Richard Thompson's Cut & Play Shakespeare Festival online

Kahn! Kahn!!! Kaaaaahhhhhnnnnn!
Finally the Post has put up Richard Thompson's Cut & Play Shakespeare Festival. I'm making mine now - that Michael Kahn was tough to cut out, but it's tempting to photocopy dozens of them and turn them loose on the world. Or perhaps just stick them in the Globe models in the National Building Museum exhibit.

CFP: International Comic Arts Forum (3/15/07; 10/18/07-10/20/07)

That's Call For Papers for the non-academic readers among us. BTW, anyone can submit a paper to ICAF - you don't have to be affiliated with a college. I've done a couple that don't seem to have harmed anyone. This is one of my favorite events in Comics DC. And look! There's that new name that I had suspicions of.


The Twelfth Annual INTERNATIONAL COMIC ARTS FORUM (ICAF)

October 18-20, 2007
The Library of Congress, James Madison Building, Washington, D.C.

The International Comic Arts Forum (formerly the International Comic Arts Festival) invites scholarly paper presentations for its twelfth annual meeting, to be held at the Madison Building of the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C., from Thursday, October 18, through Saturday, October 20, 2007. We welcome original proposals from a variety of disciplines and theoretical perspectives on any aspect of comics including comic strips, comic books, albums, manga, graphic novels, political cartoons, other panel cartoons, caricature, or comics in electronic media), with a special interest in international comics. Proposals will be refereed via blind review.

PROPOSAL GUIDELINES

For its scholarly presentations, ICAF prefers argumentative, thesis-driven papers, clearly linked to larger critical, artistic, or cultural issues; we strive to avoid presentations that are merely summative or survey-like in character. We can only accept original papers that have not been presented or accepted for publication elsewhere. Presenters should assume an audience versed in comics and the fundamentals of comics studies. Where possible, papers should be illustrated by relevant images. In all cases, presentations should be timed to finish within the strict limit of TWENTY (20) MINUTES (roughly eight to nine typed, double-spaced pages).

Proposals should not exceed 300 WORDS. At the bottom of the proposal, the author should precisely state her/his audiovisual equipment needs.

AUDIOVISUAL EQUIPMENT: Our preferred format for the display of images is MS PowerPoint. Regretfully we cannot accommodate non-digital media such as transparencies, slides, or VHS tapes. Presenters should bring their PowerPoint or other electronic files on a CD or a USB key, not just on the hard drive of a portable computer. We cannot guarantee the compatibility of our equipment with presenters' individual laptops.

REVIEW PROCESS: All proposals will be subject to blind review by the ICAF Executive Committee, with preference given to proposals that observe the above standards. The final number of papers accepted will depend on the needs of the conference program. Due to increasing interest in the conference, in recent years ICAF has typically accepted only one third toone half of the proposals it has received.

SEND ABSTRACTS (with COMPLETE contact information) by March 15, 2007, to Prof. Cécile Danehy, ICAF Academic Coordinator, via email at .

Receipt of proposals is acknowledged immediately; if you do not receive acknowledgement within a few days of sending your proposal, please resubmit.

Applicants should expect to receive confirmation of acceptance or rejection by May 15, 2007.


(Comics scholars, please note the conference's change of name. Our currentwebsite can be found at http://go.to/icaf, though that may be changing in the next few weeks as well.)

Jan 29 - Shojo Manga exhibit at JICC

This post is cleaned up a bit and the links work now. Note that an RSVP is required for the opening lecture on January 30th - click on the JICC link at the bottom to do so. This exhibit will be in a non-descript building on 21st St, NW at about M St, but it should be a nice exhibit. The JICC does a lot of interesting stuff. I plan on attending the opening and have RSVP'd. Anyone else?


Active Anime posted this press release from the Japan Information and Culture Center -

Girl Power! Girls’ Comics from Japan - An Exhibit
Posted on Monday, January 15, 2007 - 01:04 PM
Japan Information and Culture Center, Washington D.C presents Girls' Comics from Japan - An Exhibit. The exhibit will run from January 29 - March 16, 2007


This international touring exhibit features historic Japanese manga, with a special emphasis on shojo manga—comic books for girls. The exhibit features 23 renowned shojo manga creators and more than 200 works from World War II to the present.The pieces in this exhibit come together for the first and only time in Washington D.C.

The medium reflects the evolution of the social roles of Japanese girls and women during this period. The exhibition also documents how the visual composition of manga mirrors the developments in Japanese aesthetics.

Curated by Dr. Masami Toku, Associate Professor of Art and Art History at California State University Chico, “Girl Power!” has toured throughout North and South America Details at: http://www.csuchico.edu/~mtoku/vc .

