tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-158618912024-03-18T03:31:36.121-04:00MYRANTWelcome to my musings on life, work and the creative life amidst teaching at the Center for Cartoon Studies. Posts are illustrated when I can manage it. Myrant is just that: MYrant! I post daily, for the most part, except when deadlines and workload constrict my time.SRBissettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14426874992235196378noreply@blogger.comBlogger810125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15861891.post-40261888447525329532009-09-29T07:39:00.007-04:002009-09-29T08:18:34.122-04:00<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;">The Old <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">Myrant</span></span> Is Dead; Long Live the New <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">Myrant</span></span>!</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/SsH29SXwAQI/AAAAAAAACv4/7kKK_FcxIoA/s1600-h/ChampVMGcoverfinal313.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 226px; height: 320px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/SsH29SXwAQI/AAAAAAAACv4/7kKK_FcxIoA/s320/ChampVMGcoverfinal313.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5386858162075730178" /></a><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;">Welcome to the archived original </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;">Myrant</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;"> blog! </span><div><br /></div><div>Though this blog was supplanted with an entirely new venue as of April of 2008, I've kept it all in reach -- with well over <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">800 posts</span>, including lots of in-depth essays, articles and interviews still here to enjoy.<br /><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:large;">I'm posting this Fall 2009 update just to bring new visitors up to snuff. </span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:large;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:large;">I've lots of new published work out, lots of news --</span><br /><br /><li><a href="http://srbissette.com/" target="_blank">First off: A reminder to all that my current (posting daily since April 2008!) website and blog, the new improved <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">Myrant</span></span>, is over here -- click this link and enjoy the view! Add the current Myrant blog and site to your daily lineup.</a></li><div><br /></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">The new, improved </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Myrant </span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">features lots of material I could never post on this old </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Myrant</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"> venue, including artwork, sketches for sale, and lots, lots more. Go and explore!</span><br /><br /><li><a href="http://www.comicartfans.com/GalleryDetail.asp?GCat=40144" target="_blank">I also have plenty of sketches and original art (published and published) for sale at all times at the <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">ComicArtFans.com</span></span> gallery (click this link).</a></li><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">* My latest published work is </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">The Vermont Monster Guide</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"> -- written by my friend & New England folklorist extraordinaire </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Joseph A. Citro</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">, illustrated (with over 80 new illos!) by yours truly.</span></div><div><br /></div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/SsH3Z0QPr5I/AAAAAAAACwA/7c1DkjvdzrE/s1600-h/VMGfinalcvrspread.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 281px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/SsH3Z0QPr5I/AAAAAAAACwA/7c1DkjvdzrE/s400/VMGfinalcvrspread.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5386858652207394706" /></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">Vermont Monster Guide</span> cover artwork by Stephen R. Bissette; color and digital production by Cayetano 'Cat' Garza, Jr.; ©2009 Stephen R. Bissette & Cayetano Garza, Jr., all rights reserved.</span><br /></div></span></div><div><br /><li><a href="http://srbissette.com/?page_id=5342" target="_blank"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">Joe</span> and I are on tour promoting <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">The Vermont Monster Guide</span></span> throughout the rest of 2009 -- here's the dedicated <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">Vermont Monster Guide</span></span> page, jam-packed with tour dates, info and links; step-by-step 'how we did it' info and artwork; photos, links and all manner of monstrous delights.</a></li><br /><li><a href="http://srbissette.com/?page_id=5647" target="_blank">I've also posted a section dedicated to showcasing Bissette drawing demonstration videos, revealing how illustrations in the <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">Vermont Monster Guide</span></span> were inked -- another feature we couldn't ever accommodate on this original <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">Myrant</span></span> blog, now integral to the new, improved <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">Myrant</span></span> site.</a></li><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/SsH3-tO6LVI/AAAAAAAACwI/K8kNC2ydA6o/s1600-h/NewDeadUScover.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 213px; height: 320px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/SsH3-tO6LVI/AAAAAAAACwI/K8kNC2ydA6o/s320/NewDeadUScover.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5386859285977902418" /></a><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;">Other new book projects worthy of your attention:<br /></span><br />* The upcoming (November 2009) paperback edition of <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">Prince of Stories: The Many Worlds of Neil Gaiman</span></span> (co-authored by yours truly, Hank Wagner and Christopher Golden);<br /><br />* My new short story <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">"Copper"</span> debuts in the forthcoming anthology <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">The New Dead</span></span> (coming February 2010 from St. Martin's Press); I also did the cover art and interior color illustrations (in collaboration with Ignatz Award-winning artist Cayetano 'Cat' Garza, Jr.) in the Subterranean Press signed-and-limited hardcover limited edition of <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">The New Dead</span></span> (also coming in 2010).<br /><br />* A plethora of new comics work, artwork and articles by yours truly in various <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">Center for Cartoon Studies</span> and <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">Trees & Hills</span> New England Comics collective anthologies (visit the new, improved <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">Myrant</span></span>'s September 2009 posts for previews, art, info and links to buy!).<br /><br />* I also have many new works being published by my good friends at <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">Black Coat Press</span>, with two new book series forthcoming in 2010.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/SsH4eujOLeI/AAAAAAAACwQ/P9UzGPI_nT4/s1600-h/Blur5frontcvr.png"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 202px; height: 320px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/SsH4eujOLeI/AAAAAAAACwQ/P9UzGPI_nT4/s320/Blur5frontcvr.png" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5386859836087348706" /></a><br /><li><a href="http://srbissette.com/?page_id=5352" target="_blank">If you enjoy my essays, articles and interviews here at the archived Myrant (and the new <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">Myrant</span></span>), be sure to check out my <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">Black Coat Press</span> book series <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">S.R. Bissette's Blur</span></span> -- currently up to<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"> five</span> volumes (<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">over 1200 pages!</span>), collecting my complete writings on film, video, DVD and media. The latest volume, <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">Blur Volume 5: Blog-O-Scope</span></span>, begins the archiving in print of my finest blog essays -- this venue won't be archived forever, so pick up your set of <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">Blur</span></span> today!</a></li><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">SR Bissette's Blur Volume 5: Blog-O-Scope</span> cover art by Stephen R. Bissette; cover design by Jon-Mikel Gates; ©2009 Stephen R. Bissette and Jon-Mikel Gates, all rights reserved.</span></span></div><div><br /><li><a href="http://srbissette.com/?page_id=1378" target="_blank">Finally, I also want to bring to your attention the ever-expanding gallery of sketch art I post weekly at the new <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">Myrant</span></span> blog and site. I've been posting new sketches (most of them for sale!) at the new <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">Myrant</span></span> since January 2009, and it's grown into a mighty impressive gallery and sketchstore -- click this link and check it out.</a></li><br /><br />In the meantime, also feel free to explore this archived <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">Myrant </span></span>blog. </div><div><br /></div><div>It's still quite a record of my first extensive online experiment in writing and creating a (mostly) daily journal -- Enjoy.<br /><br /></div>SRBissettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14426874992235196378noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15861891.post-15099964913699317452008-04-11T20:12:00.003-04:002008-04-11T20:19:41.567-04:00<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R__-uh6LK1I/AAAAAAAAB2o/13bb2IEJaRU/s1600-h/GAIMAN+PRINCE+COVER+flat.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R__-uh6LK1I/AAAAAAAAB2o/13bb2IEJaRU/s320/GAIMAN+PRINCE+COVER+flat.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5188145371083909970" /></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">New Bissette Website and Blog -- and New Bissette Book in Bookstores November 2008!</span></span></span><div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;">G</span>reetings, all -- </div><div><br /></div><div>My blog has moved for good to my new website. </div><div><br /><li><a href="http://www.srbissette.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Click on this link to access my latest posts, art and blather on comics, books, movies and whatever's on my mind at the time...</span></a></li><br />...and keep your eyes out for the November, 2008 release of my latest book project, <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">Prince of Stories: The Many Worlds of Neil Gaiman</span></span>, co-written with Hank Wagner and Chris Golden, coming from St. Martin's Press.<br /><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">Also coming later this year:</span> The equivalent of another book -- my fully illustrated 50,000 word essay <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">"Teen Angels: Bratpack & Britney, Boy Commandos & Bad Girls: A Meditation on All Things Bratpack"</span>, available only in the hardcover limited edition of <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">Bratpack</span></span> by Rick Veitch, forthcoming from King Hell Press!<br /><br />Now, get on over to my new blog and website, and see you there!<br /><br /></div>SRBissettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14426874992235196378noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15861891.post-43464952360391131102008-03-23T11:33:00.003-04:002008-03-23T11:41:53.449-04:00<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size:180%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Hey, all --</span></span><br /><br /><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;font-size:180%;" >C</span><span style="font-weight: bold;">at</span> has made the major change! The new blog (and site) is up and running!<br /><br />From NOW ON, change your bookmark to:<br /><br /></span></div><li style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><a href="http://www.srbissette.com/">this link! The new website is now the home for the blog!</a></span></li><div style="text-align: center;"><br /><br /><span style="font-size:180%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Cat</span> has busted through the first major hurdle and done the initial rehaul. More to come, but use the above link from now on!</span></div>SRBissettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14426874992235196378noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15861891.post-14209963185376549502008-03-23T10:46:00.003-04:002008-03-23T11:16:43.904-04:00<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: rgb(255, 204, 0);font-size:180%;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;">HAPPY EASTER!</span></span><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size:180%;">T</span><span style="font-size:130%;">hat's it, <span style="font-weight: bold;">Happy Easter</span>. Have a great one, one and all.</span><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: rgb(255, 204, 0);font-size:180%;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;">Blog & Website Revisions --</span></span><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;">-- are underway. <span style="font-weight: bold;">Cat</span> and I are amid the spasms of change here, bear with the results and speedbumps, please! These may toss the blog and site up in the air and send 'em crashing down now and again, but it's all soon under control and will be highly improved. Big changes coming, all for the better!<br /><br />More to follow later today... as time permits.<br /></div>SRBissettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14426874992235196378noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15861891.post-53206996553949503252008-03-22T06:40:00.005-04:002008-03-22T07:39:49.370-04:00<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 0);font-size:180%;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;">Glasses Are In, Borders and Quebecor Are -- Out?</span></span><br /></div><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">H</span><span style="font-size:130%;">mmmm, this revamped blog is a mixed blessing. Bear with me, folks, we'll smooth out the bumps and red typeface in the weeks to come.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">M</span>orning, all... links and blinks:<br /><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">* <span style="font-weight: bold;">C</span></span><span style="font-weight: bold;">enter for Cartoon Studies</span> folks made the grade at the <span style="font-weight: bold;">SPLAT</span> comics event in <span style="font-weight: bold;">Manhattan</span> this past week, and <span style="font-weight: bold;">CCS</span>ers also <span style="font-style: italic;">made </span><span style="font-weight: bold;">The New York Times</span><span style="font-style: italic;"> fashion pages!</span> I always <span style="font-style: italic;">knew</span> you were cool, <span style="font-weight: bold;">CCS</span>ers, but here's cultural proof. Yep, glasses are 'in' -- and being a cartoonist with glasses puts you on the cutting edge of 2008 style.<br /><li><a href="http://www.nytimes.com/slideshow/2008/03/20/fashion/20080320_RUNWAY_SLIDESHOW_2.html"><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">The New York Times</span> <span style="font-weight: bold;">SPLAT</span> slideshow <span style="font-style: italic;">"Life is a Runway: Must-Have Glasses"</span> is here, check it out --</a></li>-- and note that slide #2 is our current <span style="font-weight: bold;">CCS</span> fellow <span style="font-weight: bold;">Bak</span>, and slide #5 is <span style="font-weight: bold;">CCS</span> pioneer class alumni <span style="font-weight: bold;">Caitlin</span> <span style="font-weight: bold;">Plovnick</span>. Looking good!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R-Tv0FiSEII/AAAAAAAAB2g/r0wEc0kP0S8/s1600-h/Flockcover.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R-Tv0FiSEII/AAAAAAAAB2g/r0wEc0kP0S8/s320/Flockcover.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5180529149501116546" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:180%;">* G</span>et <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">The Flock</span> outta here, before the Flock eats you! The carnivorous Pleistocenian phorusrhacid <span style="font-style: italic;">Titanis walleri</span> -- the 'terror bird' -- got a pop culture shot in the arm with its appearance in <span style="font-weight: bold;">Roland Emmerich</span>'s fun <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">10,000 BC</span> (best sequence in the movie, to my mind), but <span style="font-weight: bold;">Bob Smith</span> was there before <span style="font-weight: bold;">Roland</span>.