Richard's Poor Almanack previewed Free Comic Book Day for the 4th time

See all 4 strips here. He cracks me up.

Crystal City's summer Superheroes movies fest starts May 4th

Crystal Screen - Superheroes

Join the Crystal City BID for 21 weeks of Superheros! On Monday nights from May 4, 2009-September 21, 2009, Crystal City will be protected by Batman, Spiderman, Superman, and many others. Each night will also have special giveaways, sponsors, and other activities.

Date(s):
May 4, 2009 - September 21, 2009

Location:
18th and Bell Street - Courtyard Across from Crystal City Metro Station & Marriott Hotel

Event Fee:
Free

Hours:
Movies begin at sundown

Description:
Join the Crystal City BID for 21 weeks of Superheros! On Monday nights from May 4, 2009-September 21, 2009, Crystal City will be protected by Batman, Spiderman, Superman, and many others. Each night will also have special giveaways, sponsors, and other activities. Check back here for more information.

CRYSTAL KID BONUS: Since it gets dark later in the summer and movies often start past bedtime, the BID has partnered with Crystal City Sports Pub to rebroadcast each movie at 3:30 PM on the 3rd Floor of CCSP on the Wednesday following the outdoor showing, starting May 6. Bring your kids and a blanket and enjoy the fabulous surround network of TVs.

OPENING NIGHT SPECIAL: On Opening Night, May 4th, swing by the Noodles & Company at 2011 Crystal Drive and get a FREE soup, salad, or noodles from 5-7PM when you mention Crystal Screen.

Festival Rules: Patrons can bring their own picnics as long as they abide by city and festival rules. Low-backed chairs and blankets are allowed, but grills, umbrellas, and pets are prohibited.


Schedule

May 4th 2009 - Spider-Man
May 6th 2009 - Spider-Man - at CCSP
May 11, 2009 - Spider-Man 2
May 13, 2009 - Spider-Man 2 - at CCSP
May 18, 2009 - Spider-Man 3
May 20, 2009 - Spider-Man 3 - at CCSP
May 25, 2009 - The Hulk
May 27, 2009 - The Hulk - at CCSP
June 1, 2009 - Hulk 2: The Incredible Hulk
June 3, 2009 - Hulk 2: The Incredible Hulk - at CCSP
June 8, 2009 - Superman: The Superman Movie
June 10, 2009 - Superman: The Superman Movie - at CCSP
June 15, 2009 - Superman 2
June 17, 2009 - Superman 2 - at CCSP
June 22, 2009 - Superman 3: Superman vs. Superman
June 24, 2009 - Superman 3: Superman vs. Superman - at CCSP
June 29, 2009 - Superman 4: The Quest for Peace
June 31, 2009 - Superman 4: The Quest for Peace - at CCSP
July 6, 2009 - Superman 5: Superman Returns
July 8, 2009 - Superman 5: Superman Returns - at CCSP
July 13, 2009 - X-Men
July 15, 2009 - X-Men - at CCSP
July 20, 2009 - X2
July 22, 2009 - X2 - at CCSP
July 27, 2009 - X-Men: The Last Stand
July 29, 2009 - X-Men: The Last Stand - at CCSP
August 3, 2009 - Fantastic Four
August 5, 2009 - Fantastic Four - at CCSP
August 10, 2009 - Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer
August 12, 2009 - Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer - at CCSP
August 17, 2009 - Batman
August 19, 2009 - Batman - at CCSP
August 24, 2009 - Batman Returns
August 26, 2009 - Batman Returns - at CCSP
August 31, 2009 - Batman Forever
September 2, 2009 - Batman Forever - at CCSP
September 7, 2009 - Batman & Robin
September 9, 2009 - Batman & Robin - at CCSP
September 14, 2009 - Batman Begins
September 16, 2009 - Batman Begins - at CCSP
September 21, 2009 - Batman: The Dark Knight
September 23, 2009 - Batman: The Dark Knight - at CCSP

Fantom Comics moving sale

I stopped by Fantom Comics today to get the 5 trade paperbacks of Arvid Nelson's Rex Mundi - you can still do that for another couple of hours and he does a nice signature and quote in each - and found out that they'll be moving at the end of this month to an undetermined location. In the meantime, they're having a 50% off sale of a lot of good stuff - I bought a bunch. If I hadn't been going to Big Planet since 1986, Fantom would be my store of choice because they've got a lot of stuff beyond superheroes.

