Maryland comic strip exhibit profiled

Kings of the Pages: Comic Strips and Culture 1895—1950
Comics exhibit at McDaniels College highlights a colorful slice of American history
By Max Robinson
Baltimore City Paper October 26, 2011
http://citypaper.com/arts/books/kings-of-the-pages-comic-strips-and-culture-1895-1950-1.1222930

Truitt on Robot Chicken

'Robot Chicken' revels in five seasons of toy spoofs
By Brian Truitt, USA TODAY October 25 2011
http://www.usatoday.com/life/comics/story/2011-10-25/Robot-Chicken-animated-series-revels-in-fives-seasons-of-toy-spoofs/50905986/1

Bob Staake draws Homer Simpson

...for the Style Invitational contest. He's actually far more on-model than I expected.

Post on Beavis and Butt-heads oh-so-long-awaited return

'Beavis and Butt-head' return to MTV
By Jen Chaney,
Washington Post October 21 2011
http://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/beavis-and-butt-head-return-to-mtv/2011/10/17/gIQAv1An3L_story.html

Comic Riffs talks to comic book creators about e-distribution battle

DC vs. BARNES & NOBLE SHOWDOWN: O Creator, Where Art Thou?
By Michael Cavna
Washington Post Comic Riffs blog October 25 2011
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/comic-riffs/post/dc-vs-barnes-and-noble-showdown-o-creator-where-art-thou/2011/10/24/gIQAbkhHEM_blog.html#pagebreak

Miller's Holy Terror looked at with by a DC area foreign correspondent

Holy Terror comic is 'Islamophobic', say critics
Michael Hernandez (Foreign Correspondent)
Oct 25, 2011
http://www.thenational.ae/thenational/news/worldwide/holy-terror-comic-is-islamophobic-say-critics

This is for the Arab Emirates paper, and quotes a Big Planet Comics employee.

Nashville musician grew up reading Washington comics pages

Are Comic Strips Doomed?
Frank Michels
Random Things That Fall Out of My Head blog OCTOBER 24, 2011
http://open.salon.com/blog/frank_michels/2011/10/24/are_comic_strips_doomed

Big Planet guest-stars in Richmond comics report

Chris Pitzer of Adhouse Books talks about buying comics in Richmond and somehow Big Planet honchos Greg Bennett and Joel Pollack are in the picture (literally).

USA Today on Pilot Season, Birds of Prey and Batman

'Pilot Season' Week 3: The nasty beast within 'The Beauty'
By Brian Truitt, USA TODAY October 18 2011
http://www.usatoday.com/life/comics/story/2011-10-18/Top-Cows-Pilot-Season-continues-with-The-Beauty/50815448/1

Bryan Cranston goes from 'Breaking Bad' to Batman
By Brian Truitt, USA TODAY October 18 2011
http://www.usatoday.com/life/comics/story/2011-10-18/Bryan-Cranston-goes-from-Breaking-Bad-to-Batman/50811132/1

'Birds of Prey' flies again under Duane Swierczynski's wing
By Brian Truitt, USA TODAY October 17 2011
http://www.usatoday.com/life/comics/story/2011-10-17/DC-Comics-Birds-of-Prey-series-flies-again/50801090/1

PR: Fantom's Moving Sale & 2nd Annual Halloween Parade

2 Big Announcements! Fantom Comics 2nd Annual Halloween Parade and Costume Contest   We'll be leaving the Union Station store at promptly 5pm to parade around the Columbus Circle and finish at Kelly's Irish Times for drinks, fun and prizes!   Why come?   Prizes! We'll have prizes for: a) Best costume; b) Best couples costume; c) Geekiest costume. We will also be choosing 1 random person from the attendees list on Facebook for an additional prize, so be sure to confirm your attendence on the party's Facebook Event Page (To be eligible for a costume prize, you have to participate in the parade itself. To win the Facebook prize you just need to say you're attending on FB and be there to accept) Fun! Have a blast with fellow nerds! Perfect timing! By starting at 5pm we ensure that you can move on to whatever other big parties you've got going on later that night. Last chance to say good-bye to the old store. Saturday night is our last night at our current location. When we open up on Sunday it'll be at our new spot 1 floor up. Last chance to participate in our Moving Day Sale (see below)! Fantom Comics Moving Sale   Moving is a pain in the butt! Even if it's just moving upstairs. So from this coming Sunday, October 22 until next Saturday, October 29, Fantom Comics is offering 20% off of everything in the store, barring only the Newest Week's comics. Help us not have to break our backs moving all that inventory up all those stairs by taking advantage of this deal. Union Station - 50 Massachusetts Avenue NE | Washington, DC 20002 | 202-216-9478 www.fantomcomics.com

Oct 26: Tom Feister signs in Salisbury, mD

Comic book artist to visit Salisbury
Ben Penserga
Oct. 23, 2011
http://www.delmarvanow.com/article/20111023/LIFESTYLE/110230314/Comic-book-artist-visit-Salisbury


SALISBURY -- Comic artist Tom Feister comes to Salisbury as part of Illusions Games & Comics Customer Appreciation Day on Oct. 26.

