Friday, March 07, 2014
G.E. Gallas interview online at City Paper
Meet a Local Cartoonist: A Chat With G.E. Gallas
by Mike Rhode on Mar. 7, 2014
The Post reviews 300 sequel and Mr. Peabody cartoon
There's no going back: '300' prequel returns to Greece with more gore, grunting and aggressive sexuality [online as ‘300: Rise of an Empire’ movie review: Sequel is no fun at all].
.By Ann Hornaday, Washington Post March 7 2014, p. EZ39
A charmless blast from past [‘Mr. Peabody & Sherman’].
By Michael O’Sullivan, Washington Post March 7 2014, p. EZ40
Cartoonist talks at tomorrow's FREE Smudge Con in Rosslyn
http://www.smudgexpo.com/programming/
Black Box Theater
1-1:50 – Essa Neima – Moving Pictures: So, You Want to Animate?
2-2:50 – Steve Artley – Editorial Cartooning (And Other Hazards)
3-3:50 – Ben Hatke – Three Keys to Comics
4-4:50 – Teresa Roberts Logan – PAINT YOUR HEAD (ART JOURNALING)
Classroom
1-1:50 – Steve Loya – Splotch Monsters
2-2:50 – Matt Dembicki – Roll Up Your Sleeves and Make Comics
3-3:50 – TBA
4-4:50 – Joe Sutliff – Creating Comics for the Web: A quick, fun, interactive “How To”
Thursday, March 06, 2014
March 8: Calvin and Hobbes documentary at Artisphere
“Dear Mr. Watterson” Artisphere, 1101 Wilson Boulevard, Arlington; Sat., 7:30 p.m., $8; 703-875-1100. (Rosslyn) (One of those fans was D.C. musician Mike Boggs — aka We Were Pirates — who wrote the score. At Artisphere, Boggs will perform and participate in a post-screening Q-and-A with Express contributor Nevin Martell, author of “Looking for Calvin and Hobbes.”)
and here's the Express story on it from which the above quote is taken:
Eternally, Calvin and Hobbes: ‘Dear Mr. Watterson’ is a love letter to a beloved comic strip
Wednesday, March 05, 2014
Rob Steibel's latest Kirby column at TCJ.com
Jack Kirby: Behind the Lines
“If I Don’t Put this Dude Out of Action Now, We’re Both Chopped Liver!”
Comic Riffs on Denver Kickstarter
‘DENVER’: The waters–and crowd-funds–rise for PaperFilms’ post-apocalyptic graphic novel
By David Betancourt
- Washington Post Comic Riffs blog March 4 2014
- http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/comic-riffs/wp/2014/03/04/denver-the-waters-and-crowd-funds-rise-for-paperfilms-post-apocalyptic-graphic-novel/
Steve Loya interview at City Paper blog
Smudge featured on WTOP
Comic book superheroes save reading, storytelling
By Alicia Lozano
The free con is this Saturday in Rosslyn.
These Are Your Grandfather’s Comics: My Link to the Platinum Age
These Are Your Grandfather’s Comics
My Link to the Platinum Age
by
Stu McIntire
In the summer of 1981 I was visiting my grandparents. My grandfather was an antique collector at heart. I shared with him how I’d recently purchased The Latest Adventures of Foxy Grandpa (1905) at an antique store in New Market, Maryland.
I was more than a little surprised at his excited reaction. It turns out that as a young boy growing up in the in the Midwest, he was an enormous fan of Foxy Grandpa as well as other early U.S. newspaper comic strips, including The Yellow Kid and Happy Hooligan. In fact, he meticulously maintained a scrapbook of The Yellow Kid.
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| The Yellow Kid full newspaper page |
Now it was my turn to get excited. “Do you still have it?” I asked. Sadly, the answer was no. His mother had burned it. She had no way to foresee a future interest much less the collectability of these newspaper “funnies” or their progeny. It wasn’t an act of malicious intent. It was just…inevitable. It’s what was done with such relics. Alas. But my grandfather would soon gift me with a (non-Yellow Kid) goodie from his youth. More on this later.
Over the years I’ve purchased or have been gifted other Foxy Grandpa collectibles. You see, it turns out Foxy was quite popular “back in the day”. A handful of (very) short Foxy Grandpa films were produced…more books…toys…sheet music…you name it. These are the Foxy Grandpa items I own:
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| post card (1906) |
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| post card (1906) |
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| Up to Date card game (Selchow & Righter) (1903) |
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| Hubley (repro) cast iron bank |
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| comic book (1905) |
The Adventures of Lovely Lilly
The happy result of this bonding moment with my grandfather was that he gifted me a…handkerchief. Yes, a handkerchief. Not just any old scrap of fabric, this one has a backstory. You see, this handkerchief has faint pictures imprinted on it. My grandfather apologized that the pictures were not clearer. He explained that they are meant to be well-defined. When it was brand new the material showed no pictures. One was meant to take a hot iron and press the fabric until the images “magically” appeared. The pictures on this were not faded. They were just never fully exposed because the iron my grandfather used was not yet sufficiently hot to do the job it was meant to do.
