Say Good Morning to Your New (Temp) President...

First off, a quick reminder from New England comics creator collective Trees & Hills co-founder Daniel Barlow about the Trees & Hills 2007 anthology release party at the Main Street Museum in White River Junction, Vt. today -- Saturday, July 21.

"Cartoonists and other comic creators from all over the region will be celebrating the release of Field Guide to Cartoonists. The 52-page mini-comic anthology features new work by members of the comics group, including Stephen R. Bissette, Colleen Frakes, Cat Garza, Jennifer Omand and Ethan Slayton.

And everyone is welcome to join us! RSVPs, which are appreciated but not necessary, can be sent to barlowdaniel@gmail.com.

New Hampshire cartoonists Marek Bennett and Colin Tedford will be presenting their groovy musical sounds for everyone's delight, follow-up by a rocking set by Vermont-based Web comic pioneer Cat Garza and Center for Cartoon Studies fellow Gabby Schulz. Don't be surprised if they all just end up rocking the house at the same time.

In addition to having copies of Field Guide for sale (only $3) or trade, the Trees & Hills comics group will be announcing the details of their next anthology, which will come out in time for SPX 2007 in October.

The fun begins at 3 p.m. with a potluck. There is a $5 suggested donation at the door for the musicians. White River Junction's amazing and unparalleled Main Street Museum is located at 58 Bridge Street. Check them out at

this link, now!

The whole darn thing will probably end around 6 p.m., followed by which some of us will retire to a nearby establishment to be merry some more.

The Trees & Hills comics group is a collective of comic creators from Vermont, New Hampshire and western Massachusetts. We formed two years ago during a comic drawing event at the Brattleboro Museum & Art Center that challenged creators to draw a 24 page comic in 24 hours!

In addition to hosting monthly drawing parties for cartoonists, the Trees & Hills comics group publishes and distributes comics throughout the three states. The past year has seen the group featured at several comic conventions, including the 2007 MoCCA Art Festival in New York City."

I'll be there for some of the festivities.

For more info, visit the Trees & Hills site, here.

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In one asshole, out the other.

What do you give to the man that has everything? Well,

while President Bush has the interior of his ass examined, George W. gives his pal and Vice-Prez Dick Cheney the Presidency.

"In transferring power while under anesthesia, Bush is electing to implement Section 3 of the 25th Amendment to the Constitution, making Cheney acting president until Bush indicates he is prepared to reassume his authority. It has been invoked only twice before. The first time was in July 1985 when President Reagan underwent surgery and turned over power to his vice president, Bush's father. The other time was in 2002" [the initial time George W. ceded power to Cheney, again for a medical procedure].

Nice to know the boys do have some use for our Constitution after all.

Given all Vice President Cheney has quietly and covertly accomplished when he's just Vice-Prez (if you haven't read Jo Becker and Barton Gellman's multi-part essay on Cheney for The Washington Post, "Angler: The Cheney Vice Presidency," click this link and do so immediately),

one can only wonder what Cheney does during these windows of opportunity when he is full-fledged President. It's likely we'll never know;

as Becker and Gellman note, Cheney "leaves no tracks" though he exercises greater power than any Vice President in history.

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And here's a recent bit of Bush news that most Americans are completely unaware of, a further eroding of civil rights and privacy --

As my friend Jean-Marc noted when he brought this to my attention, "I can't wait to see how they use this one. Note: no appeal, no redress! When the time comes I'm sure Blackwater's Chilean mercenary squads will have no problem keeping order in the streets of America. What's a few gringos? What goes around..."

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This arrives compliments of HomeyM in Jamaica, from a recent issue of The Brattleboro Reformer:

Bush unlikely to visit state
By EVAN LEHMANN, Reformer Washington Bureau
Brattleboro Reformer

Friday, July 20
WASHINGTON -- President Bush has crisscrossed the country. He bikes in Maryland, fishes in Maine, and just Thursday, visited a bun-baking operation in Tennessee.

