Tom Spurgeon pointed this out on his Comics Reporter blog.
ABC News covered the exhibit with a report by LAURA MARQUEZ - "Vietnam War Jabs and Washington Spending: The Art of Editorial Cartoons - New Exhibit Traces History of Political Drawings, Reflecting Little Changes in Washington."
The two-page article also links to a slideshow Cartoons Through War & Scandal.
Monday, November 06, 2006
Course: Super-Mensch: The Story of Jews and Comic Books
Steve Bergson pointed this one out on his Jewish Comics group.
Super-Mensch: The Story of Jews and Comic Books
Oct. 30 - Nov. 27 ,
(5 sessions)
7:00 - 8:15 PM
Members: $55, non-members: $65
Since the inception of the comic book industry, Jews have been involved as writers, artists, and visionaries. In fact, many heroes and villains have been based on the Jewish-American experience. We will look at how the relationship between Jews and comic books began, how it has grown, and what we can expect for the future.
Richard "Kap" Kaplowitz is a lifelong comic book collector and student of the industry. His son sells comics for "Kap's Komics" online and at comic book shows.
Monday classes at St. Margaret's Episcopal Church, Dupont Circle, 1830 Connecticut Ave, NW, two blocks north of the Dupont Circle's north Metro exit. Street parking is available.
Super-Mensch: The Story of Jews and Comic Books
Oct. 30 - Nov. 27 ,
(5 sessions)
7:00 - 8:15 PM
Members: $55, non-members: $65
Since the inception of the comic book industry, Jews have been involved as writers, artists, and visionaries. In fact, many heroes and villains have been based on the Jewish-American experience. We will look at how the relationship between Jews and comic books began, how it has grown, and what we can expect for the future.
Richard "Kap" Kaplowitz is a lifelong comic book collector and student of the industry. His son sells comics for "Kap's Komics" online and at comic book shows.
Monday classes at St. Margaret's Episcopal Church, Dupont Circle, 1830 Connecticut Ave, NW, two blocks north of the Dupont Circle's north Metro exit. Street parking is available.
Friday, November 03, 2006
Nov 3 - Fluggenock poster spotted
Driving home tonight, I spotted a Mike Fluggenock poster on the lightpost base at 21st and Massachussets Ave, NW. Fluggenock's a local anarchist who puts his cartoon work on the web for anyone to print and use. The poster I saw, pictured above, can also be downloaded here.
DC needs more Fluggenocks.
Dec 13 - Booksigning - Neal Gabler on Walt Disney
Gabler's signing his new biography on Disney at 7 pm at Politics and Prose.
Salon's run an excerpt of this recently.
And apparently there's been some criticism of the book? Anyone know anything?
Salon's run an excerpt of this recently.
And apparently there's been some criticism of the book? Anyone know anything?
Nov 30 - Booksigning - Matt Diffee
Matt Diffee signs The Rejection Collection at Politics and Prose at 7 pm. These are the cartoons the New Yorker didn't want. I'll be going to this one.
For further information,
The Cartoon Art Museum in San Francisco has an exhibit of the cartoons through March - 655 Mission Street, San Francisco, CA 94105 - 415-CAR-TOON, http://www.cartoonart.org
Reviews of the book:
Dernavich, Drew. 2006.
Back to the drawing board: A new anthology collects cartoons that were too dirty, too wacky, or just too dumb to make it into The New Yorker.
Boston Globe (October 15).
SCHILLINGER, LIESL. 2006.
Crossing the Line, Laughing All the Way.
New York Times (October 22): ST13
For further information,
The Cartoon Art Museum in San Francisco has an exhibit of the cartoons through March - 655 Mission Street, San Francisco, CA 94105 - 415-CAR-TOON, http://www.cartoonart.org
Reviews of the book:
Dernavich, Drew. 2006.
Back to the drawing board: A new anthology collects cartoons that were too dirty, too wacky, or just too dumb to make it into The New Yorker.
Boston Globe (October 15).
SCHILLINGER, LIESL. 2006.
Crossing the Line, Laughing All the Way.
