Hoo-hah! Pekar book news and an unused piece by Harvey

My buddy John Lent, editor and publisher of the International Journal of Comic Art called today and told me he had my Harvey Pekar: Conversations book in his hand. I argued with him because the press just emailed me that it would be out in November. He insisted and eventually I conceded - he's got an advance uncorrected proof. Darn! A collectible I don't own!

Harvey's working with DC Comics now - the first miniseries American Splendor: Another Day was just collected and is some of his best stuff. Vol. 2 is out as individual comics, and you can find them on Amazon or at a local comic book store.

I called Harvey and let him know the book's becoming more real and also asked his permission to republish some of his stuff that the Press cut from the book on this blog. Here's a 1987 piece Harvey wrote about being interviewed by David Letterman. I didn't even try to get permission to use those interviews. It appears here courtesy of and copyright by Harvey Pekar. Print it out and put it in the appropriate place in the book, after the 1987 interview by Henry Allen of the Washington Post:

Late Night of the Soul with David Letterman

Harvey Pekar / 1987

From The Village Voice, August 25, 1987, pp. 45-46. Reprinted with permission of Harvey Pekar.

Compared to many artists I'm in good shape. I've got a civil service job in Cleveland that pays me enough to write and publish, without making compromises, a comic book called American Splendor. In April '86, Doubleday issued an anthology of my work and it received gratifying critical response. Then, last summer, an assistant producer from Late Night With David Letterman contacted me about making an appearance on the show. It turns out that Letterman's head writer is from Cleveland and had recommended me as a guest. I was scheduled for October 15 and told, "Above all, don't get too serious."

Trouble was, I'd never been on TV. I knew nothing about Letterman except that he was a renowned put-down artist, and had no idea what to expect. I figured it'd be a one-shot; I'd answer a few questions and go home. All I wanted to do was sell a few books and avoid embarrassment.

I guess I'm jaded—I live in Cleveland and I've seen it all—so I wasn't surprised when Letterman started asking me these dumb questions, like "How are things in Cleveland?" They were so silly I started giving him incredulous looks and ridiculing him, saying he was a show biz phony and complaining about the lousy money he paid ($100 for the first appearance). The audience ate it up. Here was this sour faced, sloppily dressed file clerk turning the tables on Mr. Condescending Wise Guy. Letterman, who's, off camera, a quiet, thoughtful man, held me over five minutes and publicly asked me to return.

They raised the amount I got for the next show to $490. That plus free plane rides and a hotel room for my wife and myself made doing Late Night again worthwhile. I wasn't selling out, was I? The thought bothered me, and, as my next appearance, on January 6, approached, I began to consider injecting some substance into my slapstick act. For some time, I'd been reading disturbing reports about the state of affairs at NBC, which, with the rest of RCA, had been purchased by General Electric in December '85. GE sent their man Robert Wright over to assume the NBC presidency in September '86. Wright quickly made his presence felt by cutting the budget 5 per cent, laying off around 300 people. In December there was another stunner: Wrright had issued a secret memo in which he advocated setting up a political action committee at NBC. "Employees who elect not to participate in a giving program should question their dedication to the company and their expectations," he'd written.

This looked like material for my next Letterman spot. After all, Dave was already making cutesy quips about Wright's mental capacities. I'd improve on his act. I'd dig up a lot of solid, hard formation on GE and spill it on the show. On top of that, I'd be cocky and funny. I'd offer Wright equal time, and challenge him to a debate for money, marbles, or chalk.

So I went to the library looking for dirt. It was all over the place. While researching a 1961 price-fixing conspiracy GE had been involved in, I found an article stating that the company had been convicted of antitrust violations in 29 of the previous 50 years. They were still doing questionable things in the '80s. I ran across articles with titles like "Defense Department Disqualifies GE From New Work," "GE Pleads Guilty to False Claims, Statements," and "Foul Play on a Mega-merger? (Inside Traders and the GE-RCA Deal)." Armed with this information, I'd square up in front of the TV cameras and take on the beast in its lair.

I talked about my GE-bashing ideas to a couple of Letterman staffers and they thought it would be okay, so I was surprised when head producer Barry Sand pleaded with me an hour before the show not to talk about GE. He said it would be inappropriate: "This isn't Meet the Press." Beyond that, he said he'd checked with the legal department and there might be dire consequences for me and members of the Letterman staff if I condemned GE in a serious way. I had trouble believing Sand, but I knew Wright could make it rough for him and his co-workers, whom I liked, so I decided to shelve my plans and do about what I'd done on my first show – mess around.