Indeed, almost seven years into his presidency, George W. Bush has set foot in all of the nation's states -- except Vermont.

His itinerary could be influenced by the state's tiny amount of electoral votes -- just three, tied for the lowest -- and that it's home to vigorous political opponents like Sen. Patrick Leahy. It also hosts one of the president's lowest approval ratings in the nation.

Known for choosing friendly audiences, Bush would find no military bases on which to rally pep, and televised coverage of his visit would plunge into forested hillsides rather than populated metropolises.

"All the reasons a president would have for visiting a state -- none of them apply to Vermont," said Eric Davis, a political science professor at Middlebury College. "It would be hard for him to find a friendly audience here."

"There's no point," said professor Garrison Nelson at the University of Vermont. "He'd show up and get booed and yelled at."

Nevertheless, there's time for the New England-raised president with a Southern drawl to pay his respects. He still has 17 months in office.

And he's often nearby, visiting other northeastern states. New Hampshire and Maine have hosted Bush about a dozen times each, and he made his first stop in Rhode Island last month, according to CBS News White House correspondent Mark Knoller, the authoritative record keeper of presidential travel.

But the White House isn't making any promises.

"If the president were to visit The Green Mountain State, it would be the last, but by no means the least," White House spokesman Trey Bohn offered in an e-mail. "He would certainly look forward to the visit."

Bush family visits to Vermont haven't always gone smoothly.

George H.W. Bush, as vice president, was heckled in 1984 by about 200 anti-nuclear protesters when he spoke on the Brattleboro Common.

Vexed by the confrontation, Bush's press secretary, Peter Teeley, told reporters the next day that advanced copies of Bush's speeches would no longer be available. The new policy was rescinded hours later, with Teeley explaining, "You guys can't take a joke."

Later, Bush Sr. visited Vermont twice after becoming president, once in 1988 and again in 1990, according to Nelson of the University of Vermont.

The earlier trip followed what Nelson described as a "rather embarrassing visit by his daughter (Dorothy) who was unable to answer questions by elementary students."

"Vermont has been sort of a trap for the Bush family," Nelson said. "That W has avoided the state makes good family sense."

But the state's liberal congressional delegation seems intent on providing the current president with an enjoyable visit -- perhaps with some strings.

Sen. Bernard Sanders, an independent, invited Bush to the state during an event this spring. In a press conference this week, Sanders said that Bush "deserves to be given respect" if he makes the trip.

"He is the president of the 50 states," Sanders said. "I hope he has the decency and the courage to come to the state of Vermont -- that's his job."

Andrew Savage, a spokesman for Democratic Rep. Peter Welch, said the congressman "encourages the president to visit Vermont and believes it will help him understand the passion Vermonters feel about his extremely unpopular and misguided policies."

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Have a great Saturday, knowing Cheney is in charge today...

Brave New Worlds: CCS News, MoCCA Followup/Conclusions, Mobile Phone Comics & More!

A few things to cover this AM; hope you enjoy the return to potpourri format.
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I've known about this for some time, but now it's public and it's official: The Center for Cartoon Studies earned MFA degree granting status from the VT Board of Education. Read about it here!

"The Center for Cartoon Studies (CCS) is proud to announce its approval from the State of Vermont Department of Education Board to award Master of Fine Arts (MFA) Degrees. Based on recommendations from the Vermont Higher Education Council during their June meeting, the State Board approved CCS for Degree-Granting Authority and a Certificate of Approval to offer one-year certificates in cartooning and summer educator courses."

This is big news for CCS, and bodes well for the future.
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More MoCCA followup and my own conclusions (as a non-participant), for whatever it's worth:

The amazing Alex Joon Kim posted some more pix, compliments of Jovial Joe Lambert, at his own blog -- check 'em out.

Alex was among the Sundays editorial crew, but also had his own comics and prints at MoCCA, prominent among those the exquisite collaborative accordion-mini Medusa, based on Jess Abston's poem, which likewise sold out (for a preview of Medusa, check out Alex's blog, too). Congrats, Alex and Jess!