New York Times (October 22): ST13
Washington Post editorial cartoonist Coffin in GWU magazine
I got my alumni copy of GW Magazine from George Washington University last night and my wife pointed out that there's an article on 19th century Washington Post editorial cartoonist George Yost Coffin in it by Lyle Slovick, one of the University's archivist. Coffin's papers are in the Gelman Library. It's a good article and worth reading.
Nov 3 - Aardman Animation's Flushed Away opens in DC
Reviews of the new movie by the Wallace & Gromit studio can be found in the Post, Washington Times, Sally Kline's in the Examiner and an Associated Press bit in the Express. In spite of the subject matter (rat flushed down the toilet into the sewers), I'm looking forward to seeing this.
Also in the Post is a review of Class of 3000, a new animated tv show.
Also in the Post is a review of Class of 3000, a new animated tv show.
Nov 2 - Cartoonists in City Paper
The cover story in the City Paper is illustrated by my friend Rob Ullman - Rob regularly illustrates the Savage Love column in the paper, although he's based in Richmond. He was up here recently for SPX and the City Paper's festival so I bought some more art from him. Most of the illos can be seen on the website, but look much better in the paper.
Also, Josh Neufeld, another nice guy who does some good travel comics called Vagabond, has an illo in the paper too.
Mike
Thursday, November 02, 2006
Nov 2 - Zadzooks on comics-related video games
In this article, he reviews a Peanuts videogame as well as the dvd for the animated Monster House.
Snoopy's dogfight with Red Baron
By Joseph Szadkowski
WASHINGTON TIMES November 2, 2006
Snoopy's dogfight with Red Baron
By Joseph Szadkowski
WASHINGTON TIMES November 2, 2006
Nov 2 - Cartoon America opens, mentioned in newspapers
I'll try to post a few pictures and quotes from the opening later, but in the meantime, the Express has a small article by Arion Berger on the exhibit, with an illustration by E. Simms Campbell. The Examiner has a blurb on the inside front cover with a completely inappropriate picture of people looking at life-size Hanna-Barbera characters. Nothing in the Post yet.
Wednesday, November 01, 2006
Nov 2 - Cartoon America opens at Library of Congress
I was privileged to go to the preview opening today, and hear remarks by collector and cartoonist Art Wood, Librarian of Congress James Billington, curator/author Harry Katz and noted cartoonists Jules Feiffer, Ann Telnaes and Kal, as well as meeting the Post's Richard Thompson ... and all of this occured in the gilded 'members' room of the Library of Congress. A very attractive room that was. Anyway, I'll try to post more on this in the next day, or so, but here's the press release for this absolutely fantastic exhibit. The Nast original alone is worth making the trip downtown to see. Martha and Sara have done another fine job. And don't forget that they've got a Herblock exhibit on the floor above as well.
Library of Congress Exhibition "Cartoon America" Opens Nov. 2
Exhibition Features America's Best Cartoons from the Art Wood Collection
"Cartoon America: Highlights from the Art Wood Collection of Cartoon and Caricature" will open at the Library of Congress on Thursday, Nov. 2, in the Great Hall of the Thomas Jefferson Building, 10 First St. S.E., Washington, D.C. On view through Jan. 27, 2007, the exhibition is free and open to the public from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday-Saturday.
The exhibition will feature 100 masterworks of such celebrated artists as political cartoonists Thomas Nast, Rube Goldberg, Bill Mauldin and Patrick Oliphant; comic strip creators Winsor McCay, George Herriman, Chic Young, Milt Caniff, Charles Schulz and Lynn Johnston; humorous gag cartoonists Peter Arno and William Steig; caricaturists Al Hirschfeld and David Levine; animation drawings and cels from Walt Disney Productions and Hanna-Barbera; and illustrations by Edwin A. Abbey, John Held and Michael Hague.
Drawings selected for the exhibition reflect the primary collecting interests of J. Arthur Wood Jr., a connoisseur of popular graphic art. Wood's collection of more than 36,000 original cartoon drawings * the Art Wood Collection of Cartoon and Caricature * is now housed in the Library's Prints and Photographs Division. The collection came to the Library in 2003 through a gift-purchase agreement made possible in part by a generous contribution from H. Fred Krimendahl II, a member of the Library's Madison Council, and the generosity of Wood himself.