Free Comic Book Day - it's time to hit the streets

The tag below this will take you to our earlier posts about who's signing where. I'll be checking out Fantom Comics in Tenleytown and a couple of the Big Planets.

RFK Journalism Awards reception report

I'm posting this because my wife thinks it's cool.

Last night, the RFK Journalism Awards had a reception for we (us?) judges downtown. Of the cartoon judges, half of us made it - namely Nick Galifianakis and me. The food was excellent and it was a pleasure to talk to Nick and the photo judges (who did their judging the same day we did, but were seemingly more contentious). The part Cathy thinks is cool is that Mrs. Ethel Kennedy was able to stop in and made a point of greeting everyone and shaking their hand and thanking them - which I thought was very nice. To avoid this being a totally content-free post, I will say that she recommended reading The Great Deluge: Hurricane Katrina, New Orleans, and the Mississippi Gulf Coast by Douglas Brinkley which seems like a good idea to me too.

The actual award will be given to Jack Ohman later this month.

David Coverly and Jef Mallett's visit to Walter Reed Hospital detailed

I never hear about this in the base newspaper - sigh. For Jef (Frazz) Mallett and David (Speed Bump) Coverly's visit to Walter Reed Hospital and Bethesda Naval Hospital, see "From the funny page to just off the frontline: Lansing cartoonist takes trip to sketch for wounded soldiers," by Bill Castanier, Lansing City Pulse (April 29 2009).

Wash Post on Wolverine

See "So Violent, and Yet So Blhttp://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=34955617oodless," By John Anderson, Special to The Washington Post, Friday, May 1, 2009.

Wolverine's history is so convuluted now that it's impenetrable to reason, as when A.O. Scott in "I, Mutant, Red in Face and Claw," says, "“X-Men Origins: Wolverine” will most likely manage to cash in on the popularity of the earlier episodes, but it is the latest evidence that the superhero movie is suffering from serious imaginative fatigue. A twist at the end that gives poor Wolverine a bad case of amnesia — turning him into a kind of Jason Bourne with sideburns — is a virtual admission that nothing terribly interesting has been learned about the character. He forgets his origins before the movie devoted to their exposition is even over. It won’t take you much longer." He's actually got it backwards by blaming the movie - in the comic books, Wolverine had amnesia which had become necessary as various writers added parasitical bits to a fairly basic origin story that couldn't support them.

Jen Sorenson interview on Comic Riffs

See "The Interview: 'Slowpoke' Alt-Cartoonist Jen Sorensen," By Michael Cavna, May 1, 2009. Jen's always good. I buy her new book at SPX every year, even if I already have it because it's not really new. Because she appreciates it.

UPDATE: A version of this apparently runs in Sunday's physical paper - The Back Story: Sister, Can You Spare a Smile?, Washington Post May 3, 2009

David Hagen's new Zazzle site

David Hagen's Gallery at Zazzle went live yesterday, and you can buy t-shirts by the man who devised the ComicsDC logo spontaneously, out of the goodness of his heart, without knowing me from Adam. Personally I'm getting the Drop Everything and Read shirt. The whole family might be getting it.

Last Chance: Free Bo Nanas Mini-comic for Free Comic Book Day

John Kovaleski writes in to inform us:

Only two more days to get a free copy of the Bo Nanas mini-comic, "TheBlustery Day." It's all in honor of Free Comic Book Day (Saturday. May 2), All you have to do is e-mail me and I'll send you a PDF copy. (There's ateeny bit of assembly required, but I know you can handle it.) So what are you waiting for? Get your copy today! Offer ends tomorrow!

Also, on Free Comic Book Day I'll be at Comix Connection in York, PA, 10:00 to 2:00. I'll have the usual books and fun and FREE signed Bo prints.

As always you can find out too much about me on my blog: http://kovaleski.wordpress.com/

Enjoy Free Comic Book Day - the greatest holiday of them all.

Zadzooks on Wolverine comics

See "Zadzooks: Wolverine comic book reviews; X-Men's Wolverine and Logan explored," By Joseph Szadkowski, Washington Times April 30, 2009. I actually bought my first Wolverine comic in perhaps a decade - the faux manga one that Marvel and Del Ray put out this week, just out of curiosity.