Fiester, who has done work on "G.I. Joe" and "Legion of Superheroes," will appear to sign autographs from 4-6 p.m.

Click through to read an interview with him.

Oct 22: 3rd Eye Comics' Lovestruck Signing & SALE Tomorrow

For the full schedule of 6 WEEK HEART ATTACK events, click here.   Meet KEVIN MELLON (artist of Blair Butler's HEART) and DENNIS HOPELESS Tomorrow at Third Eye!  FIRST 5 PEOPLE IN LINE GET A THIRD EYE PRIZE PACK (including variants, comics, graphic novels and more)   Greetings and Salutations, Third Eye Faithful!   We're hosting an epic signing tomorrow at Third Eye in Annapolis with two of the quickest rising stars in comics: Dennis Hopeless and Kevin Mellon.    The signing will take place between 11AM-4PM.   Lovestruck released a couple of weeks ago, and with it, came a load of positive critical response. It's a fantastic story that reads like a fresh, and exciting mash-up of FABLES, AMERICAN GODS and SCOTT PILGRIM with a little bit of a Devil's Advocate kind of feel.    We're totally pumped to have these guys at the shop this weekend to celebrate the release of LOVESTRUCK. They'll be signing, sketching, and all that good stuff, and will also have prints and other exclusive merchandise available sale.   As many of you know, Kevin is also the artist on the new IMAGE COMICS title, HEART, by G4TV's BLAIR BUTLER, which is going to be HUGE, and we'll have Blair and Kevin back in on 11/12 for a big signing of HEART #1.    At NYCC last weekend, the Heart booth was swarmed, and judging by the sheer awesomeness of Kevin's work on LOVESTRUCK, Heart is going to be that extra push that pushes him over the edge into one of the biggest artists of 2012.   Also, joining Kevin is LOVESTRUCK writer DENNIS HOPELESS, who really impressed the heck out of us last week on LEGION OF MONSTERS #1, which delivered a fun, edgy and quirky read reminiscent of NEXTWAVE.   We'll have both of these guys at Third Eye in Annapolis from 11AM-4PM, so please, c'mon by and pay them a visit!   GET LOVESTRUCK BY OUR LOVESTRUCK CELEBRATION SALE   In celebration of having Dennis and Kevin out, we're going to be hosting a kick-ass surprise sale.  *15% OFF ALL TRADE PAPERBACKS & HARDCOVERS (excluding LOVESTRUCK & this week's new releases) *15% OFF ALL TOYS & STATUES (excluding this week's new releases) *15% OFF ALL BOARD GAMES & RPGs  *15% OFF ALL APPAREL   Click here for the FACEBOOK event details.

Third Eye Comics | 45 Old Solomons Island Rd | Suite 102 | Annapolis | MD | 21401

Cartoons & Cocktails coverage

Cartoons & Cocktails and the Full Monty
By Betsy Rothstein
Mediabistro.com's FishbowlDC blog October 21, 2011
http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowldc/cartoons-cocktails-and-the-full-monty_b53983

I was fortunate enough to be the guest of Nate Beeler and bought some cartoons myself.

Publisher's Weekly on local cartoonists

John Gallagher photographer here:

Kids' Comics: Small but Mighty at NYCC 2011
By Brigid Alverson
Oct 18, 2011
http://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/childrens/childrens-book-news/article/49157-kids--comics-small-but-mighty-at-nycc-2011.html

Book that Richard Thompson and Ben Hatke are profiled in here:

First Second Comics Anthology Updates Classic Nursery Rhymes
By Ada Price
Oct 20, 2011
http://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/childrens/childrens-book-news/article/49198-first-second-comics-anthology-updates-classic-nursery-rhymes.html

Bob Artley, 1917-2011

George Robert Artley ( Bob Artley) husband, father, grandfather and great grandfather, author cartoonist, illustrator and commercial artist passed away at his home in Akron, Ohio on Friday, October 21, 2011. He was 94 years old.

 Bob, the first born of George Denison Artley and Elsie Louise (Crow) Artley was born on the family farm 5 miles west of Hampton, IA  on July 1^st 1917.