<br /><li><a href="http://srbissette.blogspot.com/2008_01_04_archive.html">I reviewed <span style="font-weight: bold;">James Robert Smith</span>'s (aka <span style="font-weight: bold;">Bob Smith</span> to his pals) recent novel <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">The Flock</span> on <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Myrant</span> earlier this year as one of my fave books of the year,</a></li><li><a href="http://dogboy443.blogspot.com/">and artist <span style="font-weight: bold;">Mark Masztal</span> glommed on to a copy and has been posting art inspired by <span style="font-weight: bold;">Bob</span>'s book on his blog. Check 'em out, and here's hoping <span style="font-weight: bold;">Bob</span> and <span style="font-weight: bold;">Mark</span> can make it happen.</a></li><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">* T</span><span style="font-size:130%;">he US dollar is at a historic low, the recession <span style="font-weight: bold;">Washington</span> keeps wishing away is hitting us all at the gas pump and in the grocery stores daily. It's about to nail the writing and comics community harder than it thus far has. </span><br /><br />Bad news for book lovers and comics creators and publishers:<br /><li style="font-style: italic;"><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080320/bs_nm/borders_dc">"Book retailer <span style="font-weight: bold;">Borders Group Inc </span>on Thursday suspended its quarterly dividend and said it may sell itself..."</a></li>Though the chain bookstores have been behaving like corporate phorusrhacids, <span style="font-weight: bold;">Borders</span> as much as any, this will be a major blow to many who work at <span style="font-weight: bold;">Borders</span>, to book lovers whose only local access to product is via a <span style="font-weight: bold;">Borders</span>, and to publishers, authors and creators who will lose vast income in those unsold books.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">T</span>hese kinds of losses devastate the creative community, and the comics community is already facing a crisis from the other end of the food chain via <li><a href="http://www.thestar.com/Business/article/293902">the troubles at <span style="font-weight: bold;">Quebecor</span>, printer of almost <span style="font-style: italic;">all</span> of <span style="font-weight: bold;">Marvel</span> and <span style="font-weight: bold;">DC</span>'s comicbooks; this from January 14, 2008 (link compliments of <span style="font-weight: bold;">Rick Veitch</span>)<br /></a></li>when <span style="font-style: italic;">"the struggling commercial printing giant... accepted the $400 million rescue financing proposal saying it is 'in the best interests of the company and its stakeholders.'..."</span><br /><br />Then, <span style="font-weight: bold;">Rick Veitch</span> sent me the following article as email text on January 17th of this year, saying, <span style="font-style: italic;">"...I think one of their core problems is they negotiate five year contracts with guys like <span style="font-weight: bold;">DC </span>and <span style="font-weight: bold;">Marvel</span>. Then when the dollar drops out they are screwed."</span> And oh, has the dollar dropped out since (another gift of the <span style="font-weight: bold;">Bush Presidency</span>, dedicated to devastating the US economy for their own economic gain). Here's the January announcement:<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center; font-style: italic;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Quebecor World fails to obtain new financing</span><br />Wed Jan 16, 2008 10:57am EST<br /></span></div><span style="font-size:130%;"><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"> MONTREAL, Jan 15 (Reuters) - Quebecor World Inc said on Tuesday it failed to obtain $125 million of new financing required under waivers from its banking syndicate and missed a debt payment on $400 million of notes.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"> The struggling commercial printer, which is working on getting bank approval for C$400 million of rescue financing from its parent, media group Quebecor Inc, and a private equity fund managed by Brookfield Asset Management, said it did not make the $19.5 million payment of interest due that was due on Tuesday on its $400 million 9.75 percent Senior Notes due 2015.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"> The company said the failure to obtain the $125 million of new financing or make the interest payment on the notes do not result in an immediate default on its debt.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">(Reporting by Robert Melnbardis; Editing by Renato Andrade)</span></span><br /><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">N</span>ow, that was written when $1 US = $1.01 Canadian; our dollar has taken a beating since then, further debilitating <span style="font-weight: bold;">Quebecor</span>'s fortunes.<br /><li><a href="http://www.thestar.com/article/346898">This past week, <span style="font-weight: bold;">Quebecor</span> was in the <span style="font-weight: bold;">Canadian</span> news again:</a></li><span style="font-style: italic;">"The <span style="font-weight: bold;">Montreal</span>-based holding company, which was forced into creditor and bankruptcy protection after its banks rejected a rescue plan in January, warned last month that it expected to take a hit of up to $779 million resulting from the difficulties of its <span style="font-weight: bold;">Quebecor World</span> printing subsidiary."</span><br /><br /><span style="font-size:130%;">This will have a terrible impact on the comics industry, so hang on to your hats and pay off those credit card debts ASAP, cartoonists.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">* O</span><span style="font-size:130%;">n a cheerier note,<br /></span><li><span style="font-size:130%;"><a href="http://www.reformer.com/search/ci_8647597?IADID=Search-www.reformer.com-www.reformer.com">Hey, Ma, I made it to the front page of the <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Brattleboro Reformer</span>!</a></span></li><span style="font-size:130%;">The photo, BTW, was clicked by my sweet, sweet wife <span style="font-weight: bold;">Marjory</span>. </span><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size:180%;">Have a Super Saturday, sap-suckers --</span> </div>SRBissettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14426874992235196378noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15861891.post-51836379097615287752008-03-19T21:44:00.004-04:002008-03-19T22:07:17.368-04:00<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size:180%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">God Damn George W. Bush</span></span><br /></div><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">F</span>ive years ago at 10:15 PM EST -- a little over ten minutes from now, five years back -- President George W. Bush got on the airwaves to announce to our nation and the world the beginning of the Iraq War.<br /><br />Five years later, with just shy of 4000 US soldiers dead, over 600,000 Iraqis dead (according to John Hopkins University), countless hired mercenaries and corporate hired hands dead, countless wounded on all sides, a traumatized and ill-cared-for population of stateside vets, an over-stretched US military standing serving far longer stretches of active duty than any US military since WWI, and over 2 million war refugees -- not counting, either, the dubious numbers of 'detainees' and 'extraordinary rendition' prisoners of war who are not considered prisoners of war protected by previous US treaties or any standing international law previously recognized by prior US Presidents and administrations -- we are still at war with no end in sight.<br /><br />Five years ago, I wrote on The Swamp discussion board at The Kingdom (both long defunct) that this war was wrong, and I angrily castigated those on that board who had stated their support for our going to war prior to March 19, 2003. I could not believe that anyone would want this war to happen. But many did, and many still cling to their support in the face of five years of deceit, chicanery, distortions and lies. Many heated words were exchanged then, but I didn't believe the stated reasons given by our President, Vice President or any member of his staff then. Every stated reason for then going to war has been since proven to be either a lie, a gross distortion of truth, or complete and utter fabrication. Hell, I'm just a hayseed hillbilly in Vermont, and their claims didn't hold water five years ago under what little scrutiny was possible prior to March 19, 2003. They haven't passed muster since; they've all been proven nonsensical. It was all lies.<br /><br />March 19th -- another March 19th -- another day that President Bush espouses his shit without change and claims this was somehow a noble act, serving some perceived good.<br /><br />God damn George W. Bush and Dick Cheney.<br /><br />God damn them to hell, as they've willfully damned Iraq to hell-on-Earth and damned America to unnecessary, ceaseless war.<br /><br />God damn Fox News and all corporate media that supported the march to war, and have supported the lies and obfuscations and deceit of the American populace ever since. God damn Karl Rove for even conceiving Bush as a credible Presidential candidate. God damn those who rigged, tampered with or boondoggled the election process in 2000 and 2004. God damn those 18 and over who didn't vote in 2004, allowing a mere 30% of the US population to vote Bush and his hyenas back into power three years ago, thus sustaining the war effort with their inaction. And God damn me for not doing more when I could have, should have -- as if any one of us could have done anything to curb this lunacy.SRBissettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14426874992235196378noreply@blogger.com18tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15861891.post-27479747947490125962008-03-18T07:33:00.012-04:002008-03-23T10:50:49.550-04:00<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: rgb(204, 0, 0);font-size:180%;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 51);">Compiling </span><span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(255, 255, 51);">Taboo </span><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 51);">Tidbits</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);">Plus: Defying Bush, Heavy Metal 2009, Grimes and Pan</span><br /></span></span></div><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">A</span> <span style="font-size:130%;">catch-up scour of the online news venues for my birth date confirmed that<br /></span><li><span style="font-size:130%;"><a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/14/washington/14cnd-fisa.html">House Democrats are, at last, standing up to <span style="font-weight: bold;">President Bush</span>'s bullying and bullshit --</a></span></li><span style="font-size:130%;"> -- too late to make a difference to our collective plight, alas (or didn't you notice the <span style="font-weight: bold;">Bear Stearns</span> calamity, the first of its kinds since the <span style="font-weight: bold;">Great Depression</span> -- and what heavily-leveraged Wall Street firm is next to go?), but it's heartening to see <span style="font-style: italic;">any</span> organized resistance from <span style="font-style: italic;">any</span> branch of our government to the <span style="font-weight: bold;">President</span> and his cronies. It only took the <span style="font-weight: bold;">House</span>'s <span style="font-style: italic;">"first secret session in a quarter-century,"</span> but still. Given the disastrous consequences of the <span style="font-weight: bold;">Bush</span> Presidency we're seeing almost daily now, one can only wonder how deep the holes we've dug ourselves into really are.</span><br /><br /><li><a href="http://www.darkhorizons.com/news08/080314f.php"><span style="font-size:180%;">O</span>ther news: <span style="font-weight: bold;">Kevin Eastman</span>, co-directing a new animated <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Heavy Metal</span> movie? Yep, you bet!</a></li><span style="font-weight: bold;">David Fincher</span> (<span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Se7en, Zodiac</span>, etc.) is at the helm, too, with <span style="font-weight: bold;">Tim Miller</span> producing; this from <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Dark Horizons</span> scribe <span style="font-weight: bold;">Garth Franklin</span>, <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Variety</span>, and thanks to <span style="font-weight: bold;">Mark Masztal </span>for bringing this to our attention. It's <span style="font-style: italic;">gotta</span> be better than <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Heavy Metal 2000/F.A.K.K.2</span> (2000), and I was never enamored with the 1981 original, but it was what it was when it was, and that's something. We'll see if <span style="font-weight: bold;">Fincher </span>can shape something more substantial and coherent for the 21st Century <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">HM</span> movie... I wish 'em all luck.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: right;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R9-vx5CQnKI/AAAAAAAAB2I/qfWvWpp-0w8/s1600-h/taboo6.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R9-vx5CQnKI/AAAAAAAAB2I/qfWvWpp-0w8/s320/taboo6.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5179051368158108834" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Taboo 6</span> <span style="font-style: italic;">was the first to sell out completely; what issue will be forever gone from the </span><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">SpiderBaby</span><span style="font-style: italic;"> backstock archives next? Cover by </span><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Cru Zen</span><span style="font-style: italic;">.</span></span><br /></div><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">W</span>ork on the <span style="font-weight: bold;">Bissette </span>website continues, with a shot in the arm coming from my <span style="font-style: italic;">at last</span> purchasing a sorely-needed, brand-new computer. This will also result in a major revamp/reboot of this blog, so watch for that, too.<br /><br />While awaiting the computer's arrival and set-up, I'm culling my shelves and files for <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Taboo</span> tidbits of info and art I can share on my new site, and I welcome any published critical pieces or quotes about <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Taboo</span> anyone might know of. It's been interesting seeing how and where, with hindsight, how comics and media scholars and historians see my humble collaborative efforts on <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Taboo </span>(co-founded by <span style="font-weight: bold;">John Totleben</span>, initially sponsored and funded by <span style="font-weight: bold;">Dave Sim</span>, co-edited and co-published via <span style="font-weight: bold;">SpiderBaby Grafix</span> with my first wife <span style="font-weight: bold;">Marlene O'Connor</span>, then co-published with <span style="font-weight: bold;">Tundra Publishing Ltd.</span>, concluded with <span style="font-weight: bold;">Kitchen Sink Press</span>). Those ten volumes (<span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Taboo 1-9, Taboo Especial</span>) indeed kicked up some dust and have a recognized legacy beyond just being the discarded cocoon for lasting works like <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">From Hell </span>and <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Lost Girls</span>.<br /><br />I recall years ago finding a fat text-only paperback book on the zine culture in a <span style="font-weight: bold;">Barnes & Noble</span> that included among its <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">FactSheet 5</span> <span style="font-style: italic;">et al</span> coverage a very complimentary writeup of <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Taboo</span> in the context of the late '80s/1990s alternative zine universe; alas, the book was gone when I went back to buy it, and I've never been able to recall what the book's title was. Anyone out there have any ideas what it might have been?<br /><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">I</span>n the meanwhile, I have found numerous references and complimentary writeups in various books on horror comics and genre literature that are in my home library, including non-English texts I'll be seeking translation help on. For instance, note <span style="font-weight: bold;">David Kendall</span>'s kind words in <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Below Critical Radar: Fanzines and Alternative Comics from 1976 to Now</span> (edited by <span style="font-weight: bold;">Roger Sabin</span> and <span style="font-weight: bold;">Teal Triggs</span>, Slab-O-Concrete, 2002? -- no copyright year listed):<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R9-z8pCQnLI/AAAAAAAAB2Q/Qu5qZi-oDsE/s1600-h/taboo7.