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Saturday, June 05, 2004
off the cuff: colleen doran - scenes from the small press DVD
something i've been meaning to do for awhile is to somehow feature things that people send us that aren't necessarily things we can appropriately promote on our home page book feed, but deserve the attention nonetheless. so, i figure the blog is as good a place as any, which i'll do as a series of spontaneous "off the cuff" posts beginning with, well, this one:
filmmaker richard henn was kind enough to send over a copy of his new comics documentary on colleen doran as part of his scenes from the small press series. colleen's the popular creator of a distant soil -- one of the longest running creator-owned series on the market -- as well as the artist of orbiter and reign of the zodiac from dc comics, and superidol, a webcomic that runs on our very own little website.
now, colleen's also one of my favorite people working in comics -- so i'm obviously biased in my opinion -- but i really had no idea what to expect from this being my first exposure to richard's work. what i did discover here, though, was a surprisingly in-depth, focused and engrossing set of interviews that you won't find this side of the the comics journal. colleen's opened the door to her home and her life and, as those that know her can attest, she's never been shy talking about the controversial events that have occurred during her time -- and she doesn't disappoint here. if the other documentaries in this series are this engaging, then richard is definitely onto something.
the dvd's available for sale at finer comics stores as well as richard's website at timespell.com for $24.95, which includes free shipping. richard's also accompanied in the interview process with finder creator carla speed mcneil, which basically makes this required viewing as the interchange between the two creators contributes to some of the best moments on the DVD.
posted by peter! 8:36 PM EST permalink
library in the news: the marietta times out of ohio takes a look at a new teen room at the marietta library that's bringing kids back to reading: "For readers, the room offers everything from teen magazines and comics to science fiction and popular series. 'What's really caught on in the last several years is the graphic novel,' said [Eva] Goode. 'It looks similar to a comic but it's a story told in one book rather than a collection of comics. We have a real variety of those.'"
posted by peter! 8:27 PM EST permalink
mocca news: the museum of comic and cartoon art (594 broadway, nyc) is hosting the following major events this summer:
the mocca gallery will be exhibiting the work of harvey kurtzman from june 5th to august 6th alongside work from contemporary artists nominated for this year's harvey awards. an opening night reception will be held from 8pm to 10pm.
from june 7th to the 11th, the gallery will also be showing a special exhibit of student work, co-sponsored by the broadway production of sly fox, starring richard dreyfuss and eric stoltz.
at the barnes and nobles on union square and 17th, mocca will be co-sponsoring a presentation by d&q creators chester brown, adrian tomine and seth on wednesday, june 23rd at 7pm.
and this year's mocca arts festival will be held on june 26th and 27th at the puck building in soho, which will also be home to this year's harvey awards, featuring neil gaiman as the keynote speaker.
more at mocca.org.
posted by peter! 8:02 PM EST permalink
not so fast: carmine infantino has filed a lawsuit against time warner and dc comics, arguing that he owns the rights to the silver age flash, batgirl and a host of other characters he created for the publisher as a freelance artist from 1943 to 1967. more from new york newsday: "By 1956 The Flash, 26, was slowing down, when an editor at DC Comics commissioned Carmine Infantino to breathe some life into the speedy superhero, a lawsuit filed in Manhattan federal court says. Infantino, a 79-year-old New York illustrator, says he revived the declining character, originally created in 1940, and now he wants a federal judge to declare that he, not DC parent Time Warner Inc., owns the rights to the fastest man alive..."
posted by peter! 7:27 PM EST permalink
Friday, June 04, 2004
license for adventure: fortune magazine profiles the success of tokyopop and its publisher stuart levy: "Tokyopop, which last year sold Americans almost $40 million of manga—Japanese animated novels—is neither based in Tokyo nor the creation of an export-happy Japanese entrepreneur. Its CEO, Stuart Levy, 36, had no publishing experience before he transformed manga into a $100 million U.S. industry... Since Levy founded the company in 1996, he has built it into the nation's largest seller of these books, doubling sales in each of the past seven years and reaching 500 titles in print. Over the next five years Levy projects at least 50% annual revenue growth."