I you missed MoCCA or arrived at Alex's venue after Medusa sold out, Medusa is available right now at the I Know Joe Kimpel site, along with oh so much more I've already shamelessly huckstered on Myrant this past month.

Robyn Chapman was there, too, a tireless worker and promoter of her own excellent comics and of CCS. Robyn writes, "Thanks to all for a great show! The CCS table looked great, the school and the students were well represented. Shout outs to my awesome table managers, Jon-Mikel and Penina. Special thanks to Alex, Bryan and crew, who went the extra mile carting CCS merch back to WRJ. Also, much thanks to Steve, for donating half the profits from the Zombies book to CCS." You're welcome, and I just wish we'd sold more (the only Zombies US venue garnered a few modest sales at MoCCA).

Daniel Barlow posts his post-MoCCA thoughts on the Trees & Hills blog, noting location, location, location biting some MoCCA participants on the ass a bit.

"...The Trees & Hills/Mimi's Doughnuts table was located on the seventh floor of the Puck Building, six floors up from the three other MoCCA rooms. This meant we got about one-fourth the traffic that the other floors saw, but the incoming natural light and breathing room turned our floor into a nice island away from the bustle of the convention. Reviews are a bit mixed on this. Marek Bennett (Mimi's Doughnuts) preferred the location. But he's a true natural with relating to people and sold what appeared to be a good number of comics and a few shirts. Trees & Hills co-founder Colin Tedford and I felt that the access that the downstairs floor would have given us outweighed the nice, upper floor atmosphere."

"Medusa, Medusa, Let Down Your Pages!" Quality spills over from the Sundays table at MoCCA (Photo: Joe Lambert)

My considerable thirty years+ convention experience (with video industry trade shows as well as countless comic conventions and media shows) had me concerned at the multiple-floor layout of MoCCA; there's no getting around the fact that the main display floor is prime real estate, and all dealers & participants on the floors or in rooms/salons elsewhere are second fiddle at best. Though it sounds like MoCCA made sure there were "destination guests/tables" in these remoter nooks and crannies to offset their segregation from the main floor, traffic inevitably is concentrated on the main floor, and all other levels/rooms are detours from the main event.

Other verbal conversations with CCSers, though, note the downside of being placed alongside 'hot spots' and/or wedged between 'destination' tables (e.g., major indy publishers or participants).

If you're next to a hot ticket guest or key publisher venue, your table may be either cut off from traffic due to lines waiting to reach the table/guest next to you -- though there's some benefit to this, many fans (with limited budgets and/or attention spans) simply ignore the table/cartoonists/comics "in the way" of their destination, and the lines prevent those seeking out you or your table/comics from getting to you! Placement alongside a key publisher/participant is likewise a double-edged sword: you're second fiddle by proxy, catching some spillover traffic but only as the "oh, what do you do?" table next door to the big kahuna.

Dan also notes that "The Green Mountain State was well represented. The Center for Cartoon Studies had two tables at the show and their Sundays anthology sold out on, appropriately, Sunday, and was one of the true buzz books of the show. Rick Veitch (Army @ Love, Rare Bit Fiends) was right around the corner from our table and he had some nice original pages for sale. Alison Bechdel had a huge line for sketches, which nicely occurred directly behind our table." Cool!

In conclusion (and in response to a few of this week's emails):

Sundays did great, CCS did well, vets like the One Percent crew (JP, Stephen, Joe etc.) and Marek Bennett did well -- MoCCA was a worthy venue and profitable and/or breakeven for many. This is now a CCS tradition, and like SPX I've no doubt MoCCA will remain a fixture of every year for past and future CCSers, and this is as it should be. It's their time, it's their shows!