And I think I missed at least one Bennett's best:

Scalped and Viking for last week: "Bennett's Best for the week of April 19," By Greg Bennett, April 25, 2009 Zadzooks blog.

Dylan Dog and Paul Pope from two weeks ago: "Bennett's Best for the week of April 12," April 16, 2009 Zadzooks blog.

Jim Dougan and Molly Lawless at Fantom Comics

Jim writes in self-deprecatingly,

I'm going to be at Fantom Comics in Tenleytown this Saturday from 12-6ish along with my occasional collaborator but more importantly fabulous cartoonist in her own right, the inimitable Molly Lawless! We're kind of a local opening act of sorts, because the "headliner" is REX MUNDI writer/creator Arvid Nelson!

More details here:

http://www.fantomcomics.com/2009/04/join_fantom_comics_for_free_co.html

And a brief article from the Express that rightfullly focuses on REX MUNDI:

http://www.expressnightout.com/content/2009/04/slim_volumes_big_fantasies_free_comic_bo.php

I'll have a laptop to show SAM & LILAH, copies of CRAZY PAPERS and NO FORMULA and maybe my controversial collaboration with Molly HOW I LOST MY S#?! AT THE APPLE STORE, Molly will have copies of INFANDUM...AD INFINITUM, I'm sure Fantom will have a ton of REX MUNDI, and we'll all have a good time!

I plan on being there. I've already got Jim's books (somewhere in a pile, sigh...) and perhaps Molly's, but I'll buy the Rex Mundi books which Arion Berger in the Express liked quite a bit.

Kate Feiffer interview

She was at Politics and Prose today with her father Jules Feiffer, and will be in Old Town Alexandria tomorrow. See "Big Woof: Kate Feiffer's 'Which Puppy?'," by Express contributor Stephen M. Deusner, Express April 30, 2009.

Also as we've noted, they'll be appearing tomorrow:

We’d be thrilled if you would mention that Jules & Kate Feiffer will be appearing at Hooray For Books! 1555 King St., Alexandria, VA on Friday, May 1 at 7 p.m. We’ll have copies of “The Explainers” and “Great Comic Book Heroes” on hand.

Weingarten's Chatalogical Humor chat on some comics

Comments on comics from the past two weeks including Chatological Humor: Denim Friendly Since 2001; Talking Susan Boyle (UPDATED 4.24.09) aka Tuesdays With Moron, Gene Weingarten, Washington Post Staff Writer, Tuesday, April 21, 2009; 12:00 PM.

--------------
What were they thinking?: So the comics editors brought back "Judge Parker." Okay, fine, I'm cool with that. I was wondering if Sophie was going to make the cheerleading squad. But to make room, they chose a strip to move to the KidsPost page, and the strip they chose was... "Agnes"? Um, has anyone involved with this decision actually read "Agnes"? It's often incomprehensibly edgy, certainly for the KidsPost demographic.

I have a ten-year-old daughter who likes to read some of the comics, and I can tell you without a doubt which strip most appeals to her: "Baby Blues." It manages to be truly funny but also understandable to kids. If the point of this exercise is to get more kids to look at KidsPost, they should really rethink the choice of strip.

Could you go slap the comics editors around for me, Gene?

Gene Weingarten: I am not allow to slap comics editors.

_______________________

I am not one of your sycophant groupies...: I want you to know how utterly reprehensible it is that your weekly harangue against Hagar the Horrible, Beetle Bailey, Dennis the Menace, Family Circus et al should result in your comic strip being picked up by a syndicate. Many of us cut our teeth and learned how to read from those very strips and what you don't seem to understand is that not every comic has to appeal to the tastes of a 60 year old, old fart like yourself.

So go enjoy your ill gotten fruit but know that some of us recognize the dublicity of it all especially picking on poor little PJ -- I mean heck, he's just a little kid !

Gene Weingarten: I think P.J. is something like 48 years old.

_______________________

[apropos of a previous discussion of what makes a hero]

Krypt, ON: I find it interesting that Superman would not be considered a hero here for doing good since he risks nothing and expends, for him, little effort, but would be because he does it on his own time. Sometimes. When he isn't defrauding a newspaper. Which may be the real reason newspapers are going under.