The January program was loose, a lot of fun. Letterman and I visited a Live at Five broadcast, which aired while we were on the set. I saw weatherman Al Roker, who'd previously worked in Cleveland, and got into a noisy discussion with him about the old days and great weathermen of the past. (Cleveland is a spawning ground for outstanding meteorologists of every description.) Once in a while, the camera would cut to guest Ruth Westheimer, who sat in the corner looking puzzled. Later in the segment, Letterman asked if I liked him and I replied, "Man, I don't even know you!"

Laughs came so easily that night! I felt pretty good about myself. But the next day I was embarrassed when a buddy asked, "Hey, big shot, I thought you were gonna talk about GE. What happened?" What happened was that I'd demonstrated I could get laughs by acting like "the lunatic from Cleveland." Was it possible to have a normal, interesting conversation on Late Night? The segment producer told me only celebrities could get away with it. Maybe not even celebrities. If Einstein returned from the other side with the answer to the origin of the universe and made his initial appearance on Late Night, Letterman would chide him about his baggy clothes.

Late Night would wind up a trap for me if I played along. I'd gotten indications that even Letterman, a quick-witted, perceptive guy but no intellectual, may be annoyed by the show's bright-eyed vacuousness. Once during a commercial he said to me, "Do you believe I get paid for this?" But the money's good, be gets a lot of days off, obviously likes doing comedy, and is good at it. Does anyone think he's going back to Ball State for his Ph.D. in meteorology?

Meanwhile, my life was beginning to change. A filmmaker offered me $1000 a day for a walk-on. A director wanted to dramatize some of my stories and have me act in the production. A TV producer pitched me to the Fox network as a talk show host. I told him I wasn't interested, I didn't want to waste my time in lightweight conversation with celebrities and live in a fishbowl. The producer laughed at me and went on negotiating. He set up a deal for me to go out to L.A. and do a couple of pilots for Fox. I said I still wasn't interested. He couldn't believe it. He got his friends and business associates to try to talk me into it. When I wouldn't change my mind, they couldn't believe it. Why do so many Americans think the greatest thing in the world is to be on TV, that the more people see you the better off you are?

But a little show biz doesn't represent a commitment, right? So I was going back on Late Night March 24. What would I talk about? You guessed it, GE! Was I obsessed? Well, yes and yes. Yes, I am obsessive. Yes, it's always worthwhile to focus the public's attention on outfits like GE. And yes, it's okay to bite the hand that holds out $490.

I devised a new strategy for the March 24 show. I'd begin my segment as usual, then craftily lead the conversation around to GE and explode. I wouldn't tell the producers my plan, so they couldn't stop me. It didn't work out too well. I opened with a strident pitch for my second Doubleday anthology, shouting, flapping my arms, waving off Letterman's attempt to stop me. I got some yuks, but it occurred to me that a lot of people thought I was a lunatic. Our conversation didn't flow, it ground along. I was depressed and Letterman seemed melancholy. Still, he was convulsing people with remarks like "Where'd you get those eyebrows? You look like Zero Mostel."

I was getting shakier and more frustrated by the minute. Then I remembered there was something bigger here than my ego; the world had to be saved from GE. "Stop your slide, man, dig in your heels and make your move." I mentioned that as youths Tom Brokaw, Robert Redford, and I had roamed the Pacific Northwest, rock climbing and white water rafting, then said, "Speaking of Tom, I hear he's upset about working at NBC News because there's a conflict of interest between them and GE. GE's the third largest defense contractor, you know." The crowd was silent, puzzled. Letterman shifted to a commercial.

GE and NBC got plenty of attention this spring and summer. Its subsidiary, Kidder, Peabody, & Co., was fined $25.3 million for securities violations. In late May, the Cleveland Plain Dealer broke a story concerning three southern Ohio power companies suing GE for over $1 billion for selling them a defective nuclear reactor. GE had sold reactors of the same type, all with design flaws that made them unsafe, unreliable, and costly to operate, to other utility companies around the country. Billions of dollars have been spent trying to repair them and bring them up to standard, money that rate payers ultimately supply. Amazingly, it was discovered that GE had a report, compiled by their engineers in 1975, identifying the reactors' defects. GE executives decided to sell them anyway and let a purchasers/pay for most of the repairing and upgrading.