The collection, spanning three centuries, is distinctive and unparalleled because of the depth of holdings in political cartoons and comic strips and the specific landmark pieces in all major genres. It stands out as a jewel among the Library's special collections, illuminating the history of American cartoon art forms and greatly enhancing the Library's extensive holdings of cartoon art.
According to exhibition co-curators Sara W. Duke and Martha H. Kennedy, the exhibition presents stellar examples from Wood's collection that reflect the vitality of an innovative, indigenous art form. The exhibition features the major genres of cartoon art: political cartoons, illustration, comic strips, gag and single-panel cartoons, illustration, and animation drawings and cels. An overview of highlights includes:
* Political cartoons by leading practitioners of the "ungentlemanly art," who comment pointedly on corruption, war and public figures from the 19th century's Gilded Age to recent times. Their visual editorials reflect diverse viewpoints conveyed in a wide variety of artistic approaches, including the classic cross-hatching techniques of Harper's Weekly cartoonist Thomas Nast and Washington Star cartoonist Clifford Berryman, the broad crayon strokes of Rube Goldberg and Bill Mauldin, and the painterly styles of contemporary cartoonists Paul Conrad and Patrick Oliphant.
* Rare early comics in large, multi-panel formats include portrayals of the Yellow Kid and Buster Brown, two early famous comic strip characters created by Richard Outcault. Family strips such as "Bringing Up Father" by George McManus, "Gasoline Alley" by Frank King and "For Better or for Worse" by Lynn Johnston chronicle the humorous ups and downs of family life. Selections include adventure strips "Secret Agent X-9" by Alex Raymond and "Terry and the Pirates" by Milt Caniff; artfully innovative strips "Krazy Kat" by George Herriman and "Dream of the Rarebit Fiend" by Winsor McCay; and timeless classics "Popeye" by Elzie Segar and "Peanuts" by Charles Schulz. All transport viewers to other, self-contained, captivating worlds.
* Gag cartoons by Peter Arno, Barbara Shermund, George Price and others lampoon behavioral quirks and foibles that madden and amuse readers of The New Yorker and other popular magazines.
* Caricatures of Stokely Carmichael, by David Levine, and of performers Jimmy Durante and Paul Whiteman, in a 1935 staging of "Jumbo" by Al Hirschfeld, offer incisive insights and display witty and magical use of the pen.
* Treasures of animation art include a Walt Disney Productions cel of Mickey Mouse from "Fantasia"; a delightful drawing of Dumbo the elephant bathing himself; a storyboard drawing for "Bambi" by Tyrus Wong; a presentation drawing of all of the Seven Dwarfs; and a beautiful animation cel of Snow White for Disney's groundbreaking first full-length animated feature "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" (1937).
* America's Golden Age of Illustration (1880s to 1920s) is represented by drawings created by Edwin Austin Abbey, James Montgomery Flagg, Dean Cornwell and their pioneering women counterparts, Nell Brinkley, Rose O'Neill and Katherine Pyle.
Wood, an award-winning cartoonist himself, began collecting original drawings at the age of 12. During a period of 60 years, he contacted and befriended numerous older masters of cartoon art forms, as well as leading contemporary creators in the field, and obtained selections of their work, primarily by gift and some by purchase. During his professional life, Wood worked diligently to establish a museum or gallery to preserve and showcase his collection. He achieved his goal in 1995 with the opening of the National Gallery of Caricature and Cartoon Art in downtown Washington, D.C., but the gallery closed in 1997, due to a lack of sustained funding. Undeterred, Wood turned to the Library of Congress, where he had worked early in his career, to preserve and present his collection.
A companion book titled "Cartoon America: Comic Art in the Library of Congress" will be published by Harry N. Abrams, in association with the Library of Congress. The book is edited by Harry Katz, former head curator of the Library's Prints and Photographs Division. Images of many cartoon drawings in the exhibition will be included among the 275 full-color illustrations in the book, which also surveys the Library's other holdings of related art.