Gene Weingarten: Whoa, whoa. He is a hero. It's not a question necessarily of what you risk, it's what you sacrifice. He sacrifices privacy. He sacrifices the ability to be a fully realized person. He is definitely a hero.

Rockville, Md.: Gene,

Is there something wrong with me because I was incredibly turned on by seeing Janis topless in yesterday's Arlo and Janis? I'm a happily married 39 year old guy if it makes a difference.

washingtonpost.com: Arlo and Janis, (April 20)

Gene Weingarten: I've said it before. Arlo and Janis is the hottest comic strip maybe ever.

_______________________

Funny Pa, PR: Since you're not allowed to bring this up: the April 17 Lio was genuinely unreadable at the size the Post printed it. The only way to make sense of it was to work backwards: there was a staggering drunk spider, so the spiderweb must have had something intoxicating in it.

At first there didn't seem to be anything in the middle of the web at all. Prolonged close study revealed what I guess was a beer can. Figuring this out was not worth the eyestrain.

Gene Weingarten: This was absolutely true. It's how I had to read it to get the joke. Liz, can you link to this? Online, it will be bigger; but imagine trying to figure it out at an inch high.

and a 'new' contest, although Cavna's been doing this off and on at Comic Riffs, usually with editorial cartoons.

Chatological Humor: Swine Flu Fever; Quiet Cars; Cat Calls (UPDATED 4.30.09), Gene Weingarten, Washington Post Staff Writer, Wednesday, April 29, 2009; 12:00 PM

Several weeks ago, Chatological Humor discontinued its regular Comic Pick of the Week feature, on the theory that it would be unseemly for me to critique comic strips if I were soon to be the author of one. I promised to find a replacement feature, and here it is. It's going to be reader-generated, and the first submission is by Justin Stone.

That's what we're doing. Rewrite dialog balloons for any current comic strip; you can either post your results on a Web site like flickr or Facebook, and send me a link, or you can send it right to me at weingarten(at)washpost.com. Important: You must make your dialogue fit the existing balloons. As Justin discovered, this can be hard. Comic-strip writing is Pinteresque.

Gene Weingarten: Ooh, this just in. Chatological Humor might have had a beneficial, tangible effect in the world.

Last week, a chatter noted, correctly, that "Agnes" was a tone-deaf joice as the comic strip chosen to appear on the KidsPost page. Very, very true: It's excellently cynical, even nihilistic, with big words and complex themes.

Someone apparently listened. I've just heard that it goes back on the comics page, and will be replaced in KidsPost by Frazz. Much better choice. Frazz or Big Nate would have been my choices.

I disagree here, as did some other Comic Riffs commenters. Garfield or Peanuts would have been a better choice. My 11-year-old daughter doesn't read Frazz.

Free Comic Book Day at Big Planet Comics PR

Free Comic Book Day is this Saturday, May 2nd, at Big Planet Comics!

We’ll be open from 11AM-6PM and we’ll have piles of free comics from Marvel, DC, Dark Horse, Image, Oni, Top Shelf, and many more! Some highlights include the first part of Green Lantern’s Blackest Night written by Geoff Johns and a new Avengers comic written by Brian Bendis.

We have special pre-packs for the kids.

Stop by, say hi; we'd love to see you!

--

BIG PLANET COMICS
4908 Fairmont Ave.
Bethesda, MD 20814
301-654-6856

Also affiliated with:

BIG PLANET COMICS
3145 Dumbarton St. NW
Washington, DC 20007
202-342-1961

BIG PLANET COMICS
426 Maple Ave. East
Vienna, VA 22180
703-242-9412

BIG PLANET COMICS
7315 Baltimore Ave.
College Park, MD 20740
301-699-0498

Free Comic Book Day "not available in any store" freebies

Hogan's Alley, a magazine I infrequently write for, but really like says:

Even in the depths of the Great Recession, the best things in life are free! Mark your calendars for this Saturday, May 2: Free Comic Book Day. Send us an e-mail ON THAT DATE with your mailing address, and we’ll send you a FREE issue of Hogan’s Alley! No obligations, no strings attached; the only thing it will cost you is several hours as you enjoy the issue. (This offer is valid for all U.S. residents, whether you’re a current subscriber or not.) Remember the one condition —we must receive your e-mail request on Free Comic Book Day (May 2), not the day before or the day after. (Before and after that date, any requests for freebies will receive only scorn and derision.) Feel free to pass this offer along to anyone you know who might enjoy Hogan’s Alley! [their email seems to be hoganmag@gmail.com]