The GE reactor story is an important and ongoing story, yet NBC national news hadn't covered it by July 31, when I made my last appearance on Late Night. That reminded me of the congressional hearings that had been held in April, concerning problems inherent in TV networks being owned by conglomerates. Wright and NBC News chief Lawrence Grossman testified that GE couldn't possibly get away with forcing the network to alter the content of its news broadcasts. Any attempt to do so, they claimed, would result in an uproar so great that it as bound to fail.

I vowed to bring the subject up on my next appearance. What if I just jumped up and down and started yelling about GE without a lead-in? What could Letterman do, not ask me back? So what; I had a decent job, a place to stay. I had to do something constructive on TV, if not for the good of humanity then just to feel at peace with myself. Get the GE monkey off my back.

Before the show I ran into Letterman. We had a chat and he told me I had star potential, but during my last appearance we'd gotten bogged down in bickering. It was okay to insult him, since Late Night resembles professional wrestling, but if I did, the crowd would be on his side since it was his show.

I said, "Okay, but I want to talk about GE."

He said, "This isn't Meet the Press."

I insisted, so he finally agreed to let me do it if I didn’t stay on the subject too long. His bottom line was, “I’ll ask the questions, you answer ‘em."

Before the show, the segment producer came up to me with a list of eight questions. I noticed that GE was number seven and smelled a rat. So I went over to Letterman and asked him to move it to number two, so we could get it in.

The show starts. First is a harried zoo-keeper from Columbus who inadvertently loses track of some snakes and a hummingbird. Then Chris Elliott does a Marion Brando imitation. Next is a Gomer Pyle-type guy, supposedly doing a remote from Pittsburgh about an Arena Football game. Then I walk in, scowling. Letterman asks me about the TV talk show offer. I tell him I turned it down. "Why?" he asks. "Because," I tell him, "I been watching you up here." Hilarity breaks loose. The first five minutes are magic. During the commercial Letterman leans down and says, "perfect."

He isn't going to ask about GE. I've got to act alone. After the break I start shouting denunciations of GE. Letterman tries to interrupt. "Shaddup," I say, "I'm doing my thing."

Letterman complains that what I'm doing is inappropriate, that I, as a guest in his house, shouldn't be sneezing in the hors d'oeuvres. "Bullshit, where's the hors d'oeuvres," I say. The bit ends.

I'd wondered what would happen if I seriously bad-mouthed GE on NBC. Now I know. David Letterman can put down their lightbulbs, but I can't criticize their nuclear reactors.

There's plenty more to come in the book, and I'll have 2 more pieces Harvey wrote to post here in the next two months.

QUICK REVIEWS FOR COMICS DUE 08-06-08

QUICK REVIEWS FOR COMICS DUE 08-06-08
By John Judy

AVENGERS INVADERS #4 of 12 by Alex Ross, Jim Krueger and Steve Sadowski. Only eight more issues for theses crazy kids to realize they should be working TOGETHER! It’s all a misunderstanding, you see…

BOYS #21 by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson. Hot on the heels of their hilarious, trademark-maiming cameo in LIBERTY COMICS, the Boys are back to their old mischief. Not for kids. Recommended.

BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER #17 by Joss Whedon and Karl Moline. Back to the future with Fray and cars that fly!

COMIC BOOK COMICS #2 by Fred Van Lente and Ryan Dunlavey. “Our Artists at War” featuring the early WWII adventures of Siegel and Shuster, Simon and Kirby, Stan Lee and Walt Disney! From EvilTwin Comics, the geniuses behind ACTION PHILOSOPHERS! Highly recommended!

CRIMINAL 2 #4 by Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips. A new 4-parter starts here! Let us bow our unworthy heads and give thanks for this series. Highly recommended.

DMZ VOL. 5: THE HIDDEN WAR SC by Brian Wood and Riccardo Burchielli. Collecting issues #23-28 of a series that’s half “Heart of Darkness” and half Woodward & Bernstein. Recommended.

ESSENTIAL MAN-THING, VOL. 2 SC by Everyone Who Was Available in the Mid-70s. For those who like their Man-Things “Giant-Size” or not at all!

FINAL CRISIS #3 of 7 by Grant Morrison and J.G. Jones. Crazed Morrisonian action where un-dead is this year’s Black. Best of all? It ain’t TRINITY!