The exhibition and an accompanying brochure are funded through the generous support of the Caroline and Erwin Swann Memorial Foundation for Caricature and Cartoon. The Swann Foundation showcases the collections of the Library of Congress in rotating exhibitions and promotes the continuing Swann Foundation program in the study of cartoon, caricature and illustration, while also offering a provocative and informative selection of works by masters from the past and present.
Library of Congress Exhibition "Cartoon America" Opens Nov. 2
Exhibition Features America's Best Cartoons from the Art Wood Collection
"Cartoon America: Highlights from the Art Wood Collection of Cartoon and Caricature" will open at the Library of Congress on Thursday, Nov. 2, in the Great Hall of the Thomas Jefferson Building, 10 First St. S.E., Washington, D.C. On view through Jan. 27, 2007, the exhibition is free and open to the public from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday-Saturday.
The exhibition will feature 100 masterworks of such celebrated artists as political cartoonists Thomas Nast, Rube Goldberg, Bill Mauldin and Patrick Oliphant; comic strip creators Winsor McCay, George Herriman, Chic Young, Milt Caniff, Charles Schulz and Lynn Johnston; humorous gag cartoonists Peter Arno and William Steig; caricaturists Al Hirschfeld and David Levine; animation drawings and cels from Walt Disney Productions and Hanna-Barbera; and illustrations by Edwin A. Abbey, John Held and Michael Hague.
Drawings selected for the exhibition reflect the primary collecting interests of J. Arthur Wood Jr., a connoisseur of popular graphic art. Wood's collection of more than 36,000 original cartoon drawings * the Art Wood Collection of Cartoon and Caricature * is now housed in the Library's Prints and Photographs Division. The collection came to the Library in 2003 through a gift-purchase agreement made possible in part by a generous contribution from H. Fred Krimendahl II, a member of the Library's Madison Council, and the generosity of Wood himself.
The collection, spanning three centuries, is distinctive and unparalleled because of the depth of holdings in political cartoons and comic strips and the specific landmark pieces in all major genres. It stands out as a jewel among the Library's special collections, illuminating the history of American cartoon art forms and greatly enhancing the Library's extensive holdings of cartoon art.
According to exhibition co-curators Sara W. Duke and Martha H. Kennedy, the exhibition presents stellar examples from Wood's collection that reflect the vitality of an innovative, indigenous art form. The exhibition features the major genres of cartoon art: political cartoons, illustration, comic strips, gag and single-panel cartoons, illustration, and animation drawings and cels. An overview of highlights includes:
* Political cartoons by leading practitioners of the "ungentlemanly art," who comment pointedly on corruption, war and public figures from the 19th century's Gilded Age to recent times. Their visual editorials reflect diverse viewpoints conveyed in a wide variety of artistic approaches, including the classic cross-hatching techniques of Harper's Weekly cartoonist Thomas Nast and Washington Star cartoonist Clifford Berryman, the broad crayon strokes of Rube Goldberg and Bill Mauldin, and the painterly styles of contemporary cartoonists Paul Conrad and Patrick Oliphant.
* Rare early comics in large, multi-panel formats include portrayals of the Yellow Kid and Buster Brown, two early famous comic strip characters created by Richard Outcault. Family strips such as "Bringing Up Father" by George McManus, "Gasoline Alley" by Frank King and "For Better or for Worse" by Lynn Johnston chronicle the humorous ups and downs of family life. Selections include adventure strips "Secret Agent X-9" by Alex Raymond and "Terry and the Pirates" by Milt Caniff; artfully innovative strips "Krazy Kat" by George Herriman and "Dream of the Rarebit Fiend" by Winsor McCay; and timeless classics "Popeye" by Elzie Segar and "Peanuts" by Charles Schulz. All transport viewers to other, self-contained, captivating worlds.
* Gag cartoons by Peter Arno, Barbara Shermund, George Price and others lampoon behavioral quirks and foibles that madden and amuse readers of The New Yorker and other popular magazines.
* Caricatures of Stokely Carmichael, by David Levine, and of performers Jimmy Durante and Paul Whiteman, in a 1935 staging of "Jumbo" by Al Hirschfeld, offer incisive insights and display witty and magical use of the pen.
