Fantagraphics Blog

Nice to see my pal Tyler Stout get some more mileage out of his BEASTS! book submission by snagging the cover of Seattle's beloved weekly, The Stranger. Meanwhile, the response to the "open call" slot(s) for BEASTS! Book Two has been surprising and it's been fun to see the work of people I wouldn't have otherwise come across. I can't find time to respond to everyone and though there are a few standout pieces we're all looking forward to seeing more before the March 1st deadline… Want to submit something? Here are the details…

Jeremy Eaton is collaborating with outsider musician Willy Blanefield III over at Blanefield's MySpace page, with Eaton providing illustrations for each of Blanefield's mercurial songs (with titles such as "Retarded" and "We Burned Frank Sinatra"). Meanwhile, Eaton is selling the originals over at Comic Art Collective, including this amazing Shaft-as-literal-sex-machine Kirby homage.

Join Ellen for a multimedia reading and performance next Thursday! Plus! Dazzling dancer Fuschia FoXXX! (Voted one of The Stranger's "Sexiest Citizens"!) Scantily-clad sirens, including Holly Chernobyl! (Also voted one of The Stranger's "Sexiest Citizens"!) Chocolate kisses! More!! Thursday, February 28, 7pm Bailey/Coy Books 414 Broadway Ave. E. (across from QFC)Seattle, WA206-323-8842

FRIENDS OF THE NIB COMICS JAM WITH SPECIAL GUEST KIM DEITCH AT FANTAGRAPHICS BOOKSTORE & GALLERY ON SATURDAY, MARCH 8. The public is invited to join a stellar group of accomplished cartoonists in the "Friends of the Nib Comics Jam" at Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery on Saturday, March 8 from 6:00 to 9:00 PM. Celebrated cartoonist and visual artist Jim Woodring will preside over the activities, which will include a guest appearance by New York underground comix legend Kim Deitch. Aspiring cartoonists of all ages are encouraged to participate in this lively session, which will include a rare screening of Deitch's 1960 short film "Dial…

Tim O'Shea talks to Todd DePastino about his two Bill Mauldin books coming out over the next two months, including Willie & Joe. 

  Variety has the scoop.

As expected for awhile, Adult Swim on Cartoon Network has placed an initial order for 10 episodes of "The Drinky Crow Show," based on Tony Millionaire's acclaimed "Maakies" comic strip. The newest Maakies book, The Maakies With the Wrinkled Knees, will hit stores next month. A pilot episode of the proposed series was developed by Millionaire and animation producer Eric Kaplan last year. It aired as part of a competition which pitted dozens of pilots against each other, with the fans voting online for their favorites. The Drinky Crow Show was far and away the most popular new pilot, leading to the order for more episodes, which are…

This week's free preview is a downloadable 10-page excerpt of the new hardcover edition of Daddy's Girl, the long out-of-print Fantagraphics classic from 1995 by Debbie Drechsler. The excerpt includes the Table of Contents and the entire first story, "Visitors in the Night" (warning: explicit content). These previews are exclusive to registered Fantagraphics.com users, so sign up and/or sign in to view. (As a reminder, 20/20 Club members receive these previews two weeks before we post them on the website, just one of many great reasons to join up…)