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R9-z8pCQnLI/AAAAAAAAB2Q/Qu5qZi-oDsE/s320/taboo7.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5179055950888213682" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Taboo 7</span>: <span style="font-style: italic;">'nuclear family' cover by </span><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Joe Coleman</span><span style="font-style: italic;">.</span><br /></span><br /><span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(255, 204, 51);">"...the ultimate in alternative horror comics was</span><span style="color: rgb(255, 204, 51);"> </span><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 204, 51);">Taboo</span><span style="color: rgb(255, 204, 51);"> </span><span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(255, 204, 51);">(founded 1988) -- independent and controversial, it proved that the genre wasn't going to slink away at the end of the twentieth century; that the ghost walk would continue. A third of its nine [sic] anthology book-sized issues were seized by Customs in the UK, Canada and New Zealand, leading to distribution problems for other issues. When comics are finally included in the cultural history of literature this form of censorship will be seen as brave publishers/artists fighting complacent outdated authority. Yet, throughout the 1990s it was simply reported as the seizure of 'obscene material,' disconnected from its artistic content. Evidently, comics are so far under the radar they're not even considered worth defending. Horror comics doubly so.... Indeed, in its long run </span><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 204, 51);">Taboo</span><span style="color: rgb(255, 204, 51);"> </span><span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(255, 204, 51);">managed to bridge the gap between pre-Code horror comics and post-</span><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 204, 51);">Exorcist</span><span style="color: rgb(255, 204, 51);"> </span><span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(255, 204, 51);">trends in the cinema..."</span> (pp. 55-56)<br /><br />There's more from <span style="font-weight: bold;">David</span>'s generous assessment that I could quote, but I'll save it for the website, and welcome leads on or digital transcriptions of any other published <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Taboo</span> overviews out there.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">Y</span>esterday I mentioned the planned fan site for my old <span style="font-weight: bold;">Kubert School</span> pioneer class amigo and vet <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Taboo</span> contributor <span style="font-weight: bold;">Rick Grimes</span>. I should also let you know that<br /><li><a href="http://www.panrobertlelievre.com/"><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Taboo</span> and <span style="font-weight: bold;">Rick Grimes</span> fan <span style="font-weight: bold;">Ryan Heslin</span> created this tasty non-profit fan site up for <span style="font-weight: bold;">Pan</span> & <span style="font-weight: bold;">Robert Lelievre</span>.</a></li><br />As a fellow fan of all things <span style="font-weight: bold;">Danish</span>, I quite enjoyed what I found there, and thought you might, too. I'll quote <span style="font-weight: bold;">Ryan</span>'s brief, <span style="font-style: italic;">"<span style="font-weight: bold;">Pan</span> were a <span style="font-weight: bold;">Danish </span>prog/psych/blues rock band from the early 70's which featured the following musicians: <span style="font-weight: bold;">Robert Lelievre</span> (vocals, guitars), <span style="font-weight: bold;">Thomas Puggaard-Müller</span> (lead guitar), <span style="font-weight: bold;">Henning Verner</span> (piano, organ, vibes), <span style="font-weight: bold;">Arne Würgler</span> (bass, cello), <span style="font-weight: bold;">Michael Puggaard-Müller</span> (drums), and in the group's second incarnation: <span style="font-weight: bold;">Jens Elbøl</span> (bass) <span style="font-weight: bold;">Torben Enghoff </span>(sax, flute) and <span style="font-weight: bold;">Nils Tuxen</span> (steel guitar)."</span><br /><br />Check it out, and enjoy the tunes.SRBissettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14426874992235196378noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15861891.post-56252607763290076262008-03-17T09:01:00.007-04:002008-03-23T10:51:48.001-04:00<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);font-size:180%;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;">Trailers, Taboo, Grimes</span></span><br /></div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R95sXpCQnII/AAAAAAAAB14/XjeizCdQ3DI/s1600-h/trailers_header.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R95sXpCQnII/AAAAAAAAB14/XjeizCdQ3DI/s400/trailers_header.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5178695774930771074" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><li style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.trailersfromhell.com/index.php?p=trailers"><span style="font-size:180%;">M</span><span style="font-size:130%;">ore great trailers are up on <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Trailers From Hell</span>!</span></a></li><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">L</span>et's see, there's juicy vintage previews to <span style="font-weight: bold;">John Frankenheimer</span>'s 1966 sf gem <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Seconds</span>, <span style="font-weight: bold;">Peter Brooks</span>'s brilliant <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Lord of the Flies</span> (1963), <span style="font-weight: bold;">Albert Zugsmith</span>'s definitive '50s paranoia epic <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Invasion USA</span>, <span style="font-weight: bold;">Don Siegel</span>'s stunning fusion of <span style="font-weight: bold;">Ambrose Bierce</span> and sexual Southern Gothic <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">The Beguiled </span>(1971), the body-count creative-killing subgenre wellspring <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Horrors of the Black Museum</span> (1959) and the long-forgotten but still grand Spanish classic <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">La Residencia/The House That Screamed </span>(1970). The latter is among my personal favorites and came to mind yesterday when I finally got to see <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">The Orphanage</span> (2007) on the big screen, a film that carries the aesthetic of <b><i>La Residencia</i></b> into the 21st Century with style.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R95uuJCQnJI/AAAAAAAAB2A/7sqFN-8hmlY/s1600-h/taboo5.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R95uuJCQnJI/AAAAAAAAB2A/7sqFN-8hmlY/s320/taboo5.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5178698360501083282" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Taboo 5</span> <span style="font-style: italic;">cover by </span><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Jeff Jones</span></span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 0);font-size:180%;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Taboo</span> Backstock Waning... Don't Wait!</span></span><br /><br /><li><a href="http://www.srbissette.com/"><span style="font-size:180%;">H</span>ere's your 2008 wake-up call that my back issue stock of <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Taboo</span> is dwindling -- click on my site, and go to 'Store' for listings and current prices.</a></li><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Taboo 6</span> (with the <span style="font-style: italic;">only</span> published chapter in any venue of <span style="font-weight: bold;">Neil Gaiman</span> and <span style="font-weight: bold;">Michael Zulli</span>'s <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Sweeney Todd</span>) has been out of print and sold out since late 2006, and other issues will be gone for good in 2008, so don't dawdle if you're at all interested.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Cat</span> and I will be finally installing <span style="font-weight: bold;">PayPal</span> ordering facilities to the site by April; for now, a peek at the site for choice and pricing, an email to me via <span style="font-weight: bold;">msbissette@yahoo.com</span> and a little back-and-forth to complete your order is the procedure, but that'll be streamlined and push-button easy on the site itself soon.<br /><br />This weekend, <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Taboo</span> and <span style="font-weight: bold;">Rick Grimes</span> fan <span style="font-weight: bold;">Ryan Heslin</span> contacted me about <span style="font-weight: bold;">Grimes</span>'s work in <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Taboo</span>; <li><a href="http://www.tymondogg.net/">here's one of <span style="font-weight: bold;">Ryan</span>'s fan sites (for musician <span style="font-weight: bold;">Tymon Dogg</span>), and he's intent upon doing the same for <span style="font-weight: bold;">Rick</span> <span style="font-weight: bold;">Grimes</span>'s comics.</a></li>Will keep you posted, and overjoyed that <span style="font-weight: bold;">Grimes</span> will at last earn the long-deserved attention he and his unique comics creations deserve.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center; color: rgb(255, 204, 0);"><span style="font-size:130%;">Have a manic Monday...</span></div>SRBissettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14426874992235196378noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15861891.post-90851913380338321372008-03-12T07:48:00.004-04:002008-03-23T10:52:44.655-04:00<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);font-size:180%;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;">Blink Link, Blog Blank</span></span><br /></div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R9fDoZCQnHI/AAAAAAAAB1w/LthaWvfOdKc/s1600-h/PhilippeSPURRELL.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R9fDoZCQnHI/AAAAAAAAB1w/LthaWvfOdKc/s400/PhilippeSPURRELL.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5176821395368221810" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Window Watching: </span><span style="font-weight: bold;">The Descendant</span> <span style="font-style: italic;">director </span><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Philippe Spurrell</span><span style="font-style: italic;">.</span></span><br /><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">A</span> <span style="font-size:130%;">bit dazed by the sad news of last night (see last night's post, below), I'm still under a major workload and <span style="font-weight: bold;">Marge</span></span> <span style="font-size:130%;">and I are taking a brief jaunt this week, so I'll continue to post irregularly in the coming days. So, meandering a bit this morning, apologies.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">W</span>ith the <span style="font-weight: bold;">Center for Cartoon Studies</span> mid-semester break arriving none-to-soon next week, I'll be back on task blogging on Monday.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">I</span>n the meantime, though, I've been a busy boy in ways you can enjoy today -- like, immediately:<br /><li><a href="http://www.offscreen.com/biblio/pages/essays/grave_disturbance/">my writeup of recent Canadian horror gem <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">The Descendant</span> and interview with first-time director <span style="font-weight: bold;">Philippe Spurrell</span> is here, just up online in the new issue of <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Offscreen</span>.</a></li><br />FYI, I'll also be podcasting again with <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Nine Panel Nerd</span> in the coming week -- and blogging here with more daily fidelity. The <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Brat Pack</span> essay (in and of itself booklength now) is almost done, and I'll be sharing some of that with you here, too, next week.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size:130%;">For now, I bid you a fond adieu!</span></div>SRBissettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14426874992235196378noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15861891.post-88597838461686158292008-03-11T23:31:00.004-04:002008-03-12T08:03:35.367-04:00<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size:180%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Dave Stevens, 1955-2008</span></span><br /></div><br /><li><a href="http://www.comicmix.com/news/2008/03/11/rocketeer-creator-dave-stevens-1955-2008/"><span style="font-size:180%;">I</span> just received the news that <span style="font-weight: bold;">Dave Stevens</span>, creator of <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">The Rocketeer</span>, passed away yesterday.</a></li>My old amigo <span style="font-weight: bold;">Larry Shell</span> emailed me the news; sobering, too, since <span style="font-weight: bold;">Dave</span> and I were born the same year. I didn't know him well, but the news is still a shock; I first met <span style="font-weight: bold;">Dave</span> back in the mid-'80s, and enjoyed a lengthy conversation comparing notes on <span style="font-weight: bold;">Rondo Hatton</span>, adventure comics and movies, and the comics industry at one of the NJ <span style="font-weight: bold;">Chiller Cons</span> in the early '90s.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Dave</span> will be missed; <span style="font-weight: bold;">Dave</span> arguably revived adventure comics in America (at a time when <span style="font-weight: bold;">Alex Toth</span>'s <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Bravo for Adventure</span> was the last lonely man in a very odd and then recently defunct venue, <span style="font-weight: bold;">Warren</span>'s <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">The Rook</span> magazine), resurrected the school of 'good girl art' with <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Rocketeer</span>, and certainly reinvigorated the <span style="font-weight: bold;">Betty Page</span> phenomenon via his work. That <span style="font-weight: bold;">Dave</span>'s accomplishments all grew from a back-up strip in a short-lived indy comics title (<span style="font-weight: bold;">Mike Grell</span>'s <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Starslayer</span> from <span style="font-weight: bold;">Pacific Comics</span>) should also be noted, as we must also regretfully note how few comics <span style="font-weight: bold;">Dave</span> actually got out there in his years on Earth: not the measure of a man or artist, mind you, just noting how much impact a relatively few pages cumulatively had.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;">RIP, <span style="font-weight: bold;">Dave</span>...</div>SRBissettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14426874992235196378noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15861891.post-60427728587985862172008-03-11T17:17:00.014-04:002008-03-23T10:53:35.828-04:00<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);font-size:180%;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;">Krenkel Kinema, GasCan Online,<br />Main Dane and Fallon Falls on the Blade</span></span><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R9cAZ5CQnBI/AAAAAAAAB1A/sgHNPrCQ5QE/s1600-h/10000bc1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R9cAZ5CQnBI/AAAAAAAAB1A/sgHNPrCQ5QE/s400/10000bc1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5176606741492702226" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Emmerich</span><span style="font-style: italic;"> channels </span><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Krenkel</span><span style="font-style: italic;">: </span><span style="font-weight: bold;">10,000 BC</span> <span style="font-style: italic;">is OK by me!</span></span><br /></div><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">S</span><span style="font-size:130%;">nuck out for two hours Sunday night to catch <span style="font-weight: bold;">Roland Emmerich</span>'s prehistoric opus <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">10,000 BC</span>, and I had a fine time with it. <span style="font-weight: bold;">Emmerich</span> excels at shallow but picturesque fantasy and science-fantasy; I went with no expectations (as I try to experience all media), and was delighted to find myself steeped in a panoramic <span style="font-weight: bold;">Roy G. Krenkel</span> epic. </span><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R9cJ1pCQnGI/AAAAAAAAB1o/GiUvhk_SVdg/s1600-h/krenkel.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R9cJ1pCQnGI/AAAAAAAAB1o/GiUvhk_SVdg/s400/krenkel.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5176617113838722146" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Roy Krenkel</span><span style="font-style: italic;">, dreaming in paint...