It would be some time before I identified the artwork and writing on my handkerchief. I even tried enlisting the aid of Maggie Thompson (Comics Buyers Guide) at a comic convention in Philadelphia in the early 90s. I had no luck but I never gave up. Finally I made an inroad (the Internet can be a wonderful thing). Last year I found a match to the handkerchief on Pinterest (shown below). Text accompanying the photos identified the character as Lilly, from The Adventures of Lovely Lilly.
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| handkerchief (front view) |
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| handkerchief (back view) |
NOW I was making some headway. Further research revealed that The Adventures of Lovely Lilly was a short-lived newspaper strip that ran in the Sunday New York Herald at the dawn of the 20th century. Written by Carolyn Wells and illustrated by G.F. (George Frederick) Kaber, Lovely Lilly featured an intrepid young lady who faced down fearsome beasts and dispatched them with alacrity. The text featured on the handkerchief reads as follows:
Lovely Lilly met a tiger walking in the wood.
Angrily he snapped and snarled as any tiger would.
By his throat she firmly grabbed him til he held his breath.
With her chubby hands she squeezed him til he choked to death.
Wow. Lilly was certainly no pushover!
A photo of Carolyn Wells and a few examples of Kaber’s non-Lilly art follow:
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| photo of Carolyn Wells |
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| artwork by G.F. Kaber |
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| G.F. Kaber signature |
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| artwork by G.F. Kaber |
Here are a few more samples of Lilly’s adventures:
Lovely Lilly in her travels met a buffalo.
Fierce and furious, the creature rushed at Lilly – so!
Naughty! Naughty! Lilly cried with disapproving frown.
Then she stuffed him in her box and shut the cover down.
Lovely Lilly idly watched an elephant draw nigh.
When he glared at her, she looked him squarely in the eye.
When he trumpeted loud and thought he’s rouse her fear,
Lilly only laughed at him, and soundly boxed his ears.
Lovely Lilly out a walking saw a crocodile.
Lovely Lilly said “Good morning” with a pleasant snile.
Nearer came the beast and nearer. Wide he stretched his maw.
Lovely Lilly with a quiet wrench broke the creature’s paw.
While hardly the stuff of sweet childhood dreams, Lilly was not unique when it comes to examples of grisly detail in children’s literature (the Brothers Grimm being one obvious prior example). Without question these were different times and the comic art preceding the First World War and later, the Great Depression were received by a reading public of a different sensibility.
I can only imagine my grandfather as a pre-teen youngster, eagerly devouring the stories of Lilly, Foxy, Yellow Kid, and Happy Hooligan. Perhaps too, the likes of The Katzenjammer Kids, Alphonse and Gaston, Buster Brown, Little Nemo in Slumberland, Mutt & Jeff, or Toonerville Trolley. What an exciting time to be a kid!
Over-the-top movie promotions
I saw Miyazaki's The Wind Rises anime in a movie theater last weekend, and I was amazed at the amount and size of promotional pieces for comic book and animation movies. Here's some from a Regal theater.
Tuesday, March 04, 2014
Adam Zyglis to receive Berryman Award tomorrow at Press Club
News cartoonist Adam Zyglis wins National Press Foundation award
Cartoonist Adam Zyglis joined The Buffalo News in 2004. Derek Gee/Buffalo News
on March 3, 2014
Beyond Comics Gaithersburg Delivery Delay
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| Beyond Comics | Gaithersburg Square | 18749 B North Frederick Avenue | Gaithersburg | MD | 20879 |
Jen Sorenson wins Herblock award
THIS JUST IN: Jen Sorensen becomes first woman to win the Herblock Prize
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BY MICHAEL CAVNA
Washington Post Comic Riffs blog March 4 , 2014
Monday, March 03, 2014
3/8: Gaylords at 3rd Eye Comics
SAT. 3/8: LOKI: RAGNAROK & ROLL Signing with JERRY & PENELOPE GAYLORD
This Saturday March 8th, we'll be hosting long-time friends of Third Eye, Jerry & Penelope Gaylord, as we celebrate their brand new BOOM! Studios series LOKI RAGNAROK & ROLL.
Join us from 11AM-1PM, as these incredibly talented artists who've worked on books like ADVENTURE TIME, FANBOYS VS ZOMBIES and more, sign copies of their earlier works and their most recent hit: LOKI RAGNAROK & ROLL.
Want more info on our signing with Charles? Click here for the full scoop.
2nd CARtoons exhibit pictures online
Bruce Guthrie took shots of the closing reception of the 2nd CARToons exhibit at the University of the District of Columbia. You can see a bunch of local cartoonists here. The exhibit was curated by Teresa Logan, aka 'The Laughing Redhead'.
April 6: Rat Queens signing at Big Planet Comics
- Kurtis J. Wiebe & Roc Upchurch Signing - Rat QueensPublic · By Big Planet Comics of College Park
Big Planet Comics is proud to welcome Kurtis J. Wiebe and Roc Upchurch for a signing of the first collection of their new series, Rat Queens!
Rat Queens is a dark humor/fantasy book, where an all-female team of mercenaries goes on adventures and missions while trying to get as much money as possible (and trying to get out all the trouble they get each other into!)
You can download a preview of Rat Queens for free at Image's website: https://imagecomics.com/comics/releases/rat-queens-free-preview
Kurtis's website: http://kurtiswiebe.wordpress.com/
Roc's website: http://johnnyrocwell.blogspot.com/
https://www.facebook.com/RatQueens
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