* Treasures of animation art include a Walt Disney Productions cel of Mickey Mouse from "Fantasia"; a delightful drawing of Dumbo the elephant bathing himself; a storyboard drawing for "Bambi" by Tyrus Wong; a presentation drawing of all of the Seven Dwarfs; and a beautiful animation cel of Snow White for Disney's groundbreaking first full-length animated feature "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" (1937).
* America's Golden Age of Illustration (1880s to 1920s) is represented by drawings created by Edwin Austin Abbey, James Montgomery Flagg, Dean Cornwell and their pioneering women counterparts, Nell Brinkley, Rose O'Neill and Katherine Pyle.
Wood, an award-winning cartoonist himself, began collecting original drawings at the age of 12. During a period of 60 years, he contacted and befriended numerous older masters of cartoon art forms, as well as leading contemporary creators in the field, and obtained selections of their work, primarily by gift and some by purchase. During his professional life, Wood worked diligently to establish a museum or gallery to preserve and showcase his collection. He achieved his goal in 1995 with the opening of the National Gallery of Caricature and Cartoon Art in downtown Washington, D.C., but the gallery closed in 1997, due to a lack of sustained funding. Undeterred, Wood turned to the Library of Congress, where he had worked early in his career, to preserve and present his collection.
A companion book titled "Cartoon America: Comic Art in the Library of Congress" will be published by Harry N. Abrams, in association with the Library of Congress. The book is edited by Harry Katz, former head curator of the Library's Prints and Photographs Division. Images of many cartoon drawings in the exhibition will be included among the 275 full-color illustrations in the book, which also surveys the Library's other holdings of related art.
The exhibition and an accompanying brochure are funded through the generous support of the Caroline and Erwin Swann Memorial Foundation for Caricature and Cartoon. The Swann Foundation showcases the collections of the Library of Congress in rotating exhibitions and promotes the continuing Swann Foundation program in the study of cartoon, caricature and illustration, while also offering a provocative and informative selection of works by masters from the past and present.
Nov 1 - articles in today's papers
The Express has an article on Jonah Hex by Scott Rosenberg, and the Examiner has Truitt's regular New Comic Book Releases column and a review of a new Family Guy videogame.
Tuesday, October 31, 2006
Post goes with Cory Thomas' 'Watch Your Head'
I don't think that La Cucaracha by Lalo Alcaraz got its full tryout time, but yesterday the Post ran this notice:
A NOTE TO COMICS READERS
Washington Post Monday, October 30, 2006; Page C10
Today, "Watch Your Head" by Cory Thomas returns to the comics pages to replace "Boondocks," whose creator, Aaron McGruder, decided not to continue the strip after a six-month sabbatical. Written by Cory Thomas, a Howard University graduate, "Watch Your Head," chronicles the lives of six students at a historically black university. If it looks familiar, it may be because it was the first tryout strip The Post ran in place of "Boondocks" during McGruder's absence.
As always, we welcome reader feedback on this or any other feature on our comics pages. Call our comics hotline at 202-334-4775, e-mail comics@washpost.com or write to: Comics Feedback, The Washington Post, 1150 15th St. NW, Washington, DC 20071.
A NOTE TO COMICS READERS
Washington Post Monday, October 30, 2006; Page C10
Today, "Watch Your Head" by Cory Thomas returns to the comics pages to replace "Boondocks," whose creator, Aaron McGruder, decided not to continue the strip after a six-month sabbatical. Written by Cory Thomas, a Howard University graduate, "Watch Your Head," chronicles the lives of six students at a historically black university. If it looks familiar, it may be because it was the first tryout strip The Post ran in place of "Boondocks" during McGruder's absence.
As always, we welcome reader feedback on this or any other feature on our comics pages. Call our comics hotline at 202-334-4775, e-mail comics@washpost.com or write to: Comics Feedback, The Washington Post, 1150 15th St. NW, Washington, DC 20071.
Oct 31 - Satrapi signing and article; DC caricaturist
Marjane Satrapi's signing Chicken with Plums about her musician granduncle tonight at Politics and Prose in the District.
