Joe Sutliff's April Fool's day Kickstarter (updated)

Joe Sutliff's April Fool's day Kickstarter "Be Annoying - Bang on a Pot"was quickly suspended. He had pledges of $26 before they pulled the plug on him. I would have too - he was getting annoying.

Of his 'project,' Joe says, "While easily perceived as a prank, my campaign is (or was) an attempt to tap into the gestalt of crowd funding. Rather that present a complex experience all at once, I wanted to see what would happen if something simple and silly would be appreciated by the community. Now I'm challenged  to come up with a response to this. As everyone knows, a wounded cartoonist is the most dangerous beast in the jungle…   At least I've become more annoying!"

The Art of Richard Thompson book excerpt: Thompson and Bill Watterson talk comics

Not a hoax. Not a joke. Not an April Fool's day trick. Here's an excerpt of the conversation of Richard Thompson and Bill Watterson from The Art of Richard Thompson, which you can buy right now from Amazon or Barnes & Noble, or order and wait for a copy signed by Richard from One More Page.

BILL WATTERSON: When I was a kid, I loved Peanuts, so I wanted to be the next Charles Schulz. I didn’t understand what that meant of course, but it seemed like a plan. You came to your comic strip from a different path,
however.

RICHARD THOMPSON: Yeah. Off in my own little world of being a pretend cartoonist. Without a plan.

BW: So how did you envision cartooning? What was your experience of it as a kid?

RT: Well, Schulz pretty much defined “cartoonist.” But I remember in fifth grade, a friend’s older sister had some Pogo books and we spent the day poring over them. That was the first time I understood some of the jokes. It was pretty intimidating and dense for a kid.

RT: Yeah, mostly strips. Comic books were hard to find. And a strip is a one-person deal. Not like animation, where you’ve got to work with other people.

BW: As a kid, animation just seemed out of the question to me. I wouldn’t even know how to go about doing it.

RT: It was interesting. But even when I was old enough to maybe try it, I always hated the idea of working with others.

BW: Plus, you needed film equipment and all that.

RT: Yeah. Really, though, I did cartoons without any clear thought of having a future in it.

BW: Any other strips or cartoons that had any impact as a kid?

RT: Some strange ones. There was a panel called Mr. Tweedy about a hapless little guy. I don't remember who drew it. And there was Freddy by a guy who signed as Rupe. I think he was local.

BW: I don't know either one.

RT: I think it was probably in one paper. Also, Wizard of Id... BC... And Mad Magazine of course. I discovered that when I was probably ten.

BW: I remember there was some shock value in bringing Mad home.

RT: Right. (laughs) I remember the first time I picked it up in the grocery store and said I wanted to buy this. My parents looked at it and went ickkk. But my dad finally read it and started giggling. He had a good sense of humor, thankfully.

BW: My next-door neighbor bought it regularly, and he'd bring it over and I'd pore over the drawings. Eventually I worked up the nerve to ask my mom if I could get it. There were a number of years when I really thought Mad was the cat's pajamas, although now I think it was pretty formulaic. But even as a kid, it seemed out of the mainstream of cartooning. It was off in its own world.

RT: It seemed to open up this whole subculture.

BW: Could you imagine yourself doing something in that direction?

RT: Kinda vaguely.

BW: I could never see a way in. I couldn't imagine myself drawing movie and TV satires. I guess Don Martin did the closest thing to a regular cartoon, but in that grotesque style. Or Dave Berg's whatever....

RT: The Lighter Side Of (laughs). I'd often read it first. It was always so square!

BW: Right! So what did you respond to in Mad? What aspect?

RT: Oh, the art. The Aragones drawings in the margins and stuff like that. There was no one thing. Spy vs Spy, which was kind of exotic. And of course the parodies, where you discover caricature.

BW: I marveled at Mort Drucker, but I didn't see any road between here and there. At that age, my drawing skills were pretty much limited to drawing things in side-view outlines.

RT: I would try, but... I do remember seeing David Levine drawings of Nixon in like, sixth grade, in my classroom. My teacher was an anti-Nixonite. These beautiful, elegant drawings of Nixon--I remember being fascinated by it. He was using ink like paint, almost.

BW: What, the hatching?

RT: Yeah. So elegant.

BW: I never really responded to Levine. The likenesses were strong, but sort of like stone sculpture, or something- -not warm. I dunno. I remember Oliphant's caricatures really impressed me--so wild and cartoony, compared to Drucker. But getting a likeness is really hard. What made you want to do that?