posted by peter! 10:43 AM EST permalink
five questions for seth: alan david doane interviews seth over at newsarama and they talk about his new book bannock, beans, and black tea among other things: "I don't really know who the audience is for the book. I'm aware that the book could easily be read by children, except for a couple of spots, I suppose... a couple of points seem more directly aimed at an adult reader, I think it could easily work as a children's book. I think I was just... basically, I never think too much about who the audience is when I'm working on something..."
posted by peter! 10:35 AM EST permalink
sokmunster: mike kunkel's latest effort is hitting bookstores next week: "The Astonish Factory is pleased to announce that its newest children's book, The Land of Sokmunster, is shipping now and will hit store shelves on June 9, 2004. In its ongoing efforts to show children they don't have to grow up so fast, Astonish Factory's The Land of Sokmunster tells the unusual story of what happens when we all lose something precious. It tells of a land where friends are made and important lessons learned. A land... that is closer than we think." (60pp, color, HC, $14.95)
posted by peter! 10:30 AM EST permalink
good day for grimjack: now that the rights to the popular eighties indy series grimjack have been cleared up, idw announced yesterday that they have picked up the series and will republish the original stories as a set of trades, in addition to debuting an all new grimjack mini-series by creators john ostrander and tim truman next year. more at icv2.com:
posted by peter! 10:21 AM EST permalink
reflux exile: here's the cover and an interior page from the third issue of reflux entitled "alien exile", which is available for ordering in the current previews and will hit stores this august. cover by rob donnelly, page by jacob chabot. click the images for larger pics:
 
posted by peter! 10:11 AM EST permalink
Thursday, June 03, 2004
quick hits: been working and playing a bit too hard the past couple of days, but here's what's been going on:
viz has announced the launch of three new series this august including case closed (mystery adventure) by gosho moyama, beyblade (kids fantasy) by takao aoki, and kare first love (shojo) by kaho miyasaka. more at icv2.com.
dc and archie comics have inked a new advertising deal. more at newsarama.com.
see me rant like a fucking idiot over at sequential tart in a piece that was scheduled to run a few months ago. the rest of their monthly update looks good, though.
viz also announced that they're partnering with reading is fundamental to promote literary among children nationwide. again at newsarama.com.
danger zone: tokyo is releasing a collaboration with courtney love and d.j. milky called princess ai this july. more at silverbulletcomicbooks.com.
dean haspiel (billy dogma, justice league adventures) will be signing at jim hanley's universe at 4 west 33rd street in nyc today from 5pm to 7pm with a half dozen other dc creators.
normal hijinx will resume tomorrow.
posted by peter! 11:37 AM EST permalink
Tuesday, June 01, 2004
mcsweeney comics: the new issue of mcsweeney's edited by chris ware is plugged at icv2.com: "The thirteenth issue of literary magazine McSweeney's is devoted entirely to comics with graphic contributions from a veritable 'who's who' of avant garde creators including R. Crumb, Art Spiegelman, Daniel Clowes, Lynda Barry, Los Bros Hernandez, Adrian Tomine, and Julie Doucet and essays from Michael Chabon, Ira Glass, John Updike, and Chip Kidd."
here's the cover to look for:
posted by peter! 11:10 AM EST permalink
korean world of comics: the korea times takes a look at the first korean comic book museum, which is currently hosting an exhibition on webcomics:
"Opened in 2001 as the first museum for comic books in the country, Korea Comics Museum in Puchon, west of Seoul, is a treasure house for anyone that loves spending a few carefree hours reading comic books.
"A tour of the museum starts with tracing the origins of comics to drawings in caves or to humorous folk paintings of the Choson period (1392-1910). For more modern comics, starting from Lee To-hyung’s newspaper cartoon in June 1909 and moving to popular comics in 1960s, 70s, 80s and 90s, about 15,000 comics are held in the museum's collection."
posted by peter! 11:06 AM EST permalink
stressing reading for fun: the oneida high school library in new york is the latest to jump on the graphic novel bandwagon. from the oneida dispatch:
"[Diane] Roy recognized that many students had a growing interest in 'graphic novels,' which are like full-length comic books. A comic book museum in New York City offered a comic book curriculum, which Roy was able to purchase through the use of a teacher center grant. She is using the graphic novels to help students explore the ideas like plot, characters, and setting, much as she might with a traditional short story.