An article about her is in today's Express -
Rosenberg, Scott. 2006.
A life in 8 days: Graphic novelist Marjane Satrapi traces family history.
[Washington Post] Express (October 31): 17
There's also an article of interest in the Post's Health section. Mike Caplanis writes about changing his career from advertising to being a caricaturist.
Truth in Advertising -- And Art
Live Reports from the Midlife Adventure
Washington Post Tuesday, October 31, 2006; Page HE03
Sunday, October 29, 2006
Oct 31 - Marjane Satrapi booksigning REPOST
Politics & Prose Bookstore
October 31, 7 pm
Her new book is Chicken with Plums.
Given that it's Halloween, I won't be there unfortunately. She's an entertaining speaker. However, I have ordered a signed copy and an audio cd of the event. These are a nice innovation by P&P - for $7.50 you can get a recording of the talk. I've bought cds of the Attitude 3 group, Scott McCloud and Alison Bechdel in the past 2 weeks. The Feiffer audio was substandard so that's not available.
October 31, 7 pm
Her new book is Chicken with Plums.
Given that it's Halloween, I won't be there unfortunately. She's an entertaining speaker. However, I have ordered a signed copy and an audio cd of the event. These are a nice innovation by P&P - for $7.50 you can get a recording of the talk. I've bought cds of the Attitude 3 group, Scott McCloud and Alison Bechdel in the past 2 weeks. The Feiffer audio was substandard so that's not available.
Oct 29 - two more days to see Simplicissimus!
It's closing on October 31, 2006.
Simplicissimus and the Empire 1896-1914
ADDRESS:812 Seventh St. NW
Washington, DC 20001
Metro: Gallery Place/Chinatown202-289-1200
www.goethe.de/washington
Simplicissimus and the Empire 1896-1914
ADDRESS:812 Seventh St. NW
Washington, DC 20001
Metro: Gallery Place/Chinatown202-289-1200
www.goethe.de/washington
Oct 29 - Addams article in today's Post
Jonathan Yardley is kinder than most of the reviewers have been for the new book Charles Addams: A Cartoonist's Life by Linda H. Davis - see his review "The man behind that macabre family wasn't creepy or kooky."
Washington Post Book World Sunday, October 29, 2006; BW02
Also in the BW is a review of Susanna Clarke's new collection of short stories, and the Post used two of Charles Vess' illustration. I'd be buying this for the Vess alone, but I also enjoyed her first book Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norell and my wife just loved it. Also illustrating a review of Robert Kagan's new book on realpolitick is a WA Roger's political cartoon on the Monroe Doctrine from the fine capitalists at Bettman/Corbis. At least they didn't slap a copyright symbol on it, as I'd estimate this dates from Teddy Roosevelt's Great White Fleet diplomacy.
Washington Post Book World Sunday, October 29, 2006; BW02
Also in the BW is a review of Susanna Clarke's new collection of short stories, and the Post used two of Charles Vess' illustration. I'd be buying this for the Vess alone, but I also enjoyed her first book Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norell and my wife just loved it. Also illustrating a review of Robert Kagan's new book on realpolitick is a WA Roger's political cartoon on the Monroe Doctrine from the fine capitalists at Bettman/Corbis. At least they didn't slap a copyright symbol on it, as I'd estimate this dates from Teddy Roosevelt's Great White Fleet diplomacy.
Thursday, October 26, 2006
Oct 26 - Toles to receive conservation award tonight
Dave Astor reports the story over at Editor and Publisher. His Syndicate World articles are well-worth following btw.
About a year and a half-ago, the Washington Post Magazine ran a long article by Toles on his garden.
Conservation Honor for Editorial Cartoonist Tom Toles
By E&P Staff
Published: October 25, 2006 2:35 PM ET
About a year and a half-ago, the Washington Post Magazine ran a long article by Toles on his garden.