GRENDEL: GOD AND THE DEVIL SC by Matt Wagner and John K. Snyder III. A future Grendel tale in which he goes after the Pope. Gotta look!

HELLBLAZER PRESENTS: CHAS THE KNOWLEDGE #2 of 5 by Simon Oliver and Goran Sudzuka. The fate of London rests in the hands of John Constantine’s cabbie. Finally! TEEN TITANS done right!.

HOW TO LOVE HC by Actus Independent Comics. A collection of stories exploring some of the more unconventional facts of love. And it ain’t porn!

HULK #5 by Jeph Loeb and Ed McGuinness. In which the Red Hulk who can jump to the moon fights the Thor who still speaks Shakespearean English and who can do so in the vacuum of space. Must… suspend… disbelief….ARGH!!!!

STORMING PARADISE #2 of 6 by Chuck Dixon and Butch Guice. Part two of this alternate history in which the bomb failed and the US had to invade Japan to end WWII. Part one showed a lot of promise. Worth a look if history and war comics are your thing. Teens and up.

THE TWELVE #7 of 12 by J. Michael Straczynski and Chris Weston. This issue focuses on Captain Wonder and his old pal Tim. Also, the Blue Blade finally makes it big! Recommended!

ULTIMATE ORIGINS #3 of 5 by Brian Michael Bendis and Butch Guice. How Charles and Magneto opened their first franchise in the Savage Land.

VENOM: DARK ORIGIN #1 of 5 by Zeb Wells and Angel Medina. A creepy-looking story of how Eddie Brock has always been pretty creepy even before his tongue got ten feet long. A must for Venom fans.

www.johnjudy.net

Breen, Wilkinson and Luckovich interviewed by Cavna in Post

Editorial cartoonists Breen, Wilkinson and Luckovich are interviewed by Michael Cavna in "Line by Punch Line," Washington Post Sunday, August 3, 2008; M06

Further information can be seen at "Cartooning the Candidates," a video in which "Editorial cartoonist Steve Breen describes his method of sketching Sen. Barack Obama and Sen. John McCain. Video by Liz Kelly."

The Art of Political Caricature slide show.

In the same section of the paper, Nick Galifianakis drew himself and his ex-wife Carolyn Hax in her advice column. It's a meta-commentary since the drawing is about how ex's can stay friends, which the two of them have done.

Cul de Sac reintroduces characters

This past week in Cul de Sac, Our Man Thompson's brought back Mr. Danders, the over-educated guinea pig in his dailies, and the kid who's even weirder than Petey in today's Sunday strip. Those of us who have been reading the strip in the Washington Post for years get to see old favorites, and new readers should enjoy them.

There was no Richard's Poor Almanac yesterday since he's on vacation.

Tim Truman and son at Baltimore Comic-Con

On a yahoo list devoted to Robert E. Howard's comic books, Tim Truman mentioned his new project with his son that he hopes to debut at Baltimore:

If all goes well, Ben Truman will be joining me at my booth, and we'll be giving folks a sneak peek at a new series that we're doing, tentatively titled The Inner Station-- a real deep science fiction take on Joseph Conrad's "Heart of Darkness". I'm real excited about it. Ben's script is something else. While I'll continue to write Conan, of course (a contract is in the pipeline for 18 more issues), the Inner Station will be my big art project for Winter 2008-Summer 2009.

Plus, of course, I'll have samples of upcoming Conan art from Giorello and Corben.

-Timothy Truman
http://www.timothytruman.com

NY Times on Whedon

In Online Musical, the Mad Doctor Is In
By MIKE HALE
Published: August 2, 2008
Joss Whedon’s “Dr. Horrible” functions as an experiment in online content creation -- a test of what people will pay money to watch on their computers.

Luckovich on Obama caricature at Comic Riffs

Cavna drew an interesting response on Blitt's caricature of Obama from editorial cartoonist Mike Luckovich here - "The Political Cartoon: When Satire Misses a Twist," By Michael Cavna, Washington Post's Comic Riffs blog August 2, 2008. This week his blog will focus on editorial cartoons as he spreads his focus a bit.

Current Onion is comic book issue

The Onion that appeared on the stands last Thursday is the annual comic book issue.

The cover features "Al Gore Places Infant Son In Rocket To Escape Dying Planet" a story you won't want to miss!

