Fantagraphics Blog Larry Reid

  Don't miss Fantagraphics Bookstore's latest creation in Hazardfactory's world famous Power Tool Races. This thrilling side-by-side spectacle is the centerpiece of Saturday's colorful Georgetown Carnival. Extreme Measures is powered by a DeWalt retractable tape. You'll just have to see it race. The bookstore  has entered wicked tools in every race since 2007 and won the top prize in 2011 with the Georgetown Chainsaw Massacre.   The Georgetown Carnival is a festive celebration of the creative diversity of Seattle's oldest neighborhood. Acrobats, aerialists, sideshows, stiltwalkers, interactive arts, carnival games and confections combine to create one of the region's liveliest art fairs. Musical…

Don't miss the dazzling array of attractions at Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery in the coming weeks and months. The action begins with the Georgetown Carnival on Saturday, June 14 from noon to 10:00 PM. Cheer on our entry in Hazardfactory's famous Power Tool Races and enjoy free concerts by Fantagraphics friends like Jack Endino's Earthworm, Mark Pickerel, Ancient Warlocks, Tummy, and more! Acrobats, carnival games, sideshows, burlesque, beer gardens and so much more. All free, all day.    On Sunday, July 13 from 3:00 to 5:00 PM two extraordinary artists, Eleanor Davis and Esther Pearl Watson, appear at the store…

About the time I began working for Fantagraphics as marketing and promotions director, Peter Bagge ran a contest in the third issue of his wildly popular Hate comic book. "Win a Date With Stinky" urged female readers to "Send in one or more glamorful photos and/or drawings of yourself" and "Explain in 25 words or less why you're worthy of Stinky's affection." What self-respecting woman, I wondered, would enter a contest to win a date with a comic book character? Named Stinky? I was about to find out. I spent several months acting as Peter's unwitting accomplice on a series of surreptitious…

Join us at Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery this Saturday at 6:00 PM to celebrate the publication of Peter Bagge’s new book with a show of original drawings, book signing and live music. The evening also marks the 10th anniversary of our retail partner Georgetown Records. Peter Bagge’s Hate has chronicled the misadventures of Buddy Bradley and his crew of lovable losers since the formative period of the grunge era. Buddy Buys a Dump contains the last nine issues of Hate Annual and completes the current story arc with a new twenty-page conclusion, many of them on display for the occasion….

Visitors to Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery are invariably greeted with a delightfully esoteric soundtrack courtesy of our retail partners at Georgetown Records. For seven and a half years, they've cheerfully accommodated our nerdy comix parties, panels, and presentations. Come celebrate their 10th anniversary this Saturday, May 10 from 6:00 to 9:00 PM, coinciding with Peter Bagge's Buddy Buys a Dump exhibition and book signing.  Over the course of the last decade, Georgetown Records has earned a reputation as one of the region's premier purveyors of vintage vinyl, specializing in punk, prog, goth, garage, psychedelic, international, and other rare recordings. It's a popular stop for both local…

The comix community celebrates the colorful diversity of our often-marginalized medium this Saturday, May 3 with Free Comic Book Day. In a show of appreciation unique to our industry, publishers and retailers go to great expense to make exclusive editions available at no charge to consumers. The goal is to attract new customers or introduce regular readers to books they might otherwise overlook. With that noble intention in mind, allow us to suggest that Free Comic Book Day in no way prevents patrons from purchasing comics on Saturday. It would be wonderful to see comic book enthusiasts emulate the example…

Seattle cartoonist Peter Bagge, one of the founding fathers of the alternative comix movement, returns with another chapter in the continuing saga of his signature character, Buddy Bradley. Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery celebrates the publication of Buddy Buys a Dump with a show of original drawings, a book signing, and music performance on Saturday, May 10 from 6:00 to 8:00 PM. Peter Bagge’s Hate has chronicled the misadventures of Buddy Bradley and his crew of lovable losers since the formative period of the grunge era. His observations went beyond satire to help define the attitude and aesthetics of the most…

On Saturday, May 3 Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery celebrates Free Comic Book Day with complimentary comix and a tribute to Seattle's sensational Intruder crew on the last weekend of their awesome exhibition.     We'll be giving out a double dose of Don Rosa duck stories featuring Uncle Scrooge and Donald Duck. And don't miss the collectible Hip Hop Family Tree Two-in-One by Ed Piskor with special guests. We'll also have free copies of the Barrio Mothers anthology from our Portland counterparts at Sparkplug and Floating World, as well as a special edition of Paul Pope's The Invincible Haggard West…

Look for the Record Store Day exclusive Mudhoney On Top – a live recording of the band's historic set atop the Seattle's iconic Space Needle last summer. I hovered above in a helicopter accompanied by famed rock photographer Charles Peterson. Fantagraphics staffer Janice Headley can be seen wearing the Daniel Clowes Punky shirt in the photo and is thanked on the LP.    Have a listen at the Record Store Day after-party at Georgetown Records and Fantagraphics Bookstore where Sub Pop mastermind Bruce Pavitt will DJ, joined by two of the architects of the Seattle Sound, Jack Endino and Steve…