RT: Caricature was something that'd always interested me. Later, as a freelancer, I thought the more arrows in my quiver the better. When I showed the art director at the Post, Mike Keegan, some pages of caricature sketches, he was delighted. I was suddenly taken more seriously too. I remember the British show Spitting Image had just premiered, and it gave me the kick I needed.

BW: Hm, I'm trying to think what else was in the air back then...

RT: I remember we had a bunch of New Yorker cartoon books in the classroom. This is like fifth or sixth grade. The teacher would bring them from home or something.

BW: OK, you moved in more sophisticated circles than I did!

RT: I didn't quite understand them. There's a Roz Chast drawing about her as a child finding Charles Addams cartoons, and I remember finding those too, and how gruesome they were. And the painting in them was soft and..

BW: The grays?

RT: Yeah, like no one else.

BW: I was probably a bit older when I saw New Yorkers. You know, if it was a cartoon, I'd jump to read it, but I don't remember them making much impact. Well, actually, I still like George Booth a lot. He's one of the few New Yorker cartoonists whose drawings are funny.

RT: I remember being impressed with New Yorker cartoons, but I probably didn't understand much.

BW: How about comic books? Nothing?

RT: Some. They were hard to find. I'd find them occasionally, and then I'd probably whine 'til I got them. If they were Batmans.

BW: Really, they were hard to find? My town had three drugstores that used to carry them, and I'd get them sometimes, but superhero comics didn't do a lot for me.

RT: Archie and whatnot... I had a few of those but I was never really into them.

BW: One summer my neighbor gave me this huge box of Archie comic books, and I read them in the car on some family vacation. I have no idea where he got them, but there were a zillion of the things, so my brother and I sat in the back seat reading one after another until it nearly killed us. We read ten thousand Archie comic books and they were all exactly the same.

RT: And the drawings are so clean.

BW: Yeah, very slick. Even then I thought they were dumb and outdated. It's a bizarre memory. How about underground comix? Did they have any impact on you?

RT: Some. I came late to undergrounds. I had friends who collected them (Henry Allen has Zap #0) but my main exposure was all in histories and anthologies. I liked, revered Crumb, though he is overwhelming, and thought Wonder Warthog was freaking hilarious.

BW: I saw some in college and I liked Wonder Warthog too, but on the whole, the undergrounds didn't make much connection. I preferred sillier, more cartoony stuff, I suppose.

What non-cartoon things made an impression on you as a kid?

RT: My folks liked doing things and making me a part of it. I remember when the Mona Lisa came to town. I was about six. We stood in line for a long time. Red draperies and guards every few feet, and then  ventually, there it is. My mom liked it a lot. The whole way, she was telling me what an important painting it was and the story of it. She had a great appreciation for culture. She didn’t have any great understanding of it so much as just liked it, I guess.

BW: Wow, I guess you’re one of the few people who’s ever seen it without a foot of bulletproof glass in front of it.

RT: I think so. You couldn’t get right up to it--there were velvet ropes. But you could breathe the same air. (BW laughs)

BW: I don’t remember much exposure to fine art--just the popular culture of the day. I think of my childhood as the Batman TV show, the Beatles, and the moon landings. Although I do remember in middle school there were a few years when I read all the Doctor Dolittle books. I loved those--the idea of talking to animals. A PETA sensibility ahead of its time. It probably had some subliminal influence on my strip. What aspects of pop culture did you participate in?

RT: Well yes, the moon landings and take-offs. You knew it was important when the teacher pushed the TV into the classroom.

Jump over to Richard's Cul de Sac blog for more discussion on comic strips.

Wonder Woman's invisible plane on display at Air & Space Museum today

Wonder Woman's Invisible Jet Now on Display

Beth Wilson

Posted on April 1, 2015 by The National Air and Space Museum

http://blog.nasm.si.edu/behind-the-scenes/wonder-womans-invisible-jet/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ig4aJey9QZM

Thanks to Gene Kannenberg for the tip.