"Drawing-board confessional: 22 unflattering moments from autobiographical comics," by Jason Heller, Noel Murray, Leonard Pierce, Tasha Robinson, Onion July 28th, 2008. This is the extended version - in the July 31 paper it's 6 moments.

"Random Roles: Adam West," By Noel Murray, Onion July 31 (online July 29th,) 2008 reviews his Batman and animation work. This is the longer online version, of course.

"Comics Panel: August 1, 2008," Reviewed by Noel Murray, Keith Phipps, Tasha Robinson, August 1st, 2008, is online only, but reviews one of my favorite comics, Tom Beland's True Story Swear to God.

Also the Mignola and Feiffer articles previously linked to here are published in the physical paper.

University Press of Mississippi interview on comic book books

The University Press of Mississippi is publishing my Harvey Pekar: Conversations book, which should be available in November according to an email I got from them this week. Here's a good interview with the Press's recent editor: "The Rise of Comics Scholarship: the Role of University Press of Mississippi," by Jeet Heer, August 2, 2008. While I said above that the UPM is publishing "my book," I only did the Pekar book because of Tom Inge whose role at the Press is explained in this article. I offered an interview I did with Pekar to Inge for a book taht I thought somebody would be working on. Rather than taking the interview, he suggested that I do a whole book - showing a lot of faith in me that I hope I will have repaid.

Zadzooks on Hellboy toys

"ZADZOOKS: Hellboy toys are hot stuff," Joseph Szadkowski, Washington Times Thursday, July 31, 2008.

NY Times reviews 700 page comic book

See "A Week at the Beach, With a Divorce Imminent," By GEORGE GENE GUSTINES, New York Times August 1, 2008 for a review of BOTTOMLESS BELLY BUTTON By Dash Shaw, Illustrated. 720 pages. Fantagraphics Books. $29.99.

September 10: The Physics of Superheroes at National Academy of Sciences

The Physics of Superheroes

Fall 2008 Season
Wednesday, September 10, 7:00 pm

Ever wondered how strong you would have to be to “leap a tall building in a single bound?” Was it the fall or the webbing that killed Gwen Stacy, Spider-Man’s girlfriend in the classic Amazing Spider-Man #121? How does Kitty Pryde from the X-Men comics and movies use quantum mechanics to walk through walls? And who is really faster, Superman or the Flash? Join in the fun as we explore physics through comic book examples where the superheroes got their physics right!

James Kakalios, Ph.D., is a professor in the University of Minnesota’s School of Physics and Astronomy. His research interests include amorphous semiconductors, pattern formation in sandpiles and fluctuation phenomena in neuroscience. He has been reading comic books longer than he has been studying physics. He is the author of The Physics of Superheroes and he knows the chemical composition of Captain America’s shield.

Thanks to Jeff Reznick for the tip!

Baltimore Comic-Con Tickets Now Available

The subject pretty much says it all. I'll be there. Mike is likely to be there. You should be too, along with the rest of the ComicsDC denizens.

Take a look at the new, improved webpage and note the new, improved, official URL: http://www.baltimorecomiccon.com/.

You can find updated content (URLs to the guests' homepages, including newly announced Rags Morales, the list of vendors, and the list of Artist's Alley guests), directions, and, of course, links to buy tickets.

You can also typically buy tickets directly from Marc Nathan at the local comic shows (he's the mustachio'd gentleman at the Cards, Comics & Collectibles booth, always first booth on the right as you enter at the CapiCons Tyson's Corner show), and usually at Big Planet Comics and Laughing Ogre (nee Phoenix) Comics.

Comic Riffs interviews Stephan Pastis

Online today - "Interview With the Artist: "Pearls Before Swine's" Stephan Pastis," By Michael Cavna, Washington Post's Comic Riffs blog July 31, 2008.

And note this teaser at the end:

COMING SUNDAY IN THE POST'S STYLE&ARTS SECTION: We chat up some of the nation's leading political cartoonists.

Weingarten's clarification of Post's non-censorship of Candorville

From his July 31 chat update:

Third, I misrepresented The Washington Post's degree of guilt in the egregious Candorville affair. It turns out it the blame was more evenly shared between newspaper and cartoonist. Yes, The Post DID object to the suggested profanity that, in the readers' minds, would have transformed into "nuts." They asked Darrin Bell for a replacement strip. Instead, HE capitulated and transformed $#*! to "ears," thereby killing his gag on his own. He was Abraham, the joke was Isaac, and God (The Post) never said "stop."