Pragmatic self-assessment: For all the ballyhoo I hustled here at Myrant, I haven't heard or read of a single MoCCA participant who benefited from all the effort that went into the interviews posted here for almost a full month. No regrets -- the interviews are/were solid reading and worth posting in and of themselves, and the creators involved deserve attention, and that's all that matters here -- but that experiment in promotion was a failure. Some of the best comics (in my estimation) at the CCS table registered barely a ripple, despite promo here -- Sundays, at least, garnered attention and sales, though the book itself and its solo table status amply justified that deserved attention. I've no reason to believe otherwise, given reports.

I'll also note that sales were modest for the couple of items I had work in, other than Sundays, which most deservedly earned the attention it was worthy of. I'm not disappointed -- I had/have no expectations -- but for those who continue to push/cry/shame me into believing in there's some vast public need only Bissette comics can fill, the reality once again confirms it just ain't so. I'm happy to be drawing again, and will continue to do so for my own pleasure and where it might benefit CCS and/or CCSers and Trees & Hills, and I am moving ahead with Tyrant this year. But that indifference of the comics community (such as it is) is measurable this week by modest sales. Nice to know, a solid reality check.

Shameless flea-marketeer and huckster I am, no doubt I could have hustled more sales had I been there in the flesh, but that raises other issues:

None of this stirs in me any desire to return to the convention scene, even an 'enlightened' con like MoCCA or SPX. My being at the CCS table might be a draw for some, but fielding fans who only want to ask me about Alan Moore, '1963' and "when will you draw Swamp Thing again?" (every one a lose/lose proposition for the fan and I and certainly the CCS tables, had I been there) may bring foot traffic but distract from the reasons for being at the show/table, and not add up to any sales for anyone at the booth.

As I've said & written before, the flea market orientation of US cons is what I've had enough of; an event that really embraced and engaged with the creative life and wellspring of comics would be another matter. MoCCA and SPX and such are necessary and beneficial venues for the young cartoonists and those with new 'destination' product to hustle, and kudos to those who organize these events and please, keep 'em coming. But for my age/time/money, staying home remains a far preferable option.

My CCS-centered orientation to the comics community, such as it is, is all that matters to me at this phase in life, and if my humble participation makes White River Junction in any way a destination point, all the better that I don't go to cons.

Back to the boards -- in the CCS classrooms and my own drawing board -- is my best use of time for myself and for comics. 'Nuff said!

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This just in from my Puma Blues/Mirage/VMag amigo Steve Murphy and from Josh Peres of uclick; the press release, in full:

uclick Brings Detective Drama Umbra to Mobile Phones

KANSAS CITY, MO (June 27, 2007) uclick, a leader in mobile entertainment, has announced an agreement that brings the critically- acclaimed comic book series Umbra, by Stephen Murphy and Mike Hawthorne, to mobile phones throughout North America, UK, Australia and South Africa.

The first weekly installment of Umbra will launch on June 27 through uclick's GoComics Mobile Comic Reader, available on all major carriers, including Sprint, Verizon and Cingular.

"I'm very excited to be able to offer Umbra to an expanded global audience through uclick," said series creator/writer Murphy. "This story, with its imperfect heroine, exotic locales and blurred division between dream and reality - not to mention Mike's brilliant artwork - really resonated with fans in print, and it's been fascinating to see it make a smooth transition to mobile.

"Mobile fans will read it in weekly installments, which I feel actually adds a level of tension to the already- intense storyline. I think they are definitely going to enjoy the ride."

Originally published as a three-issue mini-series by Image Comics, Umbra is a mystery set in Iceland during the year 1999. The story's protagonist is a young, self-medicating police forensic scientist named Askja Thorasdottir whose first big case involves the discovery of a strange skeleton hidden in a glacial cave.

Umbra joins a GoComics mobile line that boasts several popular titles from a wide range of genres, including the sci-fi fantasy hit Godland, the webcomic- turned-comic-book PvP, the manga and anime horror epic Guilstein, martial arts adventures starring the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and many more.

"One of our goals with the GoComics Mobile Comic Reader is to offer comic book fans a mobile experience that reflects the diversity of the comics medium," said uclick Manager of Product Development Harold Sipe, "and Umbra certainly does that. It's a finely-crafted detective story with dramatic artwork that plays out beautifully on the mobile screen."