Opening lecture: Tuesday, January 30, 2007 in the JICC Auditorium,from 6:30 p.m. RSVP to jiccrsvpwinter07@embjapan.org

Join us for a special opening talk by Masami Toku, curator and general director of the Shojo Manga Project. Dr. Toku will provide an opening lecture for this exhibition, offering insights into the featured works as well as the artists themselves. Refreshments will be served and exhibition catalogue will be available.

Co-Sponsored by: Japan Information and Culture Center; The Japan-America Society of Washington, Inc.; The Japan Foundation, New York; and California State University, Chico.

Shojo Manga Project: http://www.csuchico.edu/~mtoku/vc

Visit the Japan Information and Culture Center - Embassy of Japan - Washington D.C. at http://www.us.emb-japan.go.jp/jicc/index.htm

Jan 16 - Winsor McCay lecture at LOC REPOST

Martha Kennedy reports Swann Foundation Fellow Katherine Roeder will present a lecture titled "Wide Awake in Slumberland: Fantasy and Mass Culture in the work of Winsor McCay," at noon on Tuesday January 16, 2007, in the Library of Congress's Dining Room A on the sixth floor of the James Madison Building, 101 Independence Ave. S.E., Washington, DC. Roeder's illustrated presentation is based on a research project, which has been supported by her fellowship from the Swann Foundation for Caricature and Cartoon, which is administered by the Library. The lecture, sponsored by the foundation and the Library's Prints and Photographs Division, is free and open to the public; no reservations are required.

Jan 13 Cut & Play Shakespeare Festival in Post

Richard Thompson's Richard's Poor Almanack (note that new spelling) has another set of cutouts today, and there's six of them! DC's staging an area-wide Shakespeare festival this spring (including an adaptation by comic book writer Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa). This set of cutouts has the greats - Richard III, Lady MacBeth and director Michael Kahn! I'll be making these. Unfortunately, it's not online yet so you'll have to buy, beg or borrow the Post's Style section for p. C3.

Richard Thompson has not paid for mentions in this blog.

Spiegelman, Katchor to speak in spring

Nextbook is advertising Art Spiegelman on February 20th at 7:30 and Ben Katchor on April 17th at 7:30 at the Washington DC Jewish Cultural Center on 16th St. Tickets are $8.00 each apparently. Novelist Myla Goldberg is speaking on February 5th; for our purposes, her husband is cartoonist Jason Little, but she's done a couple of good novels.

Cartoon America - the missing pictures

The Library put up an online version of the exhibit, but had to leave out some of the images. For those who were wondering what they were missing, we present this gallery. The description and numbering are from the checklist, which has links to all the other images.


Edmund Duffy. From Ever Darkening Clouds, ca. 1944
Probably published in the Baltimore Sun
Crayon, ink brush, and opaque white over graphite underdrawing
LC-DIG-ppmsca-07517 (4)








John Jensen. "Ah'm makin' way fer Bobby K," ca. 1968
Watercolor and ink brush over graphite underdrawing
LC-DIG-ppmsca-07182 (9)







William Gropper. Fat man with telescope standing on a mound of skulls
Possibly published in New Masses
Ink, crayon, and opaque white with spatter over blue pencil, between 1920 and 1940
LC-DIG-ppmsca-03602 (12)



Pat Oliphant. Waiting for Reagan, 1982
Published by Universal Press Syndicate, August 11, 1982
Ink with opaque white out graphite underdrawing
LC-DIG-ppmsca-10609 (23)

Ollie Harrington. Bootsie. "Brother Bootsie we really appreciate you droppin' in to wish us Merry Chris'mus but we got a few things to do right now, so drop by some other time -- aroun' the first of April for instance!" December 30, 1961
Drawn for the Pittsburgh Courier
Crayon and ink over blue pencil underdrawing
LC-DIG-ppmsca-03492 (33)


Clare Briggs. When a Feller Needs a Friend. When You Meet Her Daddy and Somehow You Feel So Inadequate, 1923
Published by New York Tribune, Inc., November 5, 1923
Ink over graphite underdrawing with paste-on
LC-DIG-ppmsca-03607 (34)


David Pascal. "Couldn't we meet in a more secluded place, dear?" between 1965 and 1974
Published in 1000 Jokes
Ink wash, ink, opaque white, and charcoal over graphite underdrawing
LC-DIG-ppmsca-09122 (41)





Chester Gould. Dick Tracy. The Ultimatum. "What did you find out, Tracy?" 1931
Published by News Syndicate Co., Inc., December 18, 1931
Ink with scraping out over graphite underdrawing with paste-on
LC-DIG-ppmsca-07736 (58)


Elzie Segar. Popeye. "I'll bet poor Wimpy has desert madness -- probably raving around saying poetry," 1935
Published by King Features Syndicate, Inc., May 12, 1935
Ink over graphite underdrawing with paste-ons
LC-DIG-ppmsca-03468 (68)



