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Thanks to everyone who came out to the Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery this past weekend as we celebrated the release of Listen, Whitey!: The Sights and Sounds of Black Power 1965 – 1975.  It was the very first time we were able to present the book to the public, and every copy just blew outta the store! We were also honored to be joined by local authors Mark Long and Jim Demonakos (also the founder of Seattle’s Emerald City Comicon!), who together with cartoonist Nate Powell, created the graphic novel The Silence of Our Friends. The chilling story was inspired…

We are overjoyed to welcome two prodigal sons back to the Fantagraphics fold: Mike Catron (pictured), who co-founded Fantagraphics with Gary Groth in 1976, rejoins us as an editor, and O.G. staffer Preston White returns to our art department. The Comics Reporter's Tom Spurgeon has all the scoop, and he also talked with Mike about what his new position entails and what he's been up to in the meantime: "So all of a sudden, the original four of us are together again, like the fabled Musketeers. (Everyone does know there were four, right?) The stars, after all these years, finally…

Today's Online Commentary & Diversions (none yesterday): • Review: "If Spielberg shed the skin of Hergé’s style in an effort to get to the heart of his stories, the compelling work of Dutch cartoonist Joost Swarte performs the procedure in reverse…. Swarte, equally inspired by the underground comix that emerged from the American counterculture of the 1960s and ’70s, adapted the clear line and reanimated it with subversive content unlike the perennially chipper Boy Scoutism of Hergé’s Tintin. …Is That All There Is?, collecting the bulk of his comics oeuvre to date (excluding a body of children’s comics), provides an…

Running a little thin this week — our only exclusive update is Nicolas Mahler's Angelman — but we've got the usual links to strips from around the web: — Angelman by Nicolas Mahler (view at original size): And elsewhere: The All-New Cartoon Boy Adventure Hour by John Kerschbaum at ACT-I-VATE: Amazing Facts… and Beyond! with Leon Beyond by Kevin Huizenga: Belligerent Piano by Tim Lane: Forming by Jesse Moynihan: Humblug by Arnold Roth (two new updates): Maakies by Tony Millionaire (and anonymous photographers): The Pain — When Will It End? (plus answers to last week's "Ghandi or Batman?") by Tim…

Woo, great big Drew Friedman illustration in today's The Wall Street Journal! Stepping in the dip is a party foul, Madonna.

It's still over 8 months away but the Alternative Press Expo folks are wasting no time in announcing their first batch of special guests, including 3 Hernandez Brothers (Gilbert, Jaime & Mario), continuing their Love and Rockets 30th Anniversary U.S. Domination Tour (not the actual name of the tour), and the one and only Jim Woodring, debuting (knock on wood) his new book Problematic: Selected Sketchbook Drawings 2004-2011! Mark your calendars for October 13-14 at the Concourse in San Francisco, and stay tuned for future news and updates!

The Toronto Comics Art Festival has announced the first batch of special guests for the 2012 fest, and we're excited to reveal that we'll be hosting the following global guests on May 5th and 6th: Jason: You asked for him, you got him!  Jason was, hands-down, the most asked-about artist at TCAF 2011. See? Don't say we don't ever listen to you, Toronto. He will be signing his latest, Athos in America, along with many, many other books. Gabriella Giandelli: We are absolutely delighted to be hosting Gabriella, all the way from Italy! This is a rare treat to meet…

Get ready to listen up on Thursday, March 1st as editor Pat Thomas gives a special presentation for Listen, Whitey! The Sights and Sounds of Black Power 1965-1975! Join us at the historic Washington Hall [153 14th Avenue, Seattle] for a slideshow on this powerful and politically-charged period of music, starting at 7:00 PM. Tickets are $10 at the door, or you can purchase tickets in advance for $8 general public / $5 students at Brown Paper Tickets. This wonderful event is presented by Seattle's Central District Forum for Arts & Ideas, and co-presented with Elliott Bay Book Company and…

It's true: in a couple of weeks Gary Groth hops a plane to New Delhi and meets up with Robert Crumb for the 2nd Annual Indian Comics Convention at Dilli Haat! On Saturday February 18th, Gary gives a special talk about the evolution of alternative comics in America and the history of Fantagraphics. And on Sunday February 19th, Gary leads a live conversation with special guest of honor Robert Crumb for what promises to be an illuminating and entertaining look at the life and work of one of comics' all-time greats. Will there be photos of Gary, Crumb and Drawn…

Everyone — er, everything — will wanna follow you home when you're wearing this snazzy t-shirt designed by our own Jim Woodring! Jim designed these t-shirts just for our friends at the website Boing Boing! This exclusive design is screened in scarlet ink on a jet black t-shirt, for a "tigers' breath in a cave" effect, as Jim describes it. Follow this link to get one sent to your home!