</span></span><br /></div><br />I knew <span style="font-weight: bold;">Roy</span> only slightly and occasionally, but I loved the man and his work. I recall fondly sitting next to him at <span style="font-weight: bold;">Creation Cons</span> in my <span style="font-weight: bold;">Kubert School</span> years and buying up a batch of his exquisite tracing-paper/vellum pencil miniature sketches at the three conventions I sat next to him at. <span style="font-weight: bold;">Roy</span> loved ancient worlds, primal and civilized, and <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">10,000 BC</span> is nothing short of a <span style="font-weight: bold;">Krenkel</span> time machine at almost every level.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R9cBspCQnCI/AAAAAAAAB1I/eJosHRNRjKk/s1600-h/10,000BC2.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R9cBspCQnCI/AAAAAAAAB1I/eJosHRNRjKk/s400/10,000BC2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5176608163126877218" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">F</span>rom the wintery tribal tableaus to the 'head of the snake' realm of pyramids, from the saber-toothed familiar of the hero to the flightless carnivorous birds (the film's single most galvanizing action sequence) to the mighty mammoths that figure prominently in the film's first and final act, the film offers a procession of <span style="font-weight: bold;">Krenkel</span>esque setpieces, strung together by an odyssey equally evocative of <span style="font-weight: bold;">Edgar Rice Burroughs, <span style="font-style: italic;">Turok Son of Stone</span></span> and <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Apocalypto</span>. Some might dismiss this as merely derivative of those wellsprings, but I had more fun than mere derivation would have provided.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R9cC6pCQnDI/AAAAAAAAB1Q/2XGKo3n1tZM/s1600-h/10000+bc3.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R9cC6pCQnDI/AAAAAAAAB1Q/2XGKo3n1tZM/s400/10000+bc3.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5176609503156673586" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">I</span>'ve always enjoyed <span style="font-weight: bold;">Emmerich</span>'s films, since seeing <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Joey</span> (1985) in its <span style="font-weight: bold;">New World Pictures</span> US incarnation <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Making Contact</span> back in 1986 or so. Yes, even <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Godzilla</span> (1998). This one is closest in tone and tenor to <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Stargate</span> (1994) in my estimation, and almost as much fun. Given the context (and content) of his latest, it's necessary to note that <span style="font-weight: bold;">Emmerich</span> will never, ever be as feral or potent a filmmaker as <span style="font-weight: bold;">Cornel Wilde</span> (<span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">The Naked Prey, No Blade of Grass, Beach Red</span>, etc.) or <span style="font-weight: bold;">Mel Gibson</span> (<span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">The Passion, Apocalypto</span>), but he's certainly in the ranks of <span style="font-weight: bold;">Don Chaffey</span>, whose <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">One Million Years B.C.</span> (1967) is still the best of the genre, the <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Dr. Zhivago</span> of primordial romances.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">10,000 B.C.</span> isn't as primal in intent as <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">La Guerre du Feu/Quest for Fir</span><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">e</span> (1981), tackling a far more expansive tapestry of tribal and completely imaginary cultures than <span style="font-weight: bold;">Jean-Jacques Annaud</span>'s antediluvian saga (or that film's 1911 source novel by <span style="font-weight: bold;">J.-H. Rosny</span>, one of the grandfathers of this whole genre). Like all its kin (save arguably <span style="font-weight: bold;">Carol</span> and <span style="font-weight: bold;">David Hughes</span>'s marvelous <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Missing Link</span>, 1988), <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">10,000 BC</span> is anthropologically absurd, but I didn't -- and don't -- care. In gender terms, it's the usual patriarchal hash: the two female leads are ciphers, an elder mystique and virginal bride-to-be, and the few opportunities <span style="font-weight: bold;">Emmerich</span> had to be inventive with either role remain soundly squandered. It's another boy's adventure pic, and on that level it's a gem. <span style="font-weight: bold;">Emmerich</span> plopped me into a vivid, picturesque adventure for about two hours.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">I</span> thought, and think, of <span style="font-weight: bold;">Roy Krenkel</span>, the grand old man of everything <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">10,000 BC</span> revels in, and I smile.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R9b6T5CQnAI/AAAAAAAAB04/SIffK2djFv8/s1600-h/trashcansally.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R9b6T5CQnAI/AAAAAAAAB04/SIffK2djFv8/s400/trashcansally.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5176600041343720450" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-weight: bold;font-size:180%;" ><span style="font-style: italic;">Pizza Wizard</span> fans unite!</span><br /></div><br /><li><a href="http://www.samgascan.blogspot.com/"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-size:180%;">C</span><span style="font-size:130%;">enter for Cartoon Studies</span></span><span style="font-size:130%;"> pioneer class alumni <span style="font-weight: bold;">Sam Gaskin</span> has kicked off his new blog, sure to be worthwhile keeping tabs on,</span></a></li><span style="font-size:130%;">and reports there that <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Pizza Wizard</span> #2 is nearing completion. I'm psyched and overjoyed. If you need a refresher,</span><li><span style="font-size:130%;"><a href="http://www.secretacres.com/sam.html">this will plug you into some of <span style="font-weight: bold;">Sam</span>'s headspace and comics creations.</a></span></li><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R9cF3JCQnEI/AAAAAAAAB1Y/_mx4VV1d03w/s1600-h/PWIZ.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R9cF3JCQnEI/AAAAAAAAB1Y/_mx4VV1d03w/s400/PWIZ.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5176612741562014786" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;font-size:180%;" >J</span><span style="font-weight: bold;">ames Kochalka</span> has just written up <span style="font-weight: bold;">Sam</span>'s <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Pizza Wizard</span> for <span style="font-weight: bold;">Technikart.com</span> as a comic which <span style="font-style: italic;">"deserved wider recognition,"</span> which I'd wholeheartedly agree with. <span style="font-weight: bold;">James</span> writes, <span style="font-style: italic;">"</span><span style="font-weight: bold;">Pizza Wizard </span><span style="font-style: italic;">is very much an avant garde work, without being at all stuffy or pretentious. Actually, it's entertaining and hilarious.... More than anything </span><span style="font-weight: bold;">Pizza Wizard</span><span style="font-style: italic;"> a vehicle for <span style="font-weight: bold;">Gaskin</span> to use as he playfully tears apart many conventions of comics... messing around with the formal elements that make up comics, stretching his wings and having fun."</span> <span style="font-weight: bold;">James</span> adds, <span style="font-style: italic;">"a new start up publisher named <span style="font-weight: bold;">Secret Acres</span> is supposed to be releasing a book collection of his work sometime soon, under the title </span><span style="font-weight: bold;">Fatal Faux-Pas</span><span style="font-style: italic;">."</span> Now, that's news to me! <li><a href="http://www.secretacres.com/store/index.php?act=viewCat&catId=7"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Secret Acres</span> is already peddling some of <span style="font-weight: bold;">Sam</span>'s wares, including <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Pizza Wizard</span> #1 (get yours now!); I'll post news once <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Fatal Faux-Pas</span> is a reality.</a></li><br /><li><a href="http://www.technikart.com/">(BTW, here's the French website <span style="font-weight: bold;">James</span>'s writeup will appear on soon -- it's not up yet, though!)</a></li><br />Man, I miss <span style="font-weight: bold;">Sam</span> and his work.<li><a href="http://danemartin.blogspot.com/">Here at <span style="font-weight: bold;">CCS</span>, senior <span style="font-weight: bold;">Dane Martin</span> is <span style="font-weight: bold;">Sam</span>'s heir apparent (as opposed to <span style="font-style: italic;">hair, a parent</span>) and <span style="font-weight: bold;">Dane</span>'s blog is packed with <span style="font-weight: bold;">Dane</span>'s one-of-a-kind art and observations. Enjoy.</a></li>Until I get my next dose of <span style="font-weight: bold;">Sam, Dane</span>'s work takes me to other places I've never been, and I love it.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size:180%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Fatal Faux-Pas Redux</span></span><br /></div><br /><li><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080311/ap_on_go_ca_st_pe/fallon_resigns"><span style="font-size:180%;">T</span>op U.S. military commander for the Middle East <span style="font-weight: bold;">Admiral William J. Fallon</span> resigned today <span style="font-style: italic;">"amid speculation about a rift over U.S. policy in Iran..."</span>; <span style="font-weight: bold;">Bush/Cheney</span> toadie <span style="font-weight: bold;">Defense Secretary Robert Gates</span> accepted the resignation (it was <span style="font-style: italic;">"the right thing to do"</span>).</a></li><br />There goes the last reasonable man, I fear. Now, remember, <span style="font-weight: bold;">President Bush</span> <span style="font-style: italic;">refused</span> former <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld</span>'s resignation at least twice; awwww, damn it. <span style="font-weight: bold;">Fallon</span> has been described as the <span style="font-style: italic;">"lone man"</span> opposed to <span style="font-weight: bold;">President Bush</span>'s Iran policies and desire to take military action to stop the Iranian nuclear program.<br /><br />This isn't good news, folks.SRBissettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14426874992235196378noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15861891.post-47737665178050630972008-03-09T10:17:00.004-04:002008-03-09T10:42:36.014-04:00<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(153, 51, 0);font-size:180%;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;">The Brown Brown Grass of Home</span></span><br /><br /></div><li style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080308/ap_on_re_us/5_years_in_iraq_changed_lives"><span style="font-size:180%;">W</span>e're arriving at the <span style="font-style: italic;">five year</span> anniversary of the launching of the <span style="font-weight: bold;">Iraq War</span>,</a></li><div style="text-align: center;"> </div><li style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080308/ap_on_go_pr_wh/bush_torture">and <span style="font-weight: bold;">President Bush</span> is already celebrating.</a></li><li style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080309/ap_on_go_pr_wh/bush_gridiron_3;_ylt=AqgDadepixQDgJ2LJWHzSOgGw_IE">He's even singing.</a></li><div style="text-align: center;">I kid you not.<br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 0);font-size:180%;" ><span style="font-style: italic;">"As I step down from the plane </span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">and there to meet me </span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">is my mama and my papa, </span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">down the lane I look </span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">and here comes Barney, </span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">heart of gold </span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">and breath like honey;</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Yes, you're gonna miss me, </span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">the way you used to quiz me,</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">It's good to touch </span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">the brown brown grass of home."<br /><br /></span></span><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);font-size:180%;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;">Reaping Free Market Fun</span></span><br /></div><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">T</span>he 'free market' deregulation of anything in the US that anyone can possibly gouge money out of that's not nailed down has arrived at some variation on the following email arriving in many email 'in' boxes:<br />________<br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);font-size:130%;" ><span style="font-style: italic;">From: "service@irs.gov" </span></span><service@irs.gov><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);font-size:130%;" ><span style="font-style: italic;"> Add Mobile Alert</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Subject: Fiscal Activity - Tax Return</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Date: Sat, 8 Mar 2008 17:16:27 -0600</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Internal Revenue Service</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"> United States Department of the Treasury</span><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">After the last annual calculations of your fiscal activity we have</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">determined that you are eligible to receive a tax refund of $129.72.</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Please submit the tax refund request and allow us 2-6 days in order to</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">process it.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">A refund can be delayed for a variety of reasons.</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">For example submitting invalid records or applying after the deadline.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">To access your tax refund, please click here</span><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Best Regards,</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Tax Refund Deparment</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Internal Revenue Service</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">© Copyright 2008, Internal Revenue Service U.S.A. All rights reserved.</span></span><br />_______________<br /><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">T</span>hat's cut and past verbatim from my own email this AM, spelling errors intact.<br /><br />Now, we just this morning -- 23 minutes ago -- finished our taxes. We're delivering it to our accountant tomorrow. But even if we had filed, we wouldn't be falling for this phishing expedition from some scumbag motherfucker parasitic suckass out there.<br /><br />What I'm equally disgusted by, though, is the insidious intrusion of such scams sans any effective response. Shouldn't the <span style="font-weight: bold;">IRS</span> be on this lamprey's ass like ugly on an ape? Shouldn't there be a widely-publicized attack on this scam, with at least the option <span style="font-weight: bold;">PayPal</span> provides me for reporting immediately such a fraudulent attempt to dilly with us via falsely representing some shady entity as the <span style="font-weight: bold;">IRS</span>?<br /><br />It's just another permutation of the 'free market' tolerance for such scams, from legal loan-sharking (credit card applications to youths) and fleecing (reverse mortgage scams, which is ravaging our elderly population) to pharmaceutical commercials (the new snake oil salesmen) and unregulated predatory bank and credit card interest and penalty fees.<br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 0);font-size:180%;" ><span style="font-style: italic;">The brown, brown grass of home...</span></span><br /></service@irs.gov>SRBissettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14426874992235196378noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15861891.post-14270068381537035422008-03-08T06:43:00.012-05:002008-03-08T08:02:40.887-05:00<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: rgb(102, 51, 0);font-size:180%;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;">Some Bones to Pick...</span></span><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R9KDw5CQm9I/AAAAAAAAB0g/yER0Vg4SwZA/s1600-h/triceratops.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R9KDw5CQm9I/AAAAAAAAB0g/yER0Vg4SwZA/s400/triceratops.