Conservation Honor for Editorial Cartoonist Tom Toles
By E&P Staff
Published: October 25, 2006 2:35 PM ET
Tuesday, October 24, 2006
Oct 24 - Also in today's Post - comics aren't educational
This article -
Assigned Books Often Are a Few Sizes Too Big
By Valerie Strauss
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, October 24, 2006; Page A10 -
speaks to one of my pet peeves which is the de-intellectualizing (is that a word?) of books or rather the forcing of books on an audience that's too young for them. Twain didn't write Tom Sawyer for children, and this article points out some other good example. I was forced to read Kafka in 11th grade, and I can assure you that I didn't relate.
Anyway, here's the comics content, which is bothersome in a different way:
"Sofi Sinozich, a seventh-grader in the Humanities and Communications Magnet Program at Eastern Middle School in Montgomery County, said she would like to be assigned books that speak to her.
In sixth-grade English, "graphic novels [were] excluded, which annoyed many of us," said Sofi, who is partial to Japanese comics called manga because she finds the style beautiful and the stories well done.
Many teachers exclude graphic novels and comics from reading lists, even though a graphic novel was nominated for the National Book Award this year. And Archbishop Desmond Tutu, a Nobel Peace Prize winner, has said he learned to read through comics after his schoolmaster father disregarded others who said they would lead to no good.
So should kids read Shakespeare or the comics? Graphic novels or "To Kill a Mockingbird"? Reading experts say they should read everything -- when they are ready to understand what they are reading."
Assigned Books Often Are a Few Sizes Too Big
By Valerie Strauss
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, October 24, 2006; Page A10 -
speaks to one of my pet peeves which is the de-intellectualizing (is that a word?) of books or rather the forcing of books on an audience that's too young for them. Twain didn't write Tom Sawyer for children, and this article points out some other good example. I was forced to read Kafka in 11th grade, and I can assure you that I didn't relate.
Anyway, here's the comics content, which is bothersome in a different way:
"Sofi Sinozich, a seventh-grader in the Humanities and Communications Magnet Program at Eastern Middle School in Montgomery County, said she would like to be assigned books that speak to her.
In sixth-grade English, "graphic novels [were] excluded, which annoyed many of us," said Sofi, who is partial to Japanese comics called manga because she finds the style beautiful and the stories well done.
Many teachers exclude graphic novels and comics from reading lists, even though a graphic novel was nominated for the National Book Award this year. And Archbishop Desmond Tutu, a Nobel Peace Prize winner, has said he learned to read through comics after his schoolmaster father disregarded others who said they would lead to no good.
So should kids read Shakespeare or the comics? Graphic novels or "To Kill a Mockingbird"? Reading experts say they should read everything -- when they are ready to understand what they are reading."
Oct 24 - Trudeau article - Weingarten chat followup
I just snipped the four questions that related to his interview with Trudeau - to see the whole chat, follow the link.
Chatalogical Humor aka Tuesdays With Moron
Gene Weingarten
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, October 24, 2006; 12:00 PM
Baby Woman: Gene,
Thanks for running my comment yesterday. I did not know that Joanie was named after the National Women's Political Caucus, though it makes sense. (My mom was active in it around the time I was born.) So while in no way encouraging insubordination what else did you leave out? BTW, I'm a huge fan of "A Prairie Home Companion," too, so I was thrilled to hear that Trudeau is friends with Fred Newman.
Gene Weingarten: Joanie Caucus was modeled after a real person in Trudeau's life.
If you recall, Joanie arrived at Walden Commune after having jettisoned her husband and family one day. Complimenting her on her cooking, her husband had said to his friends "I think I'll keep her," and Joanie broke his nose. Then split.
So, it turns out that Trudeau had an aunt who did that, almost exactly. Suburban wife of a banker. Walked out of a car containing her husband and kids, and never came back. Lived in communes, and an Indian teepee in Oregan, called herself "Sasha Wildflower."
_______________________
Trudeau: So you are doing a profile of someone you clearly admire. How do you avoid sinking into hagiography? Do you ask yourself, "How would Pat Buchannan view this subject?" Do you try to empty your mind of any preconceived notions?
Gene Weingarten: This is in reference to my cover story Sunday about Garry Trudeau, someone I do, indeed, admire.
It was a problem. The way you deal with it is you keep an open mind, make negative judgments where they are appropriate, but don't go out of your way to seek negativity for "balance," because that's unfair in its own right. Garry made this very hard because he is, in fact, a terrific, unassuming, gracious, brilliant guy.