April 15: Animezing: The Tale of The Princess Kaguya

Animezing Series Presented by the JICC, Embassy of Japan The Tale of The Princess Kaguya Wednesday, April 15, 6:30 p.m. Never miss another event!   Our Location: JICC, Embassy of Japan 1150 18th St, NW Suite 100 Washington, DC 20036 Driving Directions ©2013 Hatake Jimusho - GNDHDDTK | 2013 | 137 min | Rated PG | In Japanese with English subtitles | Directed by Isao Takahata Legendary Studio Ghibli co-founder Isao Takahata (Grave of the Fireflies, Pom Poko) revisits Japan's most famous folktale in this gorgeous, hand-drawn masterwork, decades in the making. Found inside a shining stalk of bamboo by an old bamboo cutter and his wife, a tiny girl grows rapidly into an exquisite young lady. The mysterious young princess enthralls all who encounter her - but ultimately she must confront her fate, the punishment for her crime.   From the studio that brought you Spirited Away, My Neighbor Totoro, and The Wind Rises comes a powerful and sweeping epic that redefines the limits of animated storytelling and marks a triumphant highpoint within an extraordinary career in filmmaking for director Isao Takahata.   Winner of Best Animated Feature at the Toronto Film Critics Association Awards (2015), Mainichi Film Concours (2013), Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards (2014), Boston Society of Film Critics Awards (2014), and the Asia Pacific Screen Awards (2014).   Nominated for Best Animated Feature at the Academy Awards (2015), Annie Awards (2015), Japanese Academy Awards (2014), Blue Ribbon Awards (2013), and many more. Register Now! This event is free and open to the public, but registration is required. Please note that seating is limited and registration does not guarantee guests a seat. Registered guests will be seated on a first come, first served basis. Please contact us at jicc@ws.mofa.go.jp in the event of cancellation. Doors open at 6:00 pm. No admission or re-entry after 7:00 pm.

PR: A New Updated ComicBacks list!

(Ray's a real-life archivist at the National Archives too, and this is a great bibliography resource)

From R Bottorff <carchivist@yahoo.com>

I have just updated my ComicBacks list and this time I have it for you in an Excel spreadsheet! 9080 entries, 5.5 MB in size so I can email anyone who wants a copy.

Email me direct please and I will get it sent to you in the next few days. Oh yes, its free. I welcome all updates and corrections.

And for those who do not know, my ComicBacks list is a database of all comic book, comic strip, cartoon, pulp hero, and superhero-related mass-market (aka Pocket Book size) paperbacks. Well, at least an attempt at all of them! I am sure there are many more discovered. The list focuses on United States and Canadian ComicBacks, and any international ones distributed in the United States (which means you may see an occasional title from the United Kingdom).

It includes all editions and printings that I have discovered to date going back to early Pocket Books up to current Marvel and DC prose novels. And Peanuts, cartoons gag, Dennis the Menace, Doc Savage, Family Circus, B.C., Beetle Bailey, Tarzan, scholastic titles joke and gag books, Lone Wolf and Cub, Marvel Ilustrated Books, and a few thousand others in between!

I hope you like it and can find use for it!

So email if you are interested and I shall send it to you.

my best

-Ray Bottorff Jr

(a monster PDF version, over 500+ MB, is also available, feel free to inquire!)

Richard Thompson = The Band, or an Art of Richard Thompson review

Graphic Novels from Apatoff, Font, Jurgens & others, Lewis & Co., and Sutter | Xpress Reviews

By LJ Reviews on January 22, 2015
http://reviews.libraryjournal.com/2015/01/books/graphic-novels/graphic-novels-from-apatoff-font-jurgens-others-lewis-co-and-sutter-xpress-reviews/

ComicsDC on the road: Mountain Top Comics and Collectibles of Cookeville, TN

I visit Cookeville, TN regularly to see my wife's family and off and on have visited local comics shops. I thought they were all gone, but last year for Free Comic Book Day, my in-laws heard about Mountain Top Comics and kindly stopped in for me. I took the opportunity to visit recently and met the owner Michael Hargis. It's the only shop left in Cookeville, which at one point in the 90s had at least three of them. The shop at, 1683 S. Jefferson Ave, has a good assortment of new comics. Hargis probably stocks more new floppies than the Big Planet stores around DC that I regularly shop at.  Hargis has a good run of the non-big two comics, including a reasonable shelf of indy graphic novels, and lots of Image and Boom comics. He also has a fun selection of comics-based toys, a decent amount of back issues and a little bit of games. If I lived here, I'd be perfectly happy with this as my regular shop. Today's purchases were Camelot 3000 chosen by my daughter, Batman 66 trade for me, and a Conan print and The Haunt of Wylding Wood minicomic by local cartoonist Matt Knieling (pictured below).

 

Back issues for sale in a side room

The Post on editorial cartooning in South America

Drawing cartoons, defying the government

By Karen Attiah and Ann Telnaes
Washington Post.com (March 30 2015): http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/opinions/wp/2015/03/30/drawing-cartoons-defying-the-government/

Finding Nemo changed a DC teacher's life

How "Finding Nemo" Changed My Life

Kiki Kienstra

Thursday, March 26, 2015

http://www.studio360.org/story/aha-moment-finding-nemo/

http://www.podtrac.com/pts/redirect.mp3/audio.wnyc.org/studio/studio032615_cms438327_pod.mp3

CdS and TCdS artist Stacy Curtis is ill

Here's the story:

Stacy Curtis loses sight from stroke; Pig and Banjo drawings fill Facebook wall

by Alan Gardner

March 30, 2015

http://dailycartoonist.com/index.php/2015/03/30/stacy-curtis-loses-sight-from-stroke-pig-and-banjo-drawings-fill-facebook-wall/

We send Stacy our best wishes for a rapid recovery, in print, because we can't draw a banjo let alone a pig.