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5175343797769378770" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Horny in Paris! Photo: Associated Press/AFP/Miguel Medina</span></span><br /></div><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">A</span><span style="font-size:130%;">s if it weren't a joyous enough occasion to celebrate this weekend's opening of the 21st Century's first primordial magnum opus <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">10,000 BC</span> on movie screens across America on lo, this, <span style="font-style: italic;">the very week of my birthday,</span> I must also note the news in<br /></span><li><span style="font-size:130%;"><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20080307/lf_afp/franceuspaleontologyauctionoffbeat">in Paris, where the skeleton of the 65-million-year-old <span style="font-style: italic;">Triceratops horridus</span> is now on the auction block, the first such specimen in 11 years (remember the <span style="font-style: italic;">T. rex</span> Sue?).</a></span></li><span style="font-size:130%;">So, if anyone's looking for the appropriate gift for me, look no further. It would like mighty fine in my back yard. </span><br /><br /><li><a href="http://unpopularcomics.blogspot.com/"><span style="font-size:180%;">B</span>irthday girl, fellow Pisces, cartoonist extraordinaire and <span style="font-weight: bold;">Center for Cartoon Studies</span> anchor and faculty member <span style="font-weight: bold;">Robyn Chapman</span> has launched a new blog, beginning humbly here (click on this link). Check it out, stay tuned and enjoy!</a></li>And speaking of <span style="font-weight: bold;">CCS</span>ers, birthdays aside just for the moment,<br /><li><a href="http://firstsecondbooks.typepad.com/mainblog/2008/03/something-magic.html">check out <span style="font-weight: bold;">CCS</span> pioneer class alumni <span style="font-weight: bold;">Alexis Frederick-Frost</span>'s latest, now previewed on the <span style="font-weight: bold;">First Second</span> Books site.</a></li><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">B</span>ut the best birthday gift of all will have to wait until next year, when the <span style="font-weight: bold;">Bush</span> Presidency is <span style="font-style: italic;">history</span>. Still, mighty damage must yet be done, and rest assured he's doing it. <span style="font-weight: bold;">President Bush</span>'s final year in office continues to be characterized by his ongoing attempts (and those of the hardcore Republican supporters remaining) to wriggle out of legal consequences for <span style="font-weight: bold;">Bush</span> and <span style="font-weight: bold;">Cheney</span>'s extraordinary redefinitions of Presidential power, a topic being carefully kept off the table by the Presidential candidates on both sides of the aisle.<br /><br />In terms of the ongoing maneuvers to let the phone companies off the hook for selling us all down the river post 9/11,<br /><li><a href="http://action.credomobile.com/2008/03/colbert_attreason.html"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Stephen Colbert</span>'s <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">'AT&Treason'</span> sums it up nicely.</a></li><li><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080308/ap_on_go_pr_wh/bush_torture">Further tortured interpretations of US and international law also plague the shameless Presidential justifications for ignoring all standing 20th Century laws of fair treatment of prisoners and 'detainees,'</a></li>likewise in the name of national security.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">C</span>ome what may on those fronts, the <span style="font-weight: bold;">Bush</span> legacy will be devastating and long-lasting, a staining beyond<li><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080308/ap_on_bi_go_ec_fi/economy">the economic crater that will left behind when <span style="font-weight: bold;">Bush</span> continues to refuse to acknowledge the consequences of his disastrous Presidency: the 2007-8 Recession and likely Depression to follow.</a></li><li><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080306/ap_on_bi_ge/home_foreclosures">We're <span style="font-style: italic;">already</span> reaping the benefits of rampant deregulation and 'free market' forces the GOP has touted since octogenarian <span style="font-weight: bold;">Reagan</span> was in office, so <span style="font-style: italic;">what the hell?</span> To quote <span style="font-weight: bold;">Bush</span> (in another context, even more foolhardily there), <span style="font-style: italic;">'Bring it on!'</span></a></li><li><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080306/ap_on_bi_ge/home_equity">So <span style="font-style: italic;">what</span> if your home is now worth squat, while property taxes skyrocket to staunch the regional devastation due to <span style="font-weight: bold;">Bush</span> domestic policies and tax cuts and the terminal erosion of all previous social support services and networks?</a></li><br />With almost 100,000 jobs cut since December 31 (and note that <span style="font-style: italic;">"450,000 people left the labor force"</span> in the <span style="font-style: italic;">same period</span>), gas costing <span style="font-style: italic;">three times</span> what it cost at the pump when <span style="font-weight: bold;">Bush</span> took office, billions squandered every month on ongoing unprovoked pre-emptive war, the national deficit and debt racking up far beyond <span style="font-style: italic;">any</span> historic record previously set, and the gap between the rich and the poor greater than its been since the <span style="font-weight: bold;">Robber Barons</span> era of a century ago, <span style="font-weight: bold;">Bush</span> is spreading the love and the wealth from sea to shining sea.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R9KMwJCQm_I/AAAAAAAAB0w/4ha1hdWSUHE/s1600-h/Kota%2Bthe%2BTriceratops.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R9KMwJCQm_I/AAAAAAAAB0w/4ha1hdWSUHE/s400/Kota%2Bthe%2BTriceratops.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5175353680489126898" border="0" /></a><li style="text-align: right; font-style: italic;"><span style="font-size:85%;"><a href="http://outoftheinkwell.blogspot.com/2008_02_01_archive.html">So, okay, I'll likely not even end up with this. But I can dream, can't I? Can't I?.</a></span></li><div style="text-align: right;"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Yippee-ki-yi-ay, motherfuckers! </span></span><br /></div><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">S</span>o, really, if just <span style="font-style: italic;">one </span>of you could see your way clear to buying me that <span style="font-style: italic;">Triceratops</span> skeleton, I reckon <span style="font-weight: bold;">Marge</span> and I just might make it through the coming Depression. Then I could really <span style="font-style: italic;">embrace</span> extinction -- or at least climb onto those glorious skeletal shoulders and wave my hat and cry out, <span style="font-style: italic;">"Yippee-ki-yi-ay!"</span> while my mental faculties completely disintegrate.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">B</span>arring that, I reckon I'll have to make due this year with a token gift from my old home town -- a symbolic gift, really. I'm absolutely delighted to note that <span style="font-weight: bold;">Marge</span>'s and my old home town, <span style="font-weight: bold;">Marlboro VT</span>, joined neighboring <span style="font-weight: bold;">Brattleboro VT</span> this past Tuesday on Town Meeting Day <li><a href="http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,335089,00.html">passing an article calling for the indictment of <span style="font-weight: bold;">President Bush</span> and <span style="font-weight: bold;">Vice President Cheney</span> for their horrendous abuses of power.</a></li><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size:130%;">Now, I know it'll never happen -- I mean, after all, <span style="font-weight: bold;">Bush</span> hasn't even visited <span style="font-weight: bold;">Vermont</span> <span style="font-style: italic;">onc</span>e his entire Presidency.<br />But <span style="font-style: italic;">that</span> would be one hell of a birthday gift.<br /><br />And on that happy note of no doubt vain but voiced rebellion, I bid you all <span style="font-style: italic;">adieu</span> for the day.</span><br /></div>SRBissettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14426874992235196378noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15861891.post-26006428100118099552008-03-05T06:41:00.009-05:002008-03-05T08:28:36.495-05:00<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: rgb(204, 0, 0);font-size:180%;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;">If It's Wednesday, It Must Be a Shitstorm</span></span><br /></div><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">W</span>hat is this winter weather pattern we're in? Almost <span style="font-style: italic;">every</span> single Tuesday PM/Wednesday AM since January has brought us snow or, like today, worse -- sleet and freezing rain. A <span style="font-style: italic;">shitstorm!</span> I love driving in the snow, but I hate driving in this crap. Nonetheless, we're going ahead with class at the <span style="font-weight: bold;">Center for Cartoon Studies</span> today; <span style="font-weight: bold;">Marge</span> is all snuzzy in bed, no school for her (200 districts in <span style="font-weight: bold;">New Hampshire</span> postponed or canceled for the day). Like most campuses, <span style="font-weight: bold;">CCS</span>'s students are mostly in walking distance from the school, and however bad the roads, I can make the 15-mile drive from door to door given the time to do so (unlike previous years when I lived 90 minutes away in good weather). So, on with the show!<br /><div style="text-align: center;">______<br /></div><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">A</span> <span style="font-size:130%;">couple of weeks ago, I mentioned our many <span style="font-weight: bold;">Center for Cartoon Studies</span> guest artists, and that my old cartooning pal <span style="font-weight: bold;">Howard Cruse</span> (as in, we've been pals for years, not we're old -- just grayer and wiser) had visited <span style="font-weight: bold;">CCS</span> last month.<br /><br />Well, <span style="font-weight: bold;">Howard</span>'s just posted a writeup of his visit on his blog, </span><li><span style="font-size:130%;"><a href="http://www.howardcruse.com/loosecruse"><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Loose Cruse: The Blog</span>; <span style="font-style: italic;">"Return to White River Junction"</span> (gee, sounds like the title to a 1950s western) is up, with pix!</a></span></li><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R86V6ai5DzI/AAAAAAAAB0Q/LWc0dupxv8c/s1600-h/Bananas.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R86V6ai5DzI/AAAAAAAAB0Q/LWc0dupxv8c/s400/Bananas.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5174237852685897522" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-style: italic;">The only</span> <span style="font-weight: bold;">Bananas</span> <span style="font-style: italic;">cover I could find online this AM, from the Smurf site <span style="font-weight: bold;">'Blue Buddies'</span></span></span><br /></div><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;font-size:180%;" >H</span><span style="font-weight: bold;">oward</span> talks a bit about our history together. I've always loved his comics work, going back to <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Barefootz</span>. <span style="font-weight: bold;">Howard</span> and I were indeed published by <span style="font-weight: bold;">Scholastic Magazines</span> around the same time, and at least once <span style="font-style: italic;">together</span>, in the <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Bananas</span> all-comics issue, which had a knockout color cover piece by <span style="font-weight: bold;">Howard</span> as well as stories illustrated by my fellow <span style="font-weight: bold;">XQB</span>s <span style="font-weight: bold;">Rick Veitch</span> and <span style="font-weight: bold;">Tom Yeates</span>. For <span style="font-weight: bold;">Howard</span>, this was roughly 'phase three' of his respective career, following his formative years (phase one?) and his underground comix work with <span style="font-weight: bold;">Kitchen Sink Press</span> and <span style="font-weight: bold;">Denis Kitchen</span> (<span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Barefootz, Gay Comix</span>, etc.). As a reader, I'd also loved seeing <span style="font-weight: bold;">Howard</span>'s distinctive art and comics popping up in newsstand magazines like <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Fangoria</span> (<span style="font-weight: bold;">Count Fango</span> was <span style="font-weight: bold;">Howard</span>'s strip), and it was a point of pride to find one of my first pro jobs -- following my cutting-of-pro-teeth sales to <span style="font-weight: bold;">Joe Kubert</span> and <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Sgt. Rock</span> and to art director <span style="font-weight: bold;">John Workman</span> at <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Heavy Metal</span> magazine, both during my <span style="font-weight: bold;">Kubert School</span> years -- landing me at <span style="font-weight: bold;">Scholastic</span> at the same time <span style="font-weight: bold;">Howard</span> was doing comics for <span style="font-weight: bold;">Scholastic</span>, too.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R86R4qi5DxI/AAAAAAAAB0A/0s8LxJA-JzQ/s1600-h/WeirdWorlds6cvr.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R86R4qi5DxI/AAAAAAAAB0A/0s8LxJA-JzQ/s400/WeirdWorlds6cvr.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5174233424574615314" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-style: italic;">It's on eBay for $2.99 to $74.99; it's the long </span><span style="font-style: italic;">lost 'monster zine</span>' <span style="font-weight: bold;">Weird Worlds</span><span style="font-style: italic;">!</span><br /></span><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">W</span>hile <span style="font-weight: bold;">Howard</span> was a regular in <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Bananas</span>, I wasn't. I'm only in a couple of issues, maybe three or four. I was a regular in a different <span style="font-weight: bold;">Scholastic</span> zine, one that didn't last too long. My entry into the <span style="font-weight: bold;">Scholastic </span>freelance pool was via a one-shot horror story for <span style="font-weight: bold;">Scholastic</span>'s new zine <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Weird Worlds</span>. <span style="font-weight: bold;">Joe Kubert</span> brought me into his studio/office in the <span style="font-weight: bold;">Baker Mansion</span> (which has long since been the dorm for the <span style="font-weight: bold;">Kubert School</span> rather than its headquarters and main building, as it was during its first few years) and asked if I'd be willing to draw a short (three pages, if memory serves) horror story for a magazine intended for schools; I would be doing the whole art job working from a silly but fun script by <span style="font-weight: bold;">Bob</span> and <span style="font-weight: bold;">Jane Stine</span>, co-editors of the zine, and my name would <span style="font-style: italic;">not</span> go on the job, it would be credited to <span style="font-weight: bold;">The Joe Kubert School of Cartoon and Graphic Art, Inc</span>. Fair enough! I was still a student after all, and this was my shot at doing something different.<br /><br />I was overjoyed to have the shot, and did my best on it. Part of the appeal, mind you, was drawing a horror comic for schools. During my early '60s childhood, <span style="font-style: italic;">any</span> comics brought to school were <span style="font-style: italic;">verboten</span> and usually confiscated, horror comics above (or beneath, in the minds of my teachers) all. So, drawing a horror story that was intended for distribution to junior high students -- <span style="font-style: italic;">sanctioned horror comics for school! </span>-- was a hoot and a bit of karmic comeuppance I was happy to be part of.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Joe</span> was delighted with what I did with the script, as was <span style="font-weight: bold;">Scholastic</span>. I wanted to do more. One of (many) great acts of generosity <span style="font-weight: bold;">Joe</span> extended my way was <span style="font-style: italic;">gifting</span> me with the account with <span style="font-weight: bold;">Scholastic</span> when I graduated in the spring of 1978 from the <span style="font-weight: bold;">Kubert School</span>, and thus began my happy few years of working with <span style="font-weight: bold;">Scholastic</span> -- an account that often paid the rent and kept me working when work in comics was hard to come by.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: right;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R86VA6i5DyI/AAAAAAAAB0I/7GqhQ1lz2vU/s1600-h/stinecolor.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R86VA6i5DyI/AAAAAAAAB0I/7GqhQ1lz2vU/s320/stinecolor.