Wednesday, May 28, 2003

Comic Artist Website of the Day

Howard Cruse is one of those artists whose work I've always admired from afar. Never met the man — yes, there are cartoonists I don't know — but always liked it...especially a strip he did a jillion years ago called Barefootz. He has a history of that comic here but only go there after you're browsed the main pages of his website.

• Posted at 10:31 PM · LINK

Recommended Purchasing

For 27 years, Fantagraphics Books has published important magazines (first and foremost, The Comics Journal), important books about comics, and important books of comics. Many of these have been among the most important publications of and/or pertaining to the Art Form. Just go over to their website and browse around. You'lll find some of the best in new comics, some of the best in old comics and even some stuff in-between. Last year, for instance, they issued Greg Sadowski's book on Bernie Krigstein, which was one of the most important (I keep using that adjective but it's appropriate) books ever published in the field.

Lately, everyone who publishes comics — or publications for that marketplace — has been having a tough time of it. Some publishers are gone. Some others are hanging in there because they've been able to augment their publishing income with merchandising deals and/or because they're owned by a conglomerate with Deep Pockets and a willingness to ride out inclement weather. Neither of these has helped Fantagraphics, which makes most of its income simply by putting out publications that people want to purchase. They took a big hit not long ago when their bookstore distributor went belly-up and, as the marketplace evolves into something new and uncharted, they find themselves with tons of inventory — books they've printed and have piled-up in the warehouse. With things tightening up, they've put out the word that they need to convert some of that backstock to cash in order to keep functioning as they have. They've recently tightened belts and laid-off some staffers. I doubt they're in any danger of folding, but I always hate to see an independent publisher have to, for example, sell out to a larger concern, or scuttle plans for anything but the most commercial endeavors.

This is not a call for charity. They simply have books you probably want to buy and if you do that now, you'll be happy and they'll be solvent. This in turn will lead to them putting out more books that you'll want to buy so you can give them more money. In other words, buy now. Buy Sadowski's book, at least — and no, I'm not going to give you a link so you can buy it from Amazon and I'll get a cut. Go to the Fantagraphics website and buy it from them. And buy something else while you're at it, either on the website or from their "800" number, which is (800) 657-1100.

• Posted at 10:23 PM · LINK

Rotten to the (Press) Corps

But accurate. I recommend this entry by Joshua Micah Marshall in his excellent political weblog. Just as the Bush Administration will eventually have to answer for all those reports of Weapons of Mass Destruction that now seem to be at least questionable, the Press Corps has to answer for all those charges of provable Clinton wrongdoing that no one was ever able to prove.

• Posted at 7:33 PM · LINK

Al Hartley, R.I.P.

Veteran comic book artist Al Hartley died on Tuesday at age 81. Hartley was best known to comic fans for his work on Archie Comics, for Marvel's Patsy Walker, and for one very odd Thor story that ran in Journey Into Mystery #90. For reasons no one can recall, a super-hero story was assigned to a man who drew in a comic/teen style and the result was...interesting. (I'm being charitable here...)

For much of his career, Hartley worked with the Archie company and with an outfit called Spire Christian Comics for which he wrote and drew 59 one-shot Christian comic books — many featuring the Archie characters — liberally laced with Biblical quotes and deeply religious themes. Some folks found this work preachy to the extent of being offensive, but no one doubted his sincerity. The one time I met Mr. Hartley, he explained at some length how he prayed over every page, hoping fervently to reach some lost soul with the messages he was conveying. If you could get past that, some of what he did — particularly non-Archie projects like his comic book adaptation of The Cross and the Switchblade — showed solid storytelling and great passion.

This obituary will tell you more about Mr. Hartley, including something I hadn't known; that his father was the co-sponsor of the famous Taft-Hartley bill. (It will also tell you that he started drawing Spider-Man and the Hulk in 1946. Needless to say, those characters didn't exist until the sixties and if Hartley ever drew them, it was only for a panel or two somewhere.)

• Posted at 2:09 AM · LINK

Mel Speaks

Mel Brooks tells you all sorts of stuff about the musical version of The Producers...including the shocking revelation that he likes the new cast.

• Posted at 1:46 AM · LINK