Bagge in Dupont Circle's Reason magazine

Life Out on the Political Fringe: Peter Bagge hits the campaign trail

Peter Bagge

Reason April 2015 issue

http://reason.com/archives/2015/03/29/life-out-on-the-political-fringe

A new Josh Kramer restaurant review comic

Drawn to Flavor: Zaytinya

By DCist Contributor Josh Kramer

March 30 2015

http://dcist.com/2015/03/drawn_to_flavor_zaytinya.php

April 16: CultureBlast: COMICS BASH

Join Fantom Comics at the Hillyer Art Space for CultureBlast: COMICS BASH, an evening of DIY screenprinting, dramatic readings, and comic book-inspired art.

Bring your best costumes to our comic book-themed dramatic reading! Share an original work, read your favorite superhero soliloquy, or just shout "I AM BATMAN! WHERE IS HE?!" into the microphone for 3 minutes. Because 3 minutes is all you get. 

EVERY READER will get a free comic book and some Fantom swag! BEST COSTUMED PERFORMANCE will win a $50 gift card to Fantom Comics so you can buy those sweet, sweet graphic novels you've always wanted!

Artist J.D. Deardourff will show you how to make your own screenprint to take home with you!

Doors, drinking, FREE popcorn, and schmoozing starts at 7:00 pm.

Contributors will be drawn from a hat at 7:50 and the performances begin at 8 pm.

$5 suggested donation.

That darn Toles

Letters to the Editor

Ancient poetry that still relates today

Susan Schearer,

Winchester, Va.

Washington Post March 28 2015
http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/ancient-poetry-that-still-relates-today/2015/03/26/6a384464-d247

Big Planet team's Zodiac Starforce picked up by Dark Horse

Congratulations to Kevin Panetta and Paulina Ganucheau.

Awesomeness and Sparkles: Meet 'Zodiac Starforce', Your New Favorite Magical Girl Team [Interview]

by Kate Leth March 27, 2015
http://comicsalliance.com/zodiac-starforce-panetta-ganucheau-dark-horse/

Here's that City Paper comics flow chart

Based on attendance at Smudge, apparently.

Flow Chart: D.C.'s Thriving Comic-Creator Scene

 by Tim Regan
Washington City Paper Mar. 27, 2015
http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/blogs/artsdesk/general/2015/03/27/flow-chart-d-c-s-thriving-comic-creator-scene/

Nate Powell on Indiana's religious intolerance

Indiana's 'March' artist tells of shame, empowerment over 'religious freedom' law

By Michael Cavna
Washington Post Comic Riffs blog March 27, 2015
http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/comic-riffs/wp/2015/03/27/indianas-march-artist-tells-of-shame-empowerment-over-religious-freedom-law/

The Post, among other papers, censors Wumo strip

The watchers at rec.arts.comics.strips noticed that the March 26, 2015 Wumo strip was not run by The Washington Post (as well as the Chicago Tribune, NY Daily News, and ArcaMax.com). The strip is a not a particularly interesting one with a white patriarchal God in a supermarket buying TV dinners (do they still make them?) and saying that he's had bad luck making things all by himself.

Huh. Yeah, that's my thought too. But the Post and the others ran a year-old strip instead. No Charlie Hebdo situations in this town!

Report on South American cartoonists talk in DC

Bonil and Rayma: Cartoonists Speak Truth to Power

Venezuelan and Ecuadorian Satirists Defend Right to "Blaspheme"

Gonzalo Mellado
Panam Post's The Canal blog March 26, 2015
http://blog.panampost.com/gonzalo-mellado/2015/03/26/bonil-and-rayma-cartoonists-speak-truth-to-power/

Emily R. Gillis on Jikosha and 24-Hour Comics

by Mike Rhode

Emily R. Gillis was a Smudge exhibitor, selling a collection of her webcomic Jikosha. She's a founder of the local cooperative, Square City Comics, and one-half of Wayward Studios. Her comics can be bought here.

What type of comic work or cartooning do you do?

I primarily do longform fantasy comics with a style heavily-influenced by anime I grew up watching. I also have participated in the 24-Hour Comic challenge for the past 4 years and like to turn those into minicomics.