TwoMorrows revolutionized fanzine publishing with Jack Kirby Collector and mags with lots and lots of creator interviews. They say:

TwoMorrows Publishing, in its 15th year of celebrating the art and history of comic books and LEGO, is commemorating Free Comic Book Day by again giving away publications online at www.twomorrows.com.

From May 1-3, TwoMorrows will be offering free complete digital issues of their various magazines for download, so customers can sample their publications. This limited time offer includes issues of their current magazine line-up:

ALTER EGO (focusing on Golden and Silver Age comics)

BACK ISSUE! (celebrating comic books of the 1970s, 1980s, and today)

THE JACK KIRBY COLLECTOR (documenting the life and career of the "King" of comics)

DRAW! (the professional "how-to" magazine on comics and cartooning), and

BRICKJOURNAL (the ultimate resource for Lego enthusiasts)

Also featured are past favorites ROUGH STUFF and WRITE NOW!, which are still available as back issues. Digital Editions normally retail for $2.95-$3.95 per download, but are free over the three-day Free Comic Book Day weekend, to encourage more readers to try them out, and consider ordering them at their local comic book shop.

TwoMorrows is also making available free downloads of previous years' FCBD publications: COMICS GO HOLLYWOOD (revealing secrets behind fans' favorite on-screen heroes, and what's involved in taking a character from the comics page to the big screen) and COMICS 101 (featuring how-to and history lessons from top comics professionals).

All these publications are available as free downloadable Digital Editions just by logging in and adding them to the shopping cart, and checking out at www.twomorrows.com.

Publisher John Morrow explained, "With the economy down, every penny counts, and these Digital Editions are an economical way for us to let readers sample our stuff, and see if it piques their interest. If so, I hope they'll add new issues to their local retailer's pull list, and get older issues direct from us if their retailer doesn't stock our publications."

Glen Weldon on the joys of Free Comic Book Day

See "Free Comic Books: Say it Soft and it's Almost Like Praying," by Glen Weldon, National Public Radio's Monkey See blog April 29 2009.

Big Planet Comics Bethesda will have premade packages of kids and adult comics as well as individual issues. They also have a sale table which has some good stuff on it like Love & Rockets collections.

Glen Weldon on A Drifting Life manga and Shuster porn

See "Books We Like: Memoir Of A Manga Master," by Glen Weldon, NPR.org, April 24, 2009 on A Drifting Life By Yoshihiro Tatsumi; translated by Adrian Tomine.

For Shuster porn info read, "Faster Than a Speeding Bullwhip: Superman Creator's Kinktastic Art," by Glen Weldon, National Public Radio's Monkey See blog (April 15 2009).

And for Craig Yoe's own take, you can listen to him on Fresh Air - "The Sexy 'Secret Identity' Of Superman's Creator," National Public Radio's Fresh Air from WHYY, April 23, 2009.

Free Comic Book Day at Cards, Comics and Collectibles PR

Straight press release here, but two excellent creators.

Free Comic Book Day at Cards, Comics and Collectibles

From the Store that Brings You the Baltimore Comic-Con...

REISTERSTOWN, MD - April 28, 2009 - In honor of 2009's Free Comic Book Day promotion, Cards, Comics and Collectibles of Reisterstown, MD will be celebrating along with the rest of the nation on May 2, 2009. Come and meet artist Frank Cho (Hulk, Mighty Avengers) from 1pm-4pm, and artist Steve Conley (Star Trek) from 11am-7pm!

FCBD Special -- modern back-issues are only one dollar! Oh yeah, and we're also giving away free comics while they last! Our hours for Free Comic Book Day are
11am-7pm.

Come help us celebrate our 25th year!

Comic Riffs on characters crossing between strips

I'd noted this and planned on posting on it, but Michael beat me to it - "Barrel of Laughs: Why Dennis Is Buck-Nekkid In TWO Strips Today," by Michael Cavna, April 28, 2009.