George Herriman. "Krazy Kat." Panel shows Ignatz taking a bow below the trapeze, 1942
Published by King Features Syndicate, April 19, 1942
Ink with scraping out over graphite underdrawing with paste-on
LC-DIG-ppmsca-03340 (72)







Phil Davis and Lee Falk. Mandrake the Magician. Reaching the Road Block, Mandrake Gestures Hypnotically at the Plane Robbers --, 1961
Published by King Features Syndicate February 5, 1961
India ink over graphite underdrawing with blue pencil and paste-ons
LC-DIG-ppmsca-09492 (73)


Johnny Hart. B.C. "Do you believe in destiny?" 1969
Published by Field Enterprises, February 5, 1969
India ink over graphite underdrawing with porous point pen
LC-DIG-ppmsca-09129 (76)


Joseph Barbera. Jerry of Tom and Jerry, ca. 1940
Graphite and blue pencil
LC-DIG-ppmsca-06459 (81)



Joseph Barbera. Tom of Tom and Jerry, between 1940 and 1957
Graphite and blue pencil
LC-DIG-ppmsca-06460 (85)



Saul Steinberg. Self Portrait, 1954
Close variant version published in the New Yorker, July 10, 1954
Ink
LC-DIG-ppmsca-05870 (89)








Fleischer Studios. Popeye fighting his way out of a jellyfish, ca. 1940
Preparatory drawing for Females is Fickle, directed by Dave Fleischer and animated by David Tendlar and William Sturm, and released by Fleischer Studios on March 8, 1940
Graphite and colored pencil
LC-DIG-ppmsca-12917 (97)



Raymond Allen Jackson. "I can't stand any more of this, I think I'll go out and face the unions," 1969, Probably published in the London Evening Standard, April 15, 1969
Ink brush, crayon, opaque white, and watercolor wash over graphite underdrawing
LC-DIG-ppmsca-03297 (101)

and some special bonuses--



Fred Flinstone model sheets from Art Wood now in American Treasures exhibit.













Snoopy cel from Art Wood now in American Treasures exhibit.













Original Eisner art now in American Treasures exhibit.

Spider-Man returns to Washington Examiner

Today's Washington Examiner is carrying the Spider-Man Collectible Series comic book again - #19 reprints Amazing Spider-Man #9 introducing Electro. Yay! Steal your neighbor's copy today.

On the negative side, Brian Truitt's New Comics Releases column hasn't been in the paper for the past three weeks. Is it coming back? I actually buy comics based on his recs.

Library of Congress imprint of approval for Cathy

Scooped again! E&P Online's Dave Astor reported that the Library of Congress is using a Cathy strip on preserving photographs on their website. And I'm an archivist! I've even got this strip hanging up in my office, even though it is Cathy!

Remember folks, always back up your data. And anything you can view with eyeballs instead of machinery works best.

W-DC mentions in Best Comics Scholarship 2006

"Best Comics Scholarship 2006" by Beth Davies-Stofka, at Broken Frontier (January 8, 2007) mentions a few bits related to Comics in DC. Of the International Journal of Comic Art of which I'm pleased to be the exhibitions and media reviews editor, she says, "IJOCA remained the best bargain in 2006, charging only $30.00 for an individual subscription." She also singles out former Big Planet Comics employee Dan Nadel’s book Art Out of Time and The Library of Congress' exhibit and book Cartoon America as deserving notice.

Actually, I've seen just about everything on her list, and concur with her recommendations and conclusions, and hopes for 2007.

Washington comics blogger Marc Singer

My friend Prof Marc Singer recently returned to DC to take a post in the English Dept. at Howard University. Marc's been writing a blog for years at I am NOT the Beastmaster. (I never thought he was, having no idea what movie he's referencing). Marc's one of the organizers of the annual International Comic Arts Festival -- an annual event that I enjoy immensely and which I believe just changed its name again.

Marc's got a very literate blog, as one would expect from an English Professor, and this post on Eric Reynold's anthologyMome was singled out today by Tom Spurgeon's Comic Reporter for good reason I think (although I reserve my opinion of Mome, because Eric's a friend too, and I only have one issue that I haven't read yet. Mea culpa.) Marc's also done some excellent posts on Grant Morrison which are worth tracking down.

Beyond our focus, his post on Casino Royale is excellent too - perhaps because he's seems sympathetic to the first Timothy Dalton movie, which I enjoyed as it returned Bond to being a stone-cold killer -- the rationale behind the 'double 0'.

3rd in a series of posts on DC comics-types.

Catching up on the weekend Post - Richard's Poor Almanack

Scoop! Richard Thompson changed the way he spells his strip!

Ok, that's not much of a scoop, but the strip "Comic Strip Previews for 2007" is a really good one.

Boy, everybody hates Anthony, don't they?