How do you do it? Traditional pen and ink, computer or a combination?

Mostly traditional. All of my comics are first drawn with pencil then inked with microns and brush pens, though I've been experimenting more with brush and ink. Coloring and lettering are all done digitally though most of my coloring is done by the other half of Wayward Studios, Crystal Rollins. I've been practicing digital colors with her help, but she is a magician with them!

When (within a decade is fine) and where were you born?

I was born in '84 in St. Paul, MN (dontcha know), though I grew up near Denver, CO.

Why are you in Washington now? What neighborhood or area do you live in?

I moved to the Baltimore area to seek out more work opportunities and to move in with my boyfriend, now husband. Currently, we're up north in Cockeysville, MD. I'm down in DC every month though for events and for meetings with my friends in Square City Comics.

What is your training and/or education in cartooning?

I earned a bachelor's degree in graphic design back in 2006. I never formally studied cartooning, but I remember making comics as far back as the 4th grade when I turned my teacher into a superhero for a story. I mostly learned from reading books on the subject and just reading other comics.

Who are your influences?

Starting out, I was heavily influenced by anime like Sailor Moon, Magic Knight Rayearth, and Dragonball Z. Currently, my work is most influenced by other local creators I've met as well as webcomics I follow. Comics like Namesake, Sister Claire, and Stand Still Stay Silent are the first ones that come to mind for works I look to for inspiration and technique.

If you could, what in your career would you do-over or change?

Get serious about comics sooner. I went into graphic design since I figured I could both get a job more easily with that degree and I could apply what I learned there to comics, though I'd never really considered comics a valid career option. I didn't pursue it seriously until a few years ago and it's been a struggle trying to turn it into a full-time gig rather than something I have to make time to do outside of my day job.

What work are you best-known for?

I'm best known for my webcomic Jikoshia. I began writing the comics back in high school and rebooted it three times before bringing it to print.

What work are you most proud of?

I have two comics that I'm super proud of. Jikoshia has come so far and turned into a project I really love. I recently brought my latest 24-hour comic to print as well, All You Held Dear, and for being a comic written in such a short amount of time, I'm really happy with the way both the writing and the art turned out!

What would you like to do or work on in the future?

I just want to more time to work on personal projects. I have a "vault" of story ideas and scripts I have yet to finish and I'm anxious to get to them!

What do you do when you're in a rut or have writer's block?

That's when I refer to Crystal. Part of why we formed Wayward Studios was to help each other out when we get into blocks. We'll talk through problem scenes or give the other a kick in the pants if we slack off. Another trick I've learned is to go read another comic or play a video game for a while. It gives me a chance to step out of the worlds I've created and into another, helping me refresh my viewpoints.

What do you think will be the future of your field? 

With the advent of crowdfunding, I'm looking forward to seeing more creator-owned works come to life. A lot of great projects have come about because of this resource (including my own!).

What local cons do you attend? The Small Press Expo, Intervention, or others? Any comments about attending them?

I go to almost every one I can find! I regularly attend Katsucon and Small Press Expo and look forward to this year's Awesome Con. I've only managed to go to Intervention once so far, but would definitely like to again! I also make appearances at smaller shows like Tiger Con in Towson, Library Con in Petworth, and Nippon Con in Westminster. I'm currently planning a small show for a comics group I'm a part of called Square City Comics in June and hope to turn that into an annual gig.

SPX is my favorite event of the year and I recommend it to everyone looking to get into comics. Just make sure to set a budget for yourself otherwise you'll definitely spend your lunch money on books instead of food. Not that I've ever regretted it.

What's your favorite thing about DC?

I like that I don't have to drive to most places and that there's so much to do! Before moving to the East Coast, I was living in a very small mountain town and doing anything involved at least a 4-hour drive. Having everything I want to do be so close took some time to get used to and I love having so many options.

Least favorite?

Traffic. My sense of direction is a bit off and too much traffic really throws me for a loop! Plus one-ways are the bane of my existence.

What monument or museum do you like to take visitors to?

My parents came out to visit for the first time a couple years ago so I took them on a tour of the National Mall. My dad was like a kid in a candy store at the Air & Space Museum. Next time he comes out I'm taking him to the one in Dulles.

How about a favorite local restaurant?

District of Pi in Chinatown is my favorite, though I've heard there's a great ramen place in Rockville I need to try. That might unseat the pizza's throne.

Do you have a website or blog?

You can find all of my work and learn where I'll be next on waywardstudios.net. I also sometimes post work and news to my Tumblr (thealmightym.tumblr.com) and Instagram (@thealmightym).