"For students who struggle with reading, the graphic novels help paint a picture of a story, which is often an area where poor readers struggle. The graphic novel curriculum, Cronn said, is a unique concept that helps encourage Roy's students to read and develop reading skills."
posted by peter! 11:00 AM EST permalink
apparat on the web: warren ellis is launching a promotional website for his upcoming apparat adventure comics at apparat.tk. watch that space for news, previews, and spare change. meanwhile, over at lying in the gutters, rich johnston has run some sketches of apparat characters from carla speed mcneil and juan jose ryp. here's the working logo:
posted by peter! 10:53 AM EST permalink
Sunday, May 30, 2004
the great debate: the san diego union-tribune has an interesting article that takes a look at the debate over graphic novels increased presence in school libraries:
"A flood of graphic novels has made its way into public schools as a way to lure reluctant student readers and boost library circulation. The newer comics are a departure from comics of the past: They're longer and, in many cases, literary enough to win the attention of notable book critics."
"Some critics say the novels are rubbish and have no place in schools. However, many educators say the books build vocabulary and make school libraries less intimidating. And for struggling teenage readers, they offer a cooler alternative to kiddie books."
posted by peter! 8:24 PM EST permalink
no rocks, no cry: looks like harvey pekar survived his australian speaking adventure. some choice harvey quotes from the age:
"There's a big difference between me and Crumb. I mean there's a whole lot of sex in his books and there's practically no sex in my books - they're autobiographical."
"Alternative comics never took off like I thought. I thought they were going to become the mainstream of comics. You know, the mainstream of novel writing isn't these guys dressed up in these tight-fitting clothes flying around - unless it's a weird branch of science fiction."
posted by peter! 8:16 PM EST permalink
comic book galaxy returns: alan david doane has re-opened the doors to comicbookgalaxy.com and is joined by chris allen, rob vollmar and marshall o'keefe. they've posted a new batch of reviews and have started a mailing list at yahoo.
contact alan david doane for more details. welcome back, guys.
posted by peter! 8:03 PM EST permalink
soulsearching: my friend, john heebink, has a new issue of the horror satire series soulsearchers (#68) written by peter david and inked by al milgrom coming out this september. here's a sneak peek at the cover from amanda conner (click on the image for a bigger pic):
posted by peter! 7:56 PM EST permalink
new month, more manga: adv manga has announced the launch of four new manga graphic novel series this july, including the acclaimed anthropomorphic vietman war drama apocalypse meow by motofumi kobayashi; a historical korean/chinese epic from hwang jeong-ho entitled gadirok; giant-robot hijinx from sirou tunasima called jinki: extend; and the boss, a high-school actioner from lim jae-won. stay tuned to adv-manga.com for future updates and check out newsarama.com for a 20-page (!) preview of the the boss:
posted by peter! 7:35 PM EST permalink
archives:
11/30/2003 - 12/06/2003
12/07/2003 - 12/13/2003
12/14/2003 - 12/20/2003
12/21/2003 - 12/27/2003
12/28/2003 - 01/03/2004
01/04/2004 - 01/10/2004
01/11/2004 - 01/17/2004
01/18/2004 - 01/24/2004
01/25/2004 - 01/31/2004
02/01/2004 - 02/07/2004
02/08/2004 - 02/14/2004
02/15/2004 - 02/21/2004
02/22/2004 - 02/28/2004
02/29/2004 - 03/06/2004
03/07/2004 - 03/13/2004
03/14/2004 - 03/20/2004
03/21/2004 - 03/27/2004
03/28/2004 - 04/03/2004
04/04/2004 - 04/10/2004
04/11/2004 - 04/17/2004
04/18/2004 - 04/24/2004
04/25/2004 - 05/01/2004
05/02/2004 - 05/08/2004
05/09/2004 - 05/15/2004
05/16/2004 - 05/22/2004
05/23/2004 - 05/29/2004
05/30/2004 - 06/05/2004
06/06/2004 - 06/12/2004
06/13/2004 - 06/19/2004
06/20/2004 - 06/26/2004
06/27/2004 - 07/03/2004
07/04/2004 - 07/10/2004
07/11/2004 - 07/17/2004
07/18/2004 - 07/24/2004
07/25/2004 - 07/31/2004
08/01/2004 - 08/07/2004
08/08/2004 - 08/14/2004
08/15/2004 - 08/21/2004
08/22/2004 - 08/28/2004
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