 Bob has been a commercial artist, cartoonist, writer and in the last thirty years has published over 14 books, all but one dealing with issues on the farm, most of them concentrated on the first half of the 20^th century.  One book " Ginny, A Love Remembered" focused on the life and subsequent death of his first wife, from Alzheimer's Disease. He was probably best know for his editorial cartoons at the Des Moines Tribune, and Worthington Globe, and for his feature panel, "Memories of a Former Kid" many of  which still appear in publications throughout the United States.

Bob attended country school in and around the Hampton area through the 1920's. After passing his eighth grade country school exams, he went on to Hampton High School where he graduated in 1935. During High School, Bob took a special interest in art, and particularly in editorial cartooning. His cartoons were featured in high school and local publications, which led to his being mentored by the great J.N. "Ding" Darling.

After high school, he continued his education at Grinell College. He was inducted into the U.S. Army at the beginning of America's entry into WWII. He served in the medical corps as a laboratory Technician, and was being trained to be part of the invasion force when the war ended. While in the Army in 1943, he met and married fellow lab technician and WAAC Virginia E. Moore, of Southfork ,PA.

Bob returned to civilian life in 1946 and returned to the farm of his childhood where he farmed with his father. In 1950 he returned to college on the GI Bill of rights at the State University of Iowa, (U of Iowa) where he receive his BA in 1951.

In 1952 through 1957 he was employed as an editorial cartoonist with the Des Moines Tribune. After that he became a commercial artist with Nelson Advertizing Agency and later Plain Talk Publishing , both of Des Moines. Bob was active in the Des Moines and surrounding area arts communities. He was a member of the Des Moines Art Center, taught art classes, conducted numerous "chalk talks" at various schools and civic functions, and mentored local aspiring artists. During the 1960's, he also drew a regular feature that accompanied the weather report on WHO-TV's evening news.

In 1967 he, his wife and his two younger children moved to Adrian Minn. Where they published a small town newspaper, The Nobles County Review. After a short period of time they purchased a building in Adrian and began The Print Shop, a commercial printing company. During 1971 he began doing some commercial and cartoon work for The Worthington Daily Globe, which eventually led to him doing exclusive cartoon work. During his time there he started a periodic and popular cartoon of life on the farm during his childhood called, "Memories of a Former Kid."  This led in 1978 to the publishing of a book by the same name. He remained at the Worthington Globe until the mid 1980's.

After his retirement, he continued drawing feature panels that were syndicated by Extra Newspaper Features Syndicate based at the Rochester Post Bulletin in Rochester, MN. He also began writing his other books, including Memories of a Former Kid, Christmas on the Farm, Ginny, Country School and many more too numerous to mention. Many of his first books were published through Iowa State University Press, and later by Pelican Publishing in New Orleans. Bob's book "Ginny, a Love Remembered" was endorsed by the Altzheimer's Disease Association and contained a Foreword by Princess Yasmin Aga Khan, who was active in Altzheimer's disease awareness, as her mother — 1940's movie actress Rita Hayworth suffered from the illness. His last book, Memories of a Farm Kitchen — co-authored with his son Rob, was released in the autumn of 2010.  Several of his books are still in print. His books have netted a substantial fan base in farming communities throughout the U.S. and Canada, and even among rural regions of Europe.

Throughout the entire country, in banks, schools, libraries and now in the Smithsonian, one may find his work. It has been a study in life on the farm in the first years of the previous century. Up into the 1990's Bob made appearances on local talk shows, including two interviews on the Twin Cities' popular Boone & Erickson Show broadcast by WCCO (Minneapolis).

Bob is survived by his wife Margaret, Rob M. Artley of Rochester MN., Steven G. Artley of Alexandria VA, Joan (Artley) Sterner of St. Paul MN as well as 11 grandchildren and 13 great grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his first wife Ginny and his oldest daughter Jeannie.

Funeral arrangements are pending.

Steven G. Artley,

President

Studio: 571-312-2382

artleytoons

Artley Design Inc.

www.artleytoons.com

Oct 21: Ben Hatke at Politics and Prose

Richard Thompson cancelled due to illness.

Oct 21: Ben Hatke at Politics and Prose

Ben Hatke - Nursery Rhyme Comics
Start: Oct 21 2011 7:00 pm
End: Oct 21 2011 8:00 pm
Friday, October 21, 7 p.m. This ingenious pairing of fifty classic nursery rhymes with pictures by today's leading comic artists puts a colorful spin on Mother Goose. Join us for a reading and discussion by Hatke, who took on "Pussycat, Pussycat, Where Have You Been?" All ages.