So, anybody besides me actually cut out and make the fingerpuppets that he draws? I made Sorry Santa today, during a dull moment (rare! I promise!) at work. Unfortunately, it looks as though the Post only links to the most recent panel so you'll have to dig through the two-week old recycling to make yours.

Catching up on the weekend Post - Dilbert on torture

One of the oddest editorials in recent memory appeared in the Sunday's Post Outlook section -
"I'm Tortured by Doubt" by Scott Adams, Sunday, January 7, 2007; Page B01. Fortunately, he doesn't make us wait, but puts his conclusion in the first paragraph: "Lately I've moved from "pretty certain" to "doubtful" about the effectiveness of torture." Whew, that's a relief from the suspense.

He's also got some fun free wallpapers on his site, and that's where the illo for this post came from.

Keith R.A. DeCandido on Pierce Askegren

Yesterday's Post obituary on Askegren led to Tom Spurgeon posting a link to Keith R.A. DeCandido's blog entry on the local superhero writer. DeCandido edited the line of stories for Marvel that Askegren was writing.

Pierce Askegren obituary in today's Post

The local writer of prose superhero stories for Marvel got a larger obituary today - A Technical Writer's Alter Ego: Engaging Comic Book Novelist By Louie Estrada, Washington Post Staff Writer, Sunday, January 7, 2007; C06. The print version has a nice picture.

Jan 10 12 noon - Eisner talk at Library of Congress

Bob Andelman scoooped me on this in his Spirited Life newsletter (you'll be hearing from me, Martha):

Gallery Talk on Will Eisner at Library of Congress, Jan. 10
Did you know that the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C., has original art by Will Eisner?

Martha Kennedy of the Prints and Photographs Division will discuss the work of graphic novelist Will Eisner on Wednesday, January 10 at noon in the “American Treasures” exhibition at the Library of Congress’ Jefferson Building, the Southwest Gallery of the Great Hall, which is on the second floor.

“We were able to acquire a group of drawings of his from a short story in City People Notebook,” Kennedy tells the Eisner eNewsletter. “We were interested in acquiring examples and we had limited funds, so Will gave us the original drawings for the story ‘Collision.’ During the gallery talk, I’m going to talk about five of the eight drawings and give a brief biography of Will Eisner. The talks are informal and are given by curators. I’ll talk about the three stories within the story in this piece and talk about his enormous significance in the field of comic art.”

If you decide to go, don’t be late; the talk will only last about 20 minutes, with time for questions afterward.

“Its not a footnoted academic paper,” Kennedy says. “But it’s something I’ve been wanting to do for a while. I wanted to convey a sense of Eisner’s importance. The gallery talks are a nice, informal way of letting the public and the Library of Congress staff itself know more about these wonderful treasures we’re able to add to the collection.”

And yes, Kennedy is an Eisner fan.

“We were able to bring him in twice to talk,” she says. “The first time as a part of a panel and the second to talk about the graphic novel. It was such a pleasure to work with him.”

For more information, please call: 202-707-9203.

Jan 7 - Animation festival - Norman McLaren restored REPOST

Norman McLaren Restored
Premiere of new 35 mm prints
January 7 at 4:30 p.m., National Gallery of Art

Brilliant Scottish-born Canadian animator Norman McLaren (1914–1987) perfected many of the techniques that became the standard of animation art. Often imitated, McLaren's work during the 1930s and 1940s for the National Film Board of Canada and Britain's GPO film unit was legendary. Eleven of his classic short films — including Begone Dull Care (1949), Neighbours (1952), A Chairy Tale (1957), Pas de deux (1968), Synchromy (1971), Blinkity Blank (1955), and Hen Hop (1942) — have now been restored by the National Film Board of Canada to their original 35 mm format. Viewed in these spectacular new prints, McLaren's films demonstrate cinema's close affinity with painting and music — a concept that was one of this artist's main preoccupations. (total running time 85 mins.)

Jan 6: Animation festival in Frederick

Ninety minutes of classic Looney Tunes will be shown at the Cartoon Festival at the Weinberg Center for the Arts in Frederick, MD the Frederick Herald-Mail is reporting, along with these details:

WHAT: Cartoon Festival

WHEN: 2 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 6.

WHERE: Weinberg Center for the Arts, 20 N. Patrick St., Frederick, Md.

COST: $6 for adults; $4 for children.

MORE: Tickets are available at the box office and at the door. Go to www.weinbergcenter.org for box office hours and for more information.

Tom Toles profile online

Tom Spurgeon of The Comics Reporter picked this one up today -
"Post's Toles Skewers Bush for Breakfast" By Harry Jaffe

Washington Examiner's political gossip column notices Marvel's Civil War

In their Yeas and Nays column, Jeff Dufour and Patrick Gavin of the Washington Examiner for January 3, 2007 have "Spider-Man lassos White House in his web."In their opinion, Marvel's current Civil War storyline draws obvious links to the current actual war in Iraq.