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5174236864843419426" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Jovial </span><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Bob Stine</span><span style="font-style: italic;"> aka </span><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">R.L. Stine</span></span><br /></div><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;font-size:180%;" >H</span><span style="font-weight: bold;">oward</span> and I never met during this period, but we were both freelance cartoonists working for editor <span style="font-weight: bold;">Bob Stine</span> and art director <span style="font-weight: bold;">Bob Feldgus</span>, both among the most amiable and professional folks I ever worked for or with in my comics career. <span style="font-weight: bold;">Scholastic</span> treated me like a prince, paid well and were always a joy to work with. It seems fair to assume the same was the case for <span style="font-weight: bold;">Howard</span>; he was implied that was the case, and he did a lot of work for <span style="font-weight: bold;">Scholastic</span>, more than I. Like all good things, this passed: <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Weird Worlds</span> was canceled after a few issues, and after a couple of jobs for <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Bananas</span> I moved on to other things, including penciling <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">The Saga of Swamp Thing</span> beginning in 1983. But I always loved working with and for <span style="font-weight: bold;">Bob</span> and <span style="font-weight: bold;">Bob</span>, and I miss 'em both. I eventually collected some of my work for <span style="font-weight: bold;">Scholastic</span> for two comicbooks in the late '80s -- I'll post that info here someday, can't recall the titles now -- and did so with <span style="font-weight: bold;">Scholastic</span>'s permission.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">A</span>las, both <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Bananas</span> and <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Weird Worlds</span> seem to be lost in the limbo of all school zines; no comics sites acknowledge them or offer back issues for sale (none I can find, anyway), and general online searches turned up little.<br /><br /><li><a href="http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=990CEEDD163DF934A3575AC0A963958260&sec=&spon=&pagewanted=2">Back in 1995, <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">The New York Times</span> ran this interview/article on <span style="font-weight: bold;">Bob Stine</span> when his <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Goosebumps</span> TV series was about to debut, making mention of <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Bananas</span> magazine,</a></li>but I've not found anything else online relevant.<br /><br /><li><a href="http://vocalienvoices.blogspot.com/2005/04/rl-stine-he-still-gives-us-goosebumps.html">There's a number of online sites dedicated to <span style="font-weight: bold;">Stine</span>'s famous and beloved <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Goosebumps</span> books series -- here's the one with the most info on <span style="font-weight: bold;">Bob</span> himself that I've turned up -- but <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Bananas</span> and <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Weird Worlds</span> are less than footnotes in the long shadow of <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Goosebumps</span>.</a></li><br />As I'm able, I'll post covers, contents lists and images from my respective contributions and art to my new website, still under construction.<li><a href="http://www.abebooks.com/servlet/SearchResults?kn=scholastic+magazines&tn=Weird+Worlds&x=15&y=15">There's a handful of affordable back issues of <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Weird Worlds</span> available today at <span style="font-weight: bold;">Abebooks.com</span> (here's the link), for those interested -- I'm in almost every issue.</a></li>One cautionary note: If you go looking on eBay, though, don't confuse the <span style="font-weight: bold;">Scholastic</span> media zine <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Weird Worlds</span> with the lurid, gore-splattered <span style="font-weight: bold;">Eerie Publications</span> 1970s newsstand horror comic magazine <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Weird Worlds</span>. Those are fun in their way, too, but you won't find me in there -- just my eye-tracks from reading 'em three decades+ ago.<br /><br />But enough on that -- more on <span style="font-weight: bold;">Howard Cruse</span> and his comics in another post!<br /><div style="text-align: center;">______<br /></div><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">M</span><span style="font-size:130%;">arge and I both voted yesterday, though I'm sorry to say our town (<span style="font-weight: bold;">Windsor</span>) <span style="font-style: italic;">didn't</span> hold it's Town Meeting yesterday (it was <span style="font-style: italic;">Monday</span> night, which I missed, damn it; no local press in <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">The Valley News</span> announced it happening then, so I lost track). I've been going to my home town meetings since I was a pre-teen, and regret missing <span style="font-weight: bold;">Windsor</span>'s. In any case, we voted, and the turnouts were massive.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Hilary Clinton</span> won <span style="font-weight: bold;">Texas, Ohio</span> and <span style="font-weight: bold;">Rhode Island</span> -- to listen to/watch/read the media we (<span style="font-weight: bold;">Vermont</span>) don't matter, but:</span><br /><br /><span style="font-size:180%;"><span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(0, 0, 153); font-weight: bold;">Obama, McCain coast to victory in Vermont primary</span></span><br /><span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">By <span style="font-weight: bold;">Wilson Ring</span></span><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">Associated Press Writer / March 4, 2008</span><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">MONTPELIER, Vt.—<span style="font-weight: bold;">Barack Obama</span> easily defeated <span style="font-weight: bold;">Hillary Rodham Clinton</span> to win the Vermont Democratic primary on Tuesday, tapping into a desire for change among war-weary voters for his 12th consecutive victory in primaries and caucuses.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Obama</span> led 59 percent to 39 percent with half the state's precincts reporting.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">Exit polls found that the Illinois senator cut into every part of <span style="font-weight: bold;">Clinton</span>'s traditional base of supporters, including women, older voters and the working-class.</span>SRBissettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14426874992235196378noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15861891.post-5333781257047338442008-03-03T06:37:00.006-05:002008-03-03T06:52:44.681-05:00<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0); font-style: italic;font-size:180%;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;">Beyond the Valley of the Trailers From Hell:</span></span><br /><span style="color: rgb(153, 0, 0);font-size:130%;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;">Trailers From Hell Break 100; Panter Book Pending</span></span><br /></div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R8vjOyZj_zI/AAAAAAAABz4/nC4j_6TEaLU/s1600-h/trailers_header.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R8vjOyZj_zI/AAAAAAAABz4/nC4j_6TEaLU/s400/trailers_header.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5173478440151809842" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">G</span>otta dash -- I'm giving <span style="font-style: italic;">six</span> graphic novel lectures in a row at <span style="font-weight: bold;">Mascoma High</span> in <span style="font-weight: bold;">New Hampshire</span> today! -- but gotta share:<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;font-size:180%;" >T</span><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">railers from Hell</span>, my fave online distraction/attraction, broke 100 trailers this past week! The centennial cherry was near bursting with this gem, appropriately enough:<br /><li><a href="http://www.trailersfromhell.com/index.php?tid=167"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Russ Meyer</span>'s classic <span style="font-weight: bold;">20th Century Fox</span> extravaganza, <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Beyond the Valley of the Dolls!</span></a></li><br /><li><a href="http://www.trailersfromhell.com/index.php?tid=168">The 100th trailer was, in fact, this gem for <span style="font-weight: bold;">Roger Vadim</span>'s <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Blood and Roses</span> (1961).</a></li><br />Better yet is 101:<li><a href="http://www.trailersfromhell.com/index.php?tid=72"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Nicolas Roeg</span>'s immortal 1973 masterpiece <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Don't Look Now</span> is today's posting,</a></li>with more jewels to follow this week: <span style="font-weight: bold;">Peter Brook</span>'s <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Lord of the Flies </span>(1963) on Wednesday, <span style="font-weight: bold;">John Frankenheimer</span>'s <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Seconds </span>(1966) on Friday.<br /><br /><li><a href="http://www.trailersfromhell.com/index.php?p=trailers">For the whole lineup of delightful previews, here's the place you wanna be.</a></li><br /><li><a href="http://garypanterbook.com/"><span style="font-size:180%;">A</span>nd for you <span style="font-weight: bold;">Gary Panter</span> fans, here's the boss gorilla coming from <span style="font-weight: bold;">Picture Box</span>:</a></li><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 102, 0);">GARY PANTER</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 102, 0);">Two volumes, 688 pages, full color.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 102, 0);">The first volume is a comprehensive monograph featuring over 1000 images of paintings, sculptures, posters, comics and drawings complemented by texts from Byron Coley, Richard Gehr, Doug Harvey, Karrie Jacobs, Mike Kelley, Richard Klein, Edwin Pouncey, and Robert Storr, as well as the longest interview to date with the artist. The second volume is a selection from Panter’s voluminous sketchbooks, where the artist’s ideas have long incubated and the site of some of his finest work. Very little of the work contained in these volumes has been published in any form. Check back for previews and more info soon.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 102, 0);">Edited by Dan Nadel and designed by Helene Silverman.</span><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center; font-style: italic;"><span style="font-size:180%;">Have a Manic Monday -- I will!</span></div>SRBissettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14426874992235196378noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15861891.post-59446569446312522742008-03-01T09:10:00.004-05:002008-03-01T09:36:32.511-05:00<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R8lkGCZj_yI/AAAAAAAABzw/t3k8BkUcPvQ/s1600-h/FM1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R8lkGCZj_yI/AAAAAAAABzw/t3k8BkUcPvQ/s400/FM1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5172775701897805602" border="0" /></a><span style="color: rgb(204, 0, 0);font-size:180%;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;">You Axed For It! FM #1 For You!</span></span><br /><span style="color: rgb(153, 0, 0);font-size:130%;" ><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Famous Monsters of Filmland</span> #1 Limited Edition Reprint is Out Now!</span><br /><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">I</span> meant to post this earlier this week, in part as a followup to my <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Cinema 57</span> posts in February, in part due to the anniversary of the wintery debut of the historic <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Famous Monsters of Filmland</span> #1 this past week, but <span style="font-weight: bold;">Tim Lucas</span> beat me to it.<br /><br />In short, <li><a href="http://www.filmlandclassics.com/zencart/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=97&zenid=f0384110a4c5310e97e0e0e377cfc926">here's the link to the <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Famous Monsters</span> site order page for this limited edition reprint of a slice of horror history.</a></li><br /><li><a href="http://videowatchdog.blogspot.com/2008/02/you-axed-for-it.html">Bless him, here's <span style="font-weight: bold;">Tim Lucas</span>'s <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Video Watchblog</span> post, which says all I intended to say, only better. Give it a read.</a></li><br />Then, if you can swing the $40, give <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">FM</span> #1 a read. My copy's on the way.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(204, 0, 0);">(More Saturday posts to follow as the day wears on...)</span><br /></div>SRBissettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14426874992235196378noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15861891.post-29880697101423667342008-03-01T08:09:00.002-05:002008-03-01T08:13:07.095-05:00<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(102, 0, 0);font-size:180%;" >Coins of the Realm</span><br /></div><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">T</span><span style="font-size:130%;">hree inches of snow thus far, and still falling. Another winter storm.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">A</span> proper post later today, but now, my stepson Mike is just pulling into the driveway and we've got work to do in the basement (the library/writing office to be); so, until the post proper, let's<br /><li><a href="http://blip.tv/file/520347">ring in the pre-election change while it's still relevant.</a></li><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">S</span>tay on your feet today --SRBissettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14426874992235196378noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15861891.post-2245486804749869782008-02-29T06:10:00.004-05:002008-02-29T06:39:51.452-05:00<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);font-size:180%;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;">I Need a Brain Washing</span></span><br /></div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R8fpACZj_wI/AAAAAAAABzg/oAyCOTHn2y0/s1600-h/Fiend.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R8fpACZj_wI/AAAAAAAABzg/oAyCOTHn2y0/s400/Fiend.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5172358883911663362" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">T</span><span style="font-size:130%;">his morning, my brain decided to slither out me ear and go on a pre-dawn jaunt. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">A</span>t least, I think that's what happened. I can't be sure. I'm just sort of working this all out, typing out loud, so to speak.<br /><br />It slipped and slopped about the bedroom, leaving a glistening goo trail from my pillow across the bed clothes and down onto the floor, across the rug, and up onto my dresser. It seemed to malinger a while around the humidifier, judging by the thickness of the slug-like ooze thereabouts, then -- perhaps harangued by one of our cats -- into the bathroom. <span style="font-weight: bold;">Lizzie</span>, most likely, since she's the hunter of the pair. <span style="font-weight: bold;">Tuco</span> probably just watched, while <span style="font-weight: bold;">Lizzie</span> did all the hard work.<br /><br />It looks like my brain tried to pushed the door shut, though we didn't hear a thing. Well, I mean, <span style="font-weight: bold;">Marge</span> didn't. I couldn't have, really, with my brain out and about on its own, now, could I? I reckon not.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">S</span>o, anyhoot, it looks from all the scuffle evidence I've stumbled about finding with the dawn light, that either my brain made a mad -- well, as mad a dash as a brain-and-spinal-column-caterpiller-move can be a 'mad dash' -- to the other downstairs bathroom, and ended up in the catbox. Brains being such sticky things, it appears clumps of litter clung to me brain as it thrashed about, no doubt worried by the cat or cats, since the curtains are also spattered with goo and what appears to be a blue-tinged sampling of blood, and are down on the floor, splayed around the toilet and catbox.<br /><br />It then looks like my cat-litter-gunked-up brain made its way rather clumsily to the kitchen, where the basket was overturned and the first open box of Girl Scout Cookies (mint) have been raided. I know that was what my brain <span style="font-style: italic;">thought</span> it was doing, 'cause I know my brain and Girl Scout Cookies. I have no idea what my brain thought it could ingest -- I mean, sans jaws, mouth and esophagus, it just looks like it managed to sort of roll a cellophane tube of mints out of the box, mash it about and sort of grind some of the mint crumbs in with the gobbets of kitty litter, lint and dustbunnies already stuck to it, but I reckon it derived some sensation or satisfaction from the exercise. I do feel a bit minty-fresh between my sinuses, and am craving a mint cookie just now.