Jan Eliot of Stone Soup on her Library of Congress exhibit inclusion

Click here to read Jan's opinion about her early work being included in the new Library of Congress exhibit.

Oct 22: Justin Jordan at Beyond Comics

In Store Signing
Saturday October 22nd
12noon to 3pm

Meet Justin Jordan Creator of

The Strange Talent of Luther Strode

At Beyond Comics
Frederick Location

PR: Illustrator Brad Holland to Speak at Montgomery College Art Opening Nov. 3

Illustrator Brad Holland to Speak at Montgomery College Art Opening Nov. 3

Washington, DC, Oct. 20, 2011 – Internationally acclaimed illustrator and artists' rights advocate

Brad Holland will present a slide lecture of his work on November 3 entitled "Confessions of a Short

Order Artist," followed by a Q & A on important copyright issues affecting visual artists.

 

The program follows the opening reception for "Off the Page – On the Wall," an exhibit of recent

artwork by area illustrators, sponsored by the Illustrators Club of Washington DC, Maryland and

Virginia, at the Morris & Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation Arts Center, 930 King Street, Silver Spring,

Maryland 20910.

The reception takes place from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. and the lecture from 8:00 to 9:00 p.m. Both events

are open to the public: the reception is free, while general admission for the lecture is $15.

 

Brad Holland is one of the most influential illustrators of the 20th Century.

The New York Times, in

nominating him for a Pulitzer Prize, wrote that his work goes "beyond the moment to illuminate a

general condition universal in space and time. The images are sometimes brutal, but the feeling is

almost always compassionate." The Washington Post has called him "an undisputed star of American

Illustration," and the editors of RSVP, the artists' directory, voted him "the one artist, who in our

opinion, has had the single greatest impact on the illustration field during the last twenty five years."

 

Writing in Print magazine, critic Steven Heller concluded, "as [Jackson] Pollock redefined plastic art,

Holland has radically changed the perception of illustration."

 

In recent years, Brad Holland has emerged as the seminal voice illuminating the complex and shifting

business landscape for illustrators and their diminishing control over their copyrights and businesses.

He is one of the founders of the Illustrators' Partnership of America (IPA), the first organization in

the history of American visual authorship to seek to implement a rational collective rights clearance

administration for illustrators' copyrights. (More at http://www.asip-repro.org/holland_bio.html )

 

The Illustrators Club of DC, MD & VA is a non-profit, all-volunteer trade association founded in

1986, dedicated to promoting the art and industry of illustration and ensuring fair business practices.

Its 100+ members include professional illustrators, graphic designers, educators, students, vendors

and related businesses. (More at http://www.illustratorsclub.org )

###

PR: Anime USA 2011 proudly announces our final round of webcomics guests

Anime USA 2011 proudly announces our final round of webcomics guests

Anime USA 2011 announces Tamuran and Shadowbinders as webcomics guest for this year's convention on November 18-20th at the Hyatt Regency Crystal City. 

H. A. "Chezhnian" Kennedy and Erin Fitzgerald (left) are the respective creator/writer and artist/co-writer of Tamuran, a manga-style epic fantasy webcomic. Tamuran is the story of a young royal heir suddenly turned king-in-exile and his quest to save his kingdom from the country of powerful, grudge-bearing sorcerers that has taken it over. The young king must travel far across the wilds of his dying land, accompanied only by a few unlikely and unexpected protectors - who include a wild elf whose entire clan has mysteriously disappeared, a shapeshifting girl from a magical ascended race who knows little of the mortal world, and a huge man-eating forest beast with an academic bent. Their comic can be found at www.tamurancomic.com

Created by former Disney comics alumn Thom Pratt (drawing under the pen name of "Kneon Transitt") and his wife Kambrea Pratt, the  Shadowbinders  webcomic set sail online in 2010 and hasn't slowed down since.  Shadowbinders  has found an audience in fans of steampunk, anime and young adult literature, in addition to fans of traditional comic books. The comic can be read online for free at  www.shadowbinders.com , and a print collection will be available this Fall. Their comic can be found at www.shadowbinders.com

Registrations are at $43 until October 30th along with further information about the con can be found at  www.animeusa.org . 

About Anime USA: In  1999   Anime USA  began as a northern Virginia convention started by fans, and in  2004  become a non-profit educational organization. Our mission is to educate the public about and promote Japanese arts and popular culture. As in the beginning, we remain a convention of fans, by fans, and for fans. Anime USA is a 501 (c) 3 nonprofit organization.