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That's the press release, folks.

For more info on this and on uclick, click here

or text "COMIC" to 26642 on your mobile phone.

Why my posting this this morning? Well, other then my glee at Murphy landing this, and my desire to bring his Umbra to your attention, I've a selfish motive: among the licenses I've pursued for my trio of '1963' characters -- N-Man, The Fury and The Hypernaut -- is a mobile phone game of -- The Fury!

More news on that, and other N-Man, Fury and Hypernaut news, later this summer.
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Have a great Thursday, one and all...

Saturday Note on Sundays!

I'll be posting an interview this weekend, but at an odd time, more than likely, as I've got a full plate this weekend. This 12:50 post will stand as my Saturday post, given the running around I'm doing later today (like, after I wake up), but hopefully it's welcome news.

I've just returned home from CCS, where I delivered my self-standing one-page story for the Sundays anthology (which Sam Gaskin referred to this week in his interview; you'll be reading more about in this weekend's interview with CCS senior Alex Joon Kim). Alex, Joe Lambert and Chuck Forsman were there to receive it, and all seemed very pleased with it --
-- my first new Tyrant page for publication in over ten years!

That's all I'll say for now.

It's done, it's in, and it'll be featured in the Sundays anthology debuting at MoCCA on June 23rd.

Now all that's left on my board with the clock ticking is a story CCS pioneer class graduate Sean Morgan invited me to jam on with him, "Area Stoned." I'm drawing the aliens and their spacecraft for Sean's tale, and we're having some fun with it. Sean's interview -- here, later this week -- will discuss this new anthology he's debuted at MoCCA, the comic that will feature this extraterrestrial extravaganza (along with the zombie story he completed for the Accent UK Zombies -- but proved too controversial for that collection!), so I'll leave it for Sean to tell you all about it.

So, that's three books I'll have new work in that you can peruse and purchase at MoCCA, folks -- Sean's anthology, the oversize Sundays anthology, and the new Trees & Hills anthology comic.

And, speaking of Zombies -- if the package on the slow boat from the UK arrives in time, you may also have a shot at picking up a copy of Accent UK's Zombies anthology there, too! As already shamelessly ballyhooed here all this year, that features a new cover and a four-pager by my son Daniel and I (along with some terrific stories by a clutch of CCS talent and Accent UK's lineup of their native contributors, including Leah Moore and John Reppion). Here's hoping the package shows up this week.

There will also be some vintage Bissette for sale at MoCCA, at the King Hell Press table -- and it's primo vintage Bissette & Veitch stuff, at that.

Rick Veitch will be at MoCCA and he'll have copies of Shiny Beasts there for sale, featuring our full-color "Monkey See" story -- unseen since its first (and until now only) appearance in 1980 in Epic #2.

Dig a little deeper between those covers and you'll also find my rendition of the ravages of cosmic VD in Rick's and Alan Moore's long-lost Epic collaboration "Love Doesn't Last Forever"... along with a plethora of mind-bending, eye-popping solo Veitch delights, making Shiny Beasts one of the must-have acquisitions at MoCCA for those who care.

So, there ya go. Three, hopefully four new titles with all-new Bissette comics creations, and one corker of a reprint collection sporting one of my sweetest pre-Swamp Thing collaborations, and one of my few painted full-color efforts at that.

My retirement from the comics industry stands, but there's plenty to make you happy in reach as of this week! I fully expect all these comics to sell out, then, right? There's nothing in it for me -- though you'll sure make a crew of CCSers happy! -- but plenty in it for you.

All of these are or will be for sale online, too; once the CCS titles debut at MoCCA, we'll post the sales venue links here. So, if you're craving a fresh Bissette comics fix, thanks to my son Dan, the CCSers, Accent UK (and Leah and John) and the Trees & Hills folks, you can feast for the first time in years.

OK, signing off. It's after 1 AM, and I'm off to bed.

Have a splendid Saturday...