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">I</span>t also looks like my brain sat in the sink a bit, judging by the mess. Mayhaps my brain pulsed in the stainless-steel sink long enough for the cat or cats to get bored and leave it the hell alone -- I don't know.<br /><br />Mind you, I can't recall any of this, really. I'm just trying to puzzle out what might have happened.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">S</span>o, at some point, since I'm now awake and about, my brain must have returned to my pillow and made its way back into my skull via the ear canal. That would explain why there's clumps of mint cookie, damp dust clots, slimy strings of cat-litter infused ichor and a wet bit of cat shit and toilet paper crammed into my left ear this morning. It's really disgusting, and my head is throbbing like it was pounded with a brick. It also looks a bit like some pond-dwelling amphibian crapped on my pillow, right by my ear.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">B</span>ut I am also strangely euphoric and gleeful this morning, as if I'd taken my inner child for a walk or something. I await the day's offerings with excitement and as if reawakened from a long, suffocating slumber.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Lizzie</span> just keeps staring at me, but not looking me in the eyes, sort of staring off to my left, just above my shoulder, and licking her fuzzy little lips and purring and purring and purring...<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-style: italic;font-size:130%;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;">Have a Freaky Friday...</span></span><br /></div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R8fs1SZj_xI/AAAAAAAABzo/-aaQ4L59lD8/s1600-h/CatinBrainlaserdisc.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R8fs1SZj_xI/AAAAAAAABzo/-aaQ4L59lD8/s400/CatinBrainlaserdisc.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5172363097274580754" border="0" /></a>SRBissettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14426874992235196378noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15861891.post-46424661749835720802008-02-28T07:48:00.002-05:002008-02-28T07:55:25.025-05:00<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: rgb(102, 0, 0);font-size:180%;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;">Meanwhile, Back at the Ranch...</span></span><br /></div><br /><span style="font-style: italic;font-size:180%;" >"E</span><span style="font-style: italic;">ven though <span style="font-weight: bold;">White House</span> computer technicians hunted high and low, an entire week's worth of e-mail from [<span style="font-weight: bold;">Vice President Dick] Cheney</span>'s office was missing. The week was Sept. 30, 2003, to Oct. 6, 2003, the opening days of the <span style="font-weight: bold;">Justice Department</span>'s probe into whether anyone at the <span style="font-weight: bold;">White House</span> leaked the identity of <span style="font-weight: bold;">CIA</span> operative <span style="font-weight: bold;">Valerie Plame</span>."<br /><br /></span><li><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080227/ap_on_go_pr_wh/white_house_e_mail"><span style="font-weight: bold;">President Nixon</span> went down for a great deal less than this.</a></li>SRBissettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14426874992235196378noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15861891.post-28830960060092310182008-02-27T08:00:00.010-05:002008-02-27T09:10:38.246-05:00<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size:180%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"> Snow, and Comics, Old & New</span></span><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-size:180%;">10 </span>inches of fresh snow in <span style="font-weight: bold;">Windsor, VT</span> and it's still gently coming down... a genuine <span style="font-weight: bold;">Vermont/New England</span> winter continues. But that's not what I care to share with you this morning -- it's all about comics (and animation) today!</span><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R8Vm7ndEzuI/AAAAAAAABzA/AjM-IeGI6SE/s1600-h/BakServiceIndstrypnl.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R8Vm7ndEzuI/AAAAAAAABzA/AjM-IeGI6SE/s400/BakServiceIndstrypnl.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5171652921494130402" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Service Industry</span><span style="font-style: italic;">: The world as it is in the Bakosphere?</span></span><br /></div><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;font-size:180%;" >C</span><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">enter for Cartoon Studies</span> fellow <span style="font-weight: bold;">T. Edward Bak</span> <span style="font-style: italic;">aka</span> <span style="font-weight: bold;">Bak</span> scored in 2007 with <span style="font-weight: bold;">Drawn & Quarterly</span>'s publication of <span style="font-weight: bold;">Bak</span>'s graphic novel <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Service Industry</span>.<br /></span><br /><li><a href="http://www.comicsreporter.com/index.php/resources/interviews/11013/">Check out <span style="font-weight: bold;">Tom Spurgeon</span>'s <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Comics Reporter</span> interview with <span style="font-weight: bold;">Bak</span>, linked here.</a></li><br /><br /><div style="text-align: right;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R8Vn9XdEzwI/AAAAAAAABzQ/wKdAEU7RfAU/s1600-h/LastHotelmaria.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R8Vn9XdEzwI/AAAAAAAABzQ/wKdAEU7RfAU/s400/LastHotelmaria.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5171654051070529282" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">The Last Hotel</span><span style="font-style: italic;">: Don't mess with </span><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Maria</span><span style="font-style: italic;">!</span></span><br /></div><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">B</span><span style="font-size:130%;">ak's now hard at work on a new project, <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">The Last Hotel</span>, and he's opened the hotel for public scrutiny. </span><br /><br />Check out<br /><li><a href="http://thelasthotel.blogspot.com/"><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">The Last Hotel</span>: <span style="font-style: italic;">"Being for the sake of posterity an account of anecdotes, profiles, histories, artistic endeavors and engagements compiled by the staff, guests and residents of the Hotel Ticonderoga."</span></a></li><br />Here, <span style="font-weight: bold;">Bak</span> is concocting the entire <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Last Hotel</span> universe, cast of characters, and metafictional ripples from the rooms, hallways, lobby and lives.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-style: italic;">"<span style="font-weight: bold;">The Hotel Ticonderoga</span> of legend emerged in the late 1940s and early 1950s when she was regarded as a premier lodging for artists, writers and activists in the city. But prior to that colorful and storied era when the famous (and infamous) called her home and she served as a cradle to the innumerable creative--and frequently incendiary--works conceived within her rooms, the <span style="font-weight: bold;">Ticonderoga</span>'s legacy was already renowned...."</span> </span><br /><br />Check it out, and do so <span style="font-style: italic;">regularly</span> to sample and savor <span style="font-weight: bold;">Bak</span>'s current creative process via this innovative blog.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R8VnqHdEzvI/AAAAAAAABzI/dzCQ8M93chQ/s1600-h/Bak.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R8VnqHdEzvI/AAAAAAAABzI/dzCQ8M93chQ/s200/Bak.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5171653720358047474" border="0" /></a><li><span style="font-size:85%;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/57688364@N00/1639469210"><span style="font-style: italic;">Photo: "</span><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Bak</span><span style="font-style: italic;"> wears his sunglasses at night," October 19, 2007, by </span><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Sarah Oleksyk</span><span style="font-style: italic;">, at</span> <span style="font-weight: bold;">Sarah Oleksyk's Photostream</span>.</a></span></li><br />In related <span style="font-weight: bold;">CCS</span> fellow news, our 2008-9 fellow <span style="font-weight: bold;">Alec Longstreth</span> is visiting <span style="font-weight: bold;">CCS</span> (for the umpteenth time; he's a vet) this Thursday, offering his own brand of high-octane creativity via a session with the seniors in <span style="font-weight: bold;">Professional Practices</span> class and a <span style="font-weight: bold;">CCS</span>-wide <span style="font-weight: bold;">Visiting Artists</span> chalk talk we're all looking forward to. He'll have a tough time topping <span style="font-weight: bold;">Bak</span>'s January <span style="font-weight: bold;">Visiting Artists</span> presentation, but I'm sure <span style="font-weight: bold;">Alec</span>'s up to the challenge. This appearance promising the smoothest transition between <span style="font-weight: bold;">CCS</span> fellows yet; we're all getting the hang of it after three years... whatever the trolls at the <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Comics Journal</span> board blather.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">An Insider's View of Animation in the '40s? </span></span><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size:180%;">M</span><span style="font-size:130%;">aybe yes, maybe no. In any case, it's a crackling comics story! </span><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R8VtlHdEzxI/AAAAAAAABzY/HshvyleFDcg/s1600-h/BiroMaurerBoyComicspanel.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R8VtlHdEzxI/AAAAAAAABzY/HshvyleFDcg/s400/BiroMaurerBoyComicspanel.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5171660231528468242" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Panel from the animation 'Crimebusters' story linked below: Script by </span><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Fleischer Brothers Studio</span><span style="font-style: italic;"> vet </span><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Charles Biro</span><span style="font-style: italic;">, art by </span><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Norman Maurer</span><span style="font-style: italic;">, </span><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Joe Kubert</span><span style="font-style: italic;">'s partner on many </span><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">St. John</span><span style="font-style: italic;"> comics in the early '50s and future </span><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Three Stooges</span><span style="font-style: italic;"> management partner.</span></span><br /></div><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">A</span>nimation and Golden Age comics devotees, take note! Thanks to <span style="font-weight: bold;">CCS</span> senior <span style="font-weight: bold;">Dane Martin</span>, there's this terrific <span style="font-weight: bold;">ASIFA Hollywood</span> link to share this AM featuring a very cool full-length comic story about animation industry intrigue and crime from the early '40s.<br /><br /><li><a href="http://www.animationarchive.org/2008/02/comics-animation-business-in-boy-comics.html">Savor this <span style="font-style: italic;">"Crimefighter"</span> gem -- it's a full story! -- from <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Boy Comics</span> #39, April 1942, by <span style="font-weight: bold;">Charles Biro</span> and <span style="font-weight: bold;">Norman Maurer</span>,</a></li>and enjoy!<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size:180%;">Waddling through Wednesday, I remain your humble servant...</span></div>SRBissettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14426874992235196378noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15861891.post-14200838826025088572008-02-26T08:47:00.005-05:002008-02-26T09:01:15.596-05:00<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);font-size:180%;" >Just a Little Off the Top...</span><br /></div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R8QaFXdEzsI/AAAAAAAAByw/RUDHTkhz49o/s1600-h/SweeneyFriend.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R8QaFXdEzsI/AAAAAAAAByw/RUDHTkhz49o/s400/SweeneyFriend.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5171286951625805506" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);font-size:180%;" >A Morning Musical</span><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size:180%;"><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Sweeney Todd</span> fans: there's a face in the crowd you must hear!<br /></span></div><li style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size:180%;"><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tk4i7OKWSJw">Attend the Tale...</a></span></li><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size:180%;">S</span>pecial thanks to <span style="font-weight: bold;">Larry Shell</span> for sharing this link, and have a great Tuesday -- we've got a winter storm coming in, so I'm digging in (and no doubt out) for the duration.<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R8QaLndEztI/AAAAAAAABy4/XeLoKlt7t-8/s1600-h/Floyd1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R8QaLndEztI/AAAAAAAABy4/XeLoKlt7t-8/s400/Floyd1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5171287058999987922" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(204, 0, 0);">"Aren't you ashamed?"</span></div>SRBissettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14426874992235196378noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15861891.post-3490429315864653712008-02-25T06:53:00.012-05:002008-02-25T08:44:14.000-05:00<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);font-size:180%;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;">Goin' South, Comin' North, <span style="font-style: italic;">The Brain That Wouldn't Die</span> Won't Die -- <span style="font-style: italic;">Again</span> -- and What's Up With My <span style="font-style: italic;">TCJ</span> Sub? Again?</span></span><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R8K9w3dEzmI/AAAAAAAAByA/HSCvoTyvVAo/s1600-h/brain.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R8K9w3dEzmI/AAAAAAAAByA/HSCvoTyvVAo/s400/brain.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5170903969392021090" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Oh, That</span> <span style="font-weight: bold;">Brain</span><span style="font-style: italic;">: <span style="font-weight: bold;">Virginia Leith</span> in her greatest role as <span style="font-weight: bold;">Jan</span>, in the pan, and <span style="font-weight: bold;">Jaso</span><span style="font-weight: bold;">n</span> (credited as <span style="font-weight: bold;">Herb</span>) <span style="font-weight: bold;">Evers</span> as arrogant <span style="font-weight: bold;">Dr. Bill Cortner</span> -- what a couple. What a lab. What a movie.</span></span><br /></div><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;font-size:180%;" >M</span><span style="font-weight: bold;">arge</span> and I had a great trip last week to warmer American climates, visiting family during <span style="font-weight: bold;">Marge</span>'s only winter break at her job. We were in <span style="font-weight: bold;">Austin, Texas</span> for a almost three days, and had a grand time with <span style="font-weight: bold;">Marge</span>'s oldest son <span style="font-weight: bold;">Bill</span> (now <span style="font-weight: bold;">Dovid</span>), his wife <span style="font-weight: bold;">Rivka </span>and our two grandchildren, now 3 and 5 years old. I also caught up with my older brother; we hadn't seen each other in 22 years, and we managed to get together twice during this excursion. It was great, and we'll not let such a lapse happen again.<br /><br />In my last couple of hours in <span style="font-weight: bold;">Austin</span>, I decided to check out <span style="font-weight: bold;">Half-Price Books & Magazines</span> on <span style="font-weight: bold;">Lamar</span>, and my search for a copy of <span style="font-weight: bold;">Jack Jackson</span>'s last published work <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">New Texas History Movies</span> led me to the rare books room -- and <span style="font-weight: bold;">Richard Klaw</span>, who I hadn't spoken to or seen almost 15 years. That was a pleasant surprise, too, and a grace note from <span style="font-weight: bold;">Texas</span> in what was by far my most rewarding visit to the <span style="font-weight: bold;">Lone Star</span> state in this lifetime.