to know about Marvel's bolt from the blue

• 
  

By David Betancourt July 16 2014
http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/comic-riffs/wp/2014/07/16/the-new-female-thor-from-asgard-to-new-guard-5-things-to-know-about-marvels-bolt-from-the-blue/

this article also appeared in today's print paper

New episode of Big Planet Comics podcast

This week, the show has a special guest--Brooke Allen, the artist of Lumberjanes. Topics include The View, Pierce Brosnan as a centaur, and the new Bryan Lee O’Malley book. 

Click to hear

Illustration by Brooke Allen

Brian Biggs at the National Book Festival!

http://www.loc.gov/bookfest/author/brian_biggs/

Fulcrum shifts focus

Fulcrum Publishing shifts focus to educational graphic novels
Westward.com
As Fulcrum Publishing approaches its thirtieth anniversary, the Golden-based publishing house is intensifying its new focus on educational graphic novels, which teachers around the country are using with more regularity to get students interested in reading. The topics of these publications range from endangered ocean species to an unconventional history of Washington, D.C.Read more

(Note: Fulcrum published District Comics: An Unconventional History of Washington, D.C., and has published graphic novels including many D.C.-area creators, with a few more books on the way.)

Illustration by Mal Jones from a story in District Comics

The Post blogs on Archie Comics

For Archie Comics, a political focus is a strategy, not a stunt 

By Alyssa Rosenberg Washington Post Act Four blog July 16 2014

http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/act-four/wp/2014/07/16/for-archie-comics-a-political-focus-is-a-strategy-not-a-stunt/

  

Awesome Con Highlight Reel DC 2014

produced by Joe Carabeo

Published on Jul 14, 2014

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EHAkX1Acz24

Awesome Con took over Washington DC this past April and opinion was unanimous: It was Awesome! Here's a short highlight reel we put together with Astray Productions. Subscribe to our channel, we will be posting a lot more videos!

Ben Hatke's new children's book Julia's House for Lost Creatures

On his blog, Ben Hatke notes the arrival of author copies of his new book:

One of the coolest things about writing and drawing books is the part where a box of shiny new author copies shows up at your door. And yesterday was the day that copies of Julia's House for Lost Creatures arrived here at House Hatke.

I know I've said it before, but I'm really happy with how this book turned out.

The official release date (September 2nd) is still over a month off, but I'm going to give away two copies now, along with a bit of original art!

More information at http://www.benhatke.com/2014/07/jolly-raffle-giveaway-contest-julias.html

July 23: "Resisting Extremism through Media: Claiming a Space for Political Cartoons in Pakistan" featuring Sabir Nazar, Brian Joseph, and Mark Nelson

The International Forum for Democratic Studies and the Center for International Media Assistance at the National Endowment for Democracy   cordially invite you to a presentation entitled   "Resisting Extremism through Media: Claiming a Space for Political Cartoons in Pakistan" featuring   Sabir Nazar (@sabirnazar)   Reagan-Fascell Democracy Fellow, National Endowment for Democracy   with comments by   Brian Joseph (@NEDemocracy) Senior Director for Asia and Global Programs, National Endowment for Democracy   moderated by   Mark Nelson (@CIMA_Media) Senior Director, Center for International Media Assistance   Wednesday, July 23, 2014 3:00-4:30 p.m.   Livestream of the event will be available here.   Twitter: Follow @ThinkDemocracy and use #NEDEvents to join the conversation.     1025 F Street, N.W., Suite 800, Washington, D.C. 20004 Telephone: 202-378-9675 RSVP (acceptances only) with name and affiliation by Monday, July 21 at www.politicalcartoonspakistan.eventbrite.com.       In some schools of Islam, the artistic portrayal of people and animals is often perceived as idolatrous, or at the very least offensive or sacrilegious. Following the 2001 destruction of the Buddhas of Bamiyan by the Taliban and the 2005 Danish Jyllands-Posten Muhammad cartoon controversy, Pakistan is experiencing a new wave of restrictions on the production of visual arts. This trend is part of a broader agenda by intolerant and extremist elements in Pakistan to limit freedom of expression and curtail cultural activities, including dance, music, and theater, that they believe offend Islam. Moreover, recent attacks on journalists by extremists not only serve to silence moderate voices but reinforce and propel a conservative ideology. The challenge now is to reclaim the power of images and to assert cartoons as a medium through which artists can convey messages across cultural and linguistic divides.   In his presentation, Sabir Nazar will use his widely-acclaimed political cartoons to discuss challenges faced by the media, the struggle for democracy, and the resistance to the rise of religious extremism in Pakistan. He will further expand on ways that visual artists can contribute through different media to reclaim the cultural space that is being lost to religious extremists. His presentation will be followed by comments by Brian Joseph.   Sabir Nazar is an editorial cartoonist with the Express Tribune, Pakistan's first internationally affiliated newspaper, and has partnered with the International New York Times and the Friday Times, Pakistan's first independent weekly paper. He is also a regular contributor to popular magazines such as Newsweek Pakistan and the Herald. Over the course of his career, he has produced over 5,000 illustrations, depicting a broad spectrum of political events and social issues, including human rights violations, women's rights, madrassa reforms, sectarian strife, and extremism.  In addition, he illustrates cartoons, posters, and publications for a number of human rights and development organizations, including the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, the Center for Civic Education, UNDP, Action Aid, the Alliance against Sexual Harassment, OXFAM, the Democratic Commission for Human Development, and the Omar Asghar Khan Foundation.  In 2009, Mr. Nazar received an "Editor's Pick" award from Himal Southasian, a Kathmandu-based magazine that covers political and economic trends in South Asia.    Brian Joseph is the senior director for Asia and Global programs at the National Endowment for Democracy.

Flugennock's Latest'n'Greatest: "Soggy, Used Teabagger"

"Soggy, Used Teabagger"
http://sinkers.org/stage/?p=1529

So... when we last left DC, it was being bullied by the Federal Government in the person of one US Rep. Andy Harris of Maryland, over DC's city council vote to decriminalize merijuana.

What I didn't find out until just last week is that Harris ran with the Tea Party and was elected as part of the big Teabagger Wave. And here he is, using Federal power to interfere with the affairs of State and local governments. So, how's that going down with the "base", Mr. Get The Feds Off Our Backs?

________________________________________________________________
Mike Flugennock, flugennock at sinkers dot org
Mike's Political Cartoons: dubya dubya dubya dot sinkers dot org