BASH Magazine Premiere Issue Arrives Early

The August 1, 2008 release of BASH! Magazine arrived early today at the Vienna Metro station, so I picked up an issue (plus 5 for Mike, as requested!).

I don't typically read comic strips, nor do I tend to pick up alternate comics, but I do occasionally pick up something here or there, and am always curious on Free Comic Book Day, so I was similarly curious about this publication.

BASH! is about the same size as the daily free Express and Examiner publications on slightly better paper. All of the strips are in black and white, though there is color on the cover and in the ad content. It is published out of Lexington, KY by John Van Meter, with editor Jonathan T. Hampton, printed by The Carroll County Times, and distributed by Take One USA.

It says:

"The first copy of Bash Magazine is free. Additional copies are one dollar ($1.00) each. Checks payable to Bash Magazine, LLC, P.O. Box 2220, Lexington, KY, 40588."

and

"BASH BOX EMPTY?!? WHAT?!? Let us know. We'll fill'er up. info@bashmaagazine.com"

The first issue includes:

- Slow Wave by Will Nicholes and Jesse Reklaw

- Onionhead by Bryan Stone

- Limbs of the Megalith by Eamon Espey

- Coffee a l'American by Pascal Blanchet

- Slowpoke by Jen Sorenson

- Something Happens by Thomas K. Dye

- Cuba Libre by Dan Archer

- Invisible Escape by Theo Ellsworth

- Steve & the Sky Full of Stars by Morgan Pielli

- K Chronicles by Keith Knight

- Tiny Sepuku by Ken Cursoe

I definitely felt like I had picked up a Fantagraphics/Alternative Comics/Drawn & Quarterly sampler. Some of the strips were interesting. Some were humorous. Some were political. Some were just weird, in my humble opinion.

But the price is right (free), and I'll definitely be picking up issue #2 to see what they have to offer. It is interesting to note that a good handful of the creators in the first issue will be at the Small Press Expo (SPX) this year, so if you're looking for something to have Eamon Espey or Keith Knight sign, there ya go!

New Mr. IS story online

Those crazy realtors have another episode of their MR. IS webcomic online at Episode 2: "The Aftermath", July 30, 2008.

Comics in the World photographs - Rehoboth Beach, Deleware

I've got a folder on my harddrive labeled "Comics in the World" where I've shot pics of comics-related items in the wider world. Here's a selection from Rehoboth Beach, Delaware.


Louie's Pizza interpreted a Mad magazine cover from June 1976 for decoration.



Disney's Cheshire Cat from Alice in Wonderland on a car hood.


Dr. Seuss prints on sale in a gallery. Supposedly signed, they weren't. I'm sure these were printed after his death.





Simpson's Kooky Carnival pinball game.

Danny Hellman edits new anthology

This electronic press release rolled over the transom. Hellman's been illustrating a column in the Post's Source section for months, and has also done work for the Washington City Paper.

Announcing the publication of TYPHON Vol. 1, a new comics anthology

DIRTY DANNY PRESS is proud to announce the publication of a new, full-color, 192 page comics anthology called "TYPHON," available now.

TYPHON Vol.1 features new work by forty-two talented cartoonists from across the US, Canada, South America and Europe. TYPHON's contributor list includes many favorites of the alternative comics scene, as well as a number of exciting talents who will be new to most readers.

You can preview thirteen art samples from TYPHON Vol.1 here: http://www.dannyhellman.com/blog/
You can also preview TYPHON Vol.1 using Amazon.com's Search Inside The Book feature: http://www.amazon.com/gp/reader/0970936338/ref=sib_dp_pt#reader-link

Readers in the United States can order TYPHON Vol.1 securely via PayPal for $24.95 (price includes shipping and handling) here: http://www.dannyhellman.com/blog/ (for orders outside the US, please email Danny Hellman for international shipping rates)

Individual copies of TYPHON Vol.1 can also be purchased from Last Gasp: http://www.lastgasp.com/d/33027/
and from Amazon.com: http://www.amazon.com/TYPHON-Vol-1-Danny-Hellman/dp/0970936338/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1217002046&sr=8-1

Retailers can order TYPHON Vol.1 through Last Gasp, Diamond, and indy sales rep Tony Shenton.