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">W</span>e were then off to <span style="font-weight: bold;">Florida</span> to visit my parents, now well into their 80s and still in good health. As with our time in <span style="font-weight: bold;">Austin</span>, we were blessed with great weather: lots of sunshine and moderate temperatures. By our second day in <span style="font-weight: bold;">Florida</span>, <span style="font-weight: bold;">Marge</span> relaxed -- really relaxed -- and savored the vacation time, and we had a grand time with my folks. We were able to watch the total eclipse of the moon until it was fully in Earth's shadow: then the clouds obscured the next phase, and we were off to bed.<br /><br />The sweet weather held out to the end; flying home on Saturday, we missed the air travel upsets of Friday completely, and were sitting by our gate before the torrential rains hammered <span style="font-weight: bold;">Tampa</span>. Our flights went without a hitch, and unlike our <span style="font-weight: bold;">Detroit</span> airport experience going south the previous Saturday, we had ample time and an easy jaunt from gate-to-gate en route home. We arrived in <span style="font-weight: bold;">Manchester NH</span> on time and drove dry roads home Saturday night.<br /><br />Ah, sweet home -- we were ready to be here, marvelous though the trip was.<br /><div style="text-align: center;">__________________<br /></div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R8LCcHdEzpI/AAAAAAAAByY/Q61w2agi5bs/s1600-h/ComicsJournal.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R8LCcHdEzpI/AAAAAAAAByY/Q61w2agi5bs/s320/ComicsJournal.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5170909110467874450" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:180%;">I</span> can't be the only <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">The Comics Journal</span> subscriber finding it increasingly difficult to assess when my subscription ends, given the new system <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">TCJ</span> apparently adopted a couple of years ago.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">F</span>irst, know I've been a steady subscriber since about 1981; I paid through the period most of my working pro peers in the industry coasted on complimentary subs, and I kept my paid sub going long after my peers gave up on <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">TCJ</span>, refusing to pay for subs once their comps concluded. Regardless, you'd think <span style="font-weight: bold;">Fantagraphics</span> would consider a 25+ year customer of <span style="font-style: italic;">some</span> value, especially given the state of the industry, and at least make it <span style="font-style: italic;">easy</span> for me to continue subscribing.<br /><br />Secondly, the subcription copy envelopes themselves used to give some kind of clue: the penultimate issue in my subscription would alert me to the sub ending <span style="font-style: italic;">next</span> issue, providing the necessary order form and pricing to promptly extend the lapsing subscription. That was a great system, giving me the needed reminder and time to re-up in time to not miss an issue.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">I</span>nstead, I haven't a clue: for the <span style="font-style: italic;">second</span> time since our move to <span style="font-weight: bold;">Windsor</span> in December 2006 -- just over a year -- I am only aware of my <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">TCJ</span> sub apparently ending due to a few months passing without <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">TCJ</span>'s arrival.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">W</span>hatever the purpose or mysterious meaning of the coding now typed above my printed address on the TCJ subscription envelopes the magazine arrives in, it doesn't seem to have anything to due with the issue number ending my subscription. While doing my taxes for 2007, I note the last issue I received was <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">TCJ</span> #286, the November 2007 issue. I pulled it off my shelves and checked the issue and the envelope, which I'd folded and tucked into the issue as a bookmark. It only says:<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 102);">193 *********************ORIGIN MIXED ADC 044 S5 P4</span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 102);">USPS (J&J)881 APPROVED POLY</span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 102);">1ST CLASS</span><br /><br />-- and then my address. No reference to issue number or month: no 286 or 1107 (November 2007), not a clue my sub just ended.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: right;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R8LCn3dEzqI/AAAAAAAAByg/hzeU_lGnYFo/s1600-h/tcj-284.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R8LCn3dEzqI/AAAAAAAAByg/hzeU_lGnYFo/s320/tcj-284.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5170909312331337378" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Thankfully, my</span> <span style="font-weight: bold;">TCJ</span> <span style="font-style: italic;">sub didn't lapse before this sweet sweet sweet </span><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Roger Langridge</span><span style="font-style: italic;"> cover graced</span> <span style="font-weight: bold;">TCJ</span> <span style="font-style: italic;">#284. Sigh. </span><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Fin. Fang. Foom.</span></span><br /></div><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">L</span>ike last time, I'll call <span style="font-weight: bold;">Fantagraphics</span> today, invest a bit of money beyond the cost of subscription and the necessary time to go through the folderol of ordering the now-missed "back issues" and re-up my sub, but I'm telling ya, <span style="font-weight: bold;">Fantagraphics</span>, this is the last time.<br /><br />I love <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">TCJ</span>, it's a <span style="font-style: italic;">great</span> magazine and it's only improved over the past few years. You're the last standing tie to the comics industry I was once part of -- I let the rest of it go. It would be easy to let this last tie go, but I'd <span style="font-style: italic;">like</span> to stay aboard. As a writer and a teacher, I use <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">TCJ</span> in my work and as a constant reference, and I've been a loyal and paying subscriber for over a quarter century. But in a rather tidy microcosm of what happened with the entire comics industry, it's become an increasingly expensive and high-maintenance process to remain a reader.<br /><br />It shouldn't be this much work to subscribe. Absence of arrival shouldn't be the only clue you give me that my sub is up. I subscribe to a number of publications, from self-published fanzines to newsstand standbys, and not <span style="font-style: italic;">one</span> of them makes it tough to keep up my sub. You only make it easier each time to forget the subscription altogether, and the more it costs in time and money to re-up and catch-up, the easier it gets to arrive at 'fuck it.'<br /><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">P</span>lease, <span style="font-weight: bold;">Fantagraphics</span>, change your subscription labeling system, and restore the 'reminders' of the old system that made it so simple to just write and mail that check.<br /><div style="text-align: center;">________________________<br /></div><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">F</span>or reasons I won't go into here, thinking of <span style="font-weight: bold;">Fantagraphics</span> always makes me think of <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">The Brain That Wouldn't Die</span>, which brings me to today's tastiest tidbit.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R8LDandEzrI/AAAAAAAAByo/ZTiVqobf__4/s1600-h/trailers_header.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R8LDandEzrI/AAAAAAAAByo/ZTiVqobf__4/s400/trailers_header.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5170910184209698482" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size:180%;">O</span><span style="font-size:130%;">ne of my all-time favorite 1960s horrors is featured today </span></div><li style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><a href="http://www.trailersfromhell.com/index.php?tid=129">at my fave internet diversion, <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Trailers From Hell</span>.</a></span></li><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;"><br />The Brain That Wouldn't Die</span> remains an icon of its era and genre, and my ongoing work on a the definitive overview of the film and its impact got a nifty boost from this surprise Monday morning treat. </span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R8K_YHdEznI/AAAAAAAAByI/r5SHV23n0mY/s1600-h/brain02.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R8K_YHdEznI/AAAAAAAAByI/r5SHV23n0mY/s400/brain02.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5170905743213514354" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Greatest death scene in '60s cinema?: </span><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Leslie Daniels </span><span style="font-style: italic;">as the ill-fated, wither-armed lab ass't </span><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Kurt</span><span style="font-style: italic;">, who never won his <span style="font-weight: bold;">Oscar</span> despite his glorious gory demise. Wouldn't you know it, he loses his</span> good <span style="font-style: italic;">arm.</span></span><br /><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">N</span>ote, however, the usually well-informed comments of <span style="font-weight: bold;">Joe Dante</span> and his site cronies doesn't jive with my experience. The intro note to the <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Brain</span> trailer says, <span style="font-style: italic;">"...numerous censor cuts for reasons of 'good taste' (as if!) have been since restored and the whole sordid farrago is now available pretty much everywhere in its full, fuzzy public domain gory, er, glory."</span><br /><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">I</span> was too young to see <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">The Brain That Wouldn't Die</span> on the big screen (I was 7 when <span style="font-weight: bold;">American-International Pictures</span> released the film), but from the moment I first saw it one Saturday afternoon on the now-long-defunct <span style="font-weight: bold;">Burlington VT Channel 22</span> broadcast at the age of 11 or 12, <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Brain</span> was uncut, its shockingly bloody final act telecast without edits.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: right;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R8LAlXdEzoI/AAAAAAAAByQ/7D-c9s9yZ1A/s1600-h/brain03.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R8LAlXdEzoI/AAAAAAAAByQ/7D-c9s9yZ1A/s400/brain03.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5170907070358408834" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Monster in the Closet: real-life giant </span><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Eddie Carmel</span><span style="font-style: italic;"> immortalized in</span> <span style="font-weight: bold;">Brain</span>'s <span style="font-style: italic;">outrageous, amazing, abrupt climax. Some versions of this classic trim shots of <span style="font-weight: bold;">Carmel</span> biting a chunk out of </span><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Dr. Cortne</span><span style="font-style: italic;">r's throat, pulling the bitten bit out of his mouth to hold it aloft and ponder the trembling shred of flesh, and (best of all) </span>a closeup of the bloody tatter of meat hitting the lab floor <span style="font-style: italic;">-- making</span> <span style="font-weight: bold;">Brain</span> <span style="font-style: italic;">the first American splatter movie. Take that, <span style="font-weight: bold;">Herschell Gordon Lewis</span>!</span></span><br /></div><br />I saw the film countless times thereafter, viewed alone on late-night broadcasts and with friends on afternoon telecasts, and it was rarely cut. The original big-box <span style="font-weight: bold;">Warner Bros.</span> vhs release in the early '80s offered the most censored version I've ever seen: was <span style="font-style: italic;">this</span> <span style="font-weight: bold;">AIP</span>'s theatrical release version? So, for this diehard BTWD devotee of 40 years, the cut versions were always the exceptions, not the rule.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">The Brain Will Never Die!</span></div>SRBissettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14426874992235196378noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15861891.post-73282308807048697142008-02-24T07:00:00.004-05:002008-02-24T07:40:49.110-05:00<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);font-size:180%;" >Sunday Spametry</span><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size:130%;">Hey, traveling all week with <span style="font-weight: bold;">Marge</span> and I only missed one day of posting. Not bad. We got home last night; I'll write about our travels tomorrow. A grand trip, it was.<br /><br />For today, a bit of email spam poetry, by yours truly and the anonymous spammers who bless us all with their lyric verse daily -- all spellings and names included are verbatim from the spam, folks. All I discerned were the patterns, and organized them accordingly.<br />__________________</span><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: rgb(102, 0, 0);font-size:130%;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;">Tranny Campus </span></span><br /><br />WorkAtHome <br />We need<br />Your help<br />Make 143.50 and more<br />per day<br /><br />[Gain Up to 6+<br />oe<br />Gain up to 4+<br />Develop<br />a larger one?<br />Produce stronger,<br />rock hard<br />erections.]<br /><br />Lands' End<br />No iron,<br />no problem:<br />New wrinkle-free shirts<br />are here!<br /><br />[Darlene Coates<br />How to get bigger?<br />Lynn Hearn<br />Add 4 inches in lenght<br />Dorothy Dorsey<br />Produce stronger,<br />rock hard<br />erections.]<br /><br />UVM Broadcast Center<br />ThisWeek@UVM,<br />Feb. 25-March 2<br />The Student Life!<br />Subscribe and you<br />could win an iPod<br /><br />[touch]</div>SRBissettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14426874992235196378noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15861891.post-25894467231793557642008-02-22T11:33:00.004-05:002008-02-22T11:41:19.683-05:00<div align="center"><span style="font-size:180%;color:#990000;"><strong>My Father's Eyes --<br /></strong></span><br /></div><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R775dXdEzlI/AAAAAAAABx4/JiQFqtJa8MU/s1600-h/Daniel+Bissette.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5169843705175395922" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R775dXdEzlI/AAAAAAAABx4/JiQFqtJa8MU/s400/Daniel+Bissette.jpg" border="0" /> <p align="center"></a><br />Brand-new pic of my son <strong>Daniel Bissette</strong> <em>(photo compliments of <strong>Cory Bratton</strong>, posted with permission)</em>; cue the <strong>Eric Clapton</strong> song, folks. </p><p align="center">Actually, Dan's here a-looking like <strong>Warren Oates</strong> in <strong><em>The Outer Limits</em></strong> second season episode <em>"The Mutant"</em> (1964). Good genes, either way. Or, uh, spawn of the not-so-good-genes of the <strong><em>Killers from Space</em></strong> (1954) aliens; a product of alien abduction after all?<br /><br /><em><span style="color:#990000;"><strong><span style="font-size:130%;">Have a Frickin' Friday!</span></strong><br /></p></span></em>SRBissettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14426874992235196378noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15861891.post-45555947603202420972008-02-21T18:57:00.008-05:002008-02-21T19:07:54.061-05:00<div align="center"><strong><span style="font-size:180%;">Dave McKean's <em><span style="color:#663300;">Prince of Stories</span></em> Cover Redux</span></strong><br /><br /></div><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R74RDndEzkI/AAAAAAAABxw/MhJm0K723AA/s1600-h/GAIMAN+PRINCE+COVER+flat.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5169588176096120386" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_KZ_ozC-ZxC0/R74RDndEzkI/AAAAAAAABxw/MhJm0K723AA/s400/GAIMAN+PRINCE+COVER+flat.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br />The corrected cover, again compliments of <strong>Dave McKean</strong> -- this is the final version.<br /><br />Also, be sure to check this out: <li><a href="http://comixtalk.com/content/a_conversation_with_cat_garza">My cartooning amigo (and computer guru) <strong>Cat Garza</strong> has a new interview online here, check it out!</a></li><br />I could tell you that I'm presently working on a new story (writing/drawing) for <strong>Cat</strong>'s upcoming anthology, <strong><em>Secrets and Lies</em></strong>, but that might be secret. Or a lie.SRBissettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14426874992235196378noreply@blogger.com3