Shameless-self-production department
by Bruce Sweeney
When I started collecting underground comix (u.g.s) in the late ’60s I ran up against two conventions that I could neither abide nor fight. The first was the conventional collector’s obsession with condition. Who cares, I thought; whether the Zap #0 is near-mint or fine; whether Elvis Presley on the Sun label was slightly used or pristine; whether Jimi Hendrix’ pajamas were worn once or had mothballs? The important issue was their participation in our culture – the fact that they were never used somehow seemed to take away from their role as participating in their own world. Right?
Wrong. Those streak marks, tatters and scrapes don’t add to their history and value – they detract. Ridiculous, right? A favorite pistol purchased by James Brown that he took on tour can’t be as valuable as one he bought, held once and secured in his night table… shouldn’t be… ex-Hell’s Angels President Sonny Barger’s copy of Hell’s Angels is worth more – although battered – than a pristine copy that he endorsed for someone who bought him a drink, right? Wrong again, Sweeney… condition is the driving force…
The second value that I constantly railed against was our insistence on participation by Crumb, Wilson, Spain, etc. Surely the original Zap #1 Donahue edition with 5,000 copies is a great surge forward for those of us devoted to cartoon oddities. It linked the weirdos of the ’60s and ’90s as solidly as the Doors, Creedence Clearwater Revival, the Stones, Oliver Stone, Scorsese, and Tarantino ever would. Finally, from several different directions the freaks, nerds and odd-balls had a collective multi-generational voice.
I, like an innocent, chased after those regional independent comic book voices that would subtlety color in the oddball cartoonists of N.Y., Chicago and the obscure college towns that thought like a Crumb or a Wilson but only had access to some modest printer out of Ann Arbor, Cambridge, Atlanta, or Denver. True small-time pioneers who cared enough to express contra-culture in Newark or Detroit! Heroes! Committed Crackpots!
These days, Fantagraphics, NBM, Dark Horse, Drawn & Quarterly, and a handful of seat-of-their pants operations seem to keep alternative projects out there, but if anything, smart money says that it’s harder than ever to find a home for new material.
Boots is an all-Spain street story for $9.95 (Precipice Press, Box 2756; San Rafael, CA 94912) written by Harry Kamper detailing a real power play for American media by the controlling administration. Think that it can’t happen here? Look at the fabulous control of the media during the Desert Storm fiasco by the Bush Administration which we all but lost due to cold feet; or the debt stand-off imposed by the Clinton Administration over political fund-raising misconduct.
Knockabout Comics (10 Ackham Road, London W10 5QZ, England) has EX: Directory out, the secret files of Bryan Talbot which, in spite of his complaints about the color separations, stands as a testament to his early ’70s contributions as an English hippie underground cartoonist in the days when you really had to care.
As so few Americans (beyond Dark Horse devotees) know, Bryan honed his strengths in the early British undergrounds paralleling Shelton, Irons, and Spain; his distant American influences. Make no mistake; Bryan’s surge into science fiction and the military influence of Cromwell on English history would cut his own path. His subsequent interpretation of Beatrix Potter’s One Bad Rat earned him the 1995 European Eagle award.
Top Shelf Productions (P.O. Box 1282, Marietta, GA 30061-1282) had a beautiful #5 in 1997 and #6 out in February, 80 pages; both $6.95 squarebound; and probably worth it. February, they have Crust by Rick Pinchera for $3 as well as Hey Mister Special, a 112 page collection of Pete Garner’s mini-works. They ambitiously have a series of little-known but accomplished cartoonist projects coming in the spring like Tony Consiglio’s Double Cross, James Kochalka’s Superstar, Jose Menjivar’s Broken Fender, Graig Thompson’s Goodbye, Chunky Rice, and Neufeld & Haspiel’s Keyhole.
However, many publishers announce products that aren’t even at the publisher yet. I understand – they need to build up demand. Unfortunately, plans get altered, projects and comic companies get dropped, and reporters and consumers get all too often abandoned at the altar.
Fantagraphics had a delicious Xmas catalogue out that I nearly avoided, knowing it to be filled with temptations. Tom Spurgeon and Comics Journal make a trustworthy pairing though. Comics Journal is published by Fantagraphics and yet he gives a lukewarm review of Fantagraphics’ DeadBone Erotica #4 by the late Vaughn Bodé. I was a big Bodé fan – he was one of the few u.g. crazies with a compelling flamboyant Jim Morrison-like charisma who dared to confront our sexual stereotypes through his projection of complex roles. Tom’s take on Deadbone Erotica dares to suggest that it’s no big deal; very minor stuff and far from Bodé’s most engaging, controversial material. Tom takes nothing away from Bodé; an innovative, wildly creative figure, but he suggests that beginners need not start here.
The Wiggly Reader (Fontanelle Press, 438 Court St. Suite 103, Brooklyn, NY 11229) has two issues out for $2.95 (plus $1 S/H – checks to John Kerschbaum). It’s a book with a full-color cover that deserves to be seen for its odd attitude.
Slave Labor (979 S. Bascom Ave., San José, CA 95128) has Moonshine Boy #1 by Bob Supina and Patty Cake by Scott Roberts (both $2.95) out now. Neither one is u.g. and in fact are highly cutsie-kiddie items, but Patty Cake was nominated for two Eisners including Best Humor Publication. It’s slated for a monthly release.
Shelter is NBM’s latest for $9.95. (185 Madison Ave. Suite 1504, New York, NY 10016) This is an eerie black and white 81/2″ by 11″ graphic novel by Canadian Cecil Fernando with a lot of dark fantasy and mysticism. This should be the first in a series.
($1 for a listing of u.g.s from me at P.O. Box 1096, Boston, MA 02115)