In the end, I decided the most honest way to deal with it was to acknowledge it in the story: I like the guy a lot. I'm sure plenty of people feel it WAS hagiography.
_______________________
When I knew Garry was a genius: In 1976, he did a strip showing Joanie's phone ringing in her empty bedroom. As if in a movie, the camera panned out her window. Next day, a pan across the rooftops of the town. The next day, a pan into Rick's window, where Rick was sleeping and Joanie was lying awake next to him. I clipped them, pasted them together, and put them in a scrapbook. 1976.
Gene Weingarten: Yes, this was one of his most famous sequences. As a sign of the times: Many papers pulled it, because it seemed to be endorsing unmarried sex. One conservative writer said that it seemed to him that the sex Joanie and Rick had was "joyless."
_______________________
St. Paul, Minn.: I'm reading Maus right now with some friends. And got wondering after I read your Trudeau piece what's the difference between a novel like Maus and comics like Doonesbury. Is it just the difference between a novel and a short story (or something like that) or is it more? Thanks.
Gene Weingarten: A novel and a short story is close, sure. In Doonesbury, various storylines are progressing in a parallel fashion. He revisits each, for a week or two, every few weeks. So actually, that is kind of novelistic
Chatalogical Humor aka Tuesdays With Moron
Gene Weingarten
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, October 24, 2006; 12:00 PM
Baby Woman: Gene,
Thanks for running my comment yesterday. I did not know that Joanie was named after the National Women's Political Caucus, though it makes sense. (My mom was active in it around the time I was born.) So while in no way encouraging insubordination what else did you leave out? BTW, I'm a huge fan of "A Prairie Home Companion," too, so I was thrilled to hear that Trudeau is friends with Fred Newman.
Gene Weingarten: Joanie Caucus was modeled after a real person in Trudeau's life.
If you recall, Joanie arrived at Walden Commune after having jettisoned her husband and family one day. Complimenting her on her cooking, her husband had said to his friends "I think I'll keep her," and Joanie broke his nose. Then split.
So, it turns out that Trudeau had an aunt who did that, almost exactly. Suburban wife of a banker. Walked out of a car containing her husband and kids, and never came back. Lived in communes, and an Indian teepee in Oregan, called herself "Sasha Wildflower."
_______________________
Trudeau: So you are doing a profile of someone you clearly admire. How do you avoid sinking into hagiography? Do you ask yourself, "How would Pat Buchannan view this subject?" Do you try to empty your mind of any preconceived notions?
Gene Weingarten: This is in reference to my cover story Sunday about Garry Trudeau, someone I do, indeed, admire.
It was a problem. The way you deal with it is you keep an open mind, make negative judgments where they are appropriate, but don't go out of your way to seek negativity for "balance," because that's unfair in its own right. Garry made this very hard because he is, in fact, a terrific, unassuming, gracious, brilliant guy.
In the end, I decided the most honest way to deal with it was to acknowledge it in the story: I like the guy a lot. I'm sure plenty of people feel it WAS hagiography.
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When I knew Garry was a genius: In 1976, he did a strip showing Joanie's phone ringing in her empty bedroom. As if in a movie, the camera panned out her window. Next day, a pan across the rooftops of the town. The next day, a pan into Rick's window, where Rick was sleeping and Joanie was lying awake next to him. I clipped them, pasted them together, and put them in a scrapbook. 1976.
Gene Weingarten: Yes, this was one of his most famous sequences. As a sign of the times: Many papers pulled it, because it seemed to be endorsing unmarried sex. One conservative writer said that it seemed to him that the sex Joanie and Rick had was "joyless."
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St. Paul, Minn.: I'm reading Maus right now with some friends. And got wondering after I read your Trudeau piece what's the difference between a novel like Maus and comics like Doonesbury. Is it just the difference between a novel and a short story (or something like that) or is it more? Thanks.
Gene Weingarten: A novel and a short story is close, sure. In Doonesbury, various storylines are progressing in a parallel fashion. He revisits each, for a week or two, every few weeks. So actually, that is kind of novelistic
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