Retailers, please check out the TYPHON Vol.1 Staff Pick in Diamond's July Previews: http://previewsworld.com/public/default.asp?t=1&m=1&c=6&s=221&ai=71148&ssd=
Diamond's Order Code Number for TYPHON is: JUL083935

Don't miss critic Rod McKie's rave review for TYPHON Vol.1 at the Forbidden Planet blog: http://forbiddenplanet.co.uk/blog/?cat=26

=========

TYPHON is edited and published by Danny Hellman, who brought readers the acclaimed comics anthologies LEGAL ACTION COMICS Volumes 1 & 2 in 2000 and 2003.

"TYPHON is a departure from my previous projects, " says editor Hellman. "I'd initially set out to do a third volume in the Legal Action series, but as the contributions started coming in, I realized that I was looking at a far more ambitious book than what I'd done previously. The work presented in TYPHON covers a wide spectrum of what's possible in comics, from zany, offbeat humor to unnerving existential angst, and on to chilling horror, all of it brought to life with breathtaking, cutting-edge artwork."

Hellman comments, "as a comics reader, I'm a big fan of the anthology format. I first came across the work of many of my favorite cartoonists in anthologies like ARCADE, WEIRDO, RAW and DRAWN & QUARTERLY. I'm proud to carry on in the tradition of those legendary titles, and I believe that TYPHON will stand shoulder-to-shoulder on the bookshelf next to them."

Hellman adds, "anthologies give us the opportunity to enjoy work by talented cartoonists who, for whatever reason, don't produce enough material to fill out solo books. As an editor of anthologies, I'm excited to provide a showcase for artists and work that we might not see otherwise. Diversity makes for a richer comics scene."

Danny Hellman is an internationally-published illustrator whose drawings have appeared in Time, Newsweek, Fortune, Forbes, The Wall Street Journal, the Village Voice, and in countless other publications.

=======
For review copies and interviews, please contact Danny Hellman
By email: hellman@dannyhellman.com
By mail: TYPHON c/o Danny Hellman P.O. Box 901 Old Chelsea Station New York, NY 10113-0901 USA

TYPHON Vol.1
ISBN: 978-0-9709363-3-2
Price: $24.95 US
For mature readers

Here is a complete list of TYPHON's contributors:
Ken Avidor, Derek Ballard, Gregory Benton, Rupert Bottenberg, DJ Bryant, Mark Campos, David Chelsea, Chris Cilla, Max Clotfelter, Patrick Dean, Bald Eagles, Chance Fiveash, Richard Gagnon, Nicholas Gazin, Robert Goodin, Glenn Head, Danny Hellman, Hugo, Hawk Krall, Tim Lane, Jeff LeBlanc, Pat Moriarty, Cliff Mott, David Paleo, Lorenz Peter, Grant Reynolds, Hans Rickheit, Pshaw, R. Sikoryak, Doug Skinner, Fiona Smyth, Steak Mtn., Takeshi Tadatsu, Tobias Tak, Eric Theriault, Matthew Thurber, Motohiko Tokuta, Rich Tommaso, Rick Trembles, Henriette Valium, Dalton Webb, & Chris Wright.

Post doesn't really "censor" Candorville, just asks for alternative strip created specially for them

Yesterday, I quoted Gene Weingarten about the Post altering a Candorville strip. Today Dave Astor, a real reporter, has the larger story - "UPDATED: A 'Candorville' Comic Is Changed for 'The Washington Post'," By Dave Astor, Editor and Publisher Online July 30, 2008.

You know, honestly I think this is worse: "[Washington Post Writers Group comics editor Amy] Lago told E&P: "In Gene's chat yesterday, he made it sound like the Post had changed the July 25 'Candorville' strip. In fact, they asked for a sub. We offered them an alternate version, approved by Darrin, which they okayed."

What they asked to have changed was the "word" '@#$!,' which was standing in for 'nuts' as Jesse Jackson actually said (although readers of the Post are apparently too sensitive to read that and it makes one wonder what they reported about Jackson's comment on Obama) to 'ears,' which makes no sense whatsoever.

So the Post, rather than running a nonsense word, which in-the-know readers will understand is 'nuts,' as it's actually quoting Jesse Jackson, instead asked put in 'ears' which we should read as 'horse's ass.' Especially since their website ran the original, not the 'alternative' version.