Fantagraphics Blog

Today's Online Commentary & Diversions: • Review: "The Complete Crumb Comics Volume One: The Early Years of Bitter Struggle, a 1987 book now republished in an expanded edition, gathers together the earliest surviving examples of the great cartoonist’s juvenilia taking him from age 14 or 15 to 18 years old. The high school scribbler that we meet in these pages is a very callow Crumb indeed: Crumb before he had sex, Crumb before he dropped acid, Crumb before he was adopted as a hero of the counterculture, Crumb before he honed his satirical stance on modern life, Crumb before he…

The Emerald City Pinball Party at Shorty's on Saturday was a blast! Celebrity guests galore and great fun for everyone. We held a pinball competition for awesome prizes from hostJim Woodring, including a backglass from the Frank pinball machine currently in development. In an effort to level the playing field – (so to speak) – the lowest scores determined the winners! Worst prize went to cartoonist Anthony Leano. Here's Jim with artist Camille Rose Garcia, who stopped by following a fabulous signing at neighboring Roq la Rue gallery. While chatting with Fantagraphics associate publisher Eric Reynolds, they discovered that they…

The Listen, Whitey! West Coast Tour continues with a weekend stop at Warbler Records & Goods in Santa Barbara, California! Join editor Pat Thomas this Saturday, April 7th for a discussion on Listen, Whitey! The Sights and Sounds of Black Power, 1965-1975. He'll also be playing tracks from the companion soundtrack album on Light in the Attic Records! This event starts at 3:00 PM. Warbler Records & Goods is located at 131 E De La Guerra St in Santa Barbara. 

The list of nominees for the 2012 Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards was announced yesterday and we are pleased to report that our artists and publications received a total of 10 nominations in 8 categories: Ganges #4 by Kevin Huizenga: • Best Single Issue Freeway by Mark Kalesniko: • Best Graphic Album – New Prince Valiant Vol. 3: 1941-1942 and Vol. 4: 1943-1944 by Hal Foster, edited by Kim Thompson: • Best Archival Collection/Project – Strips Walt Disney's Mickey Mouse Vol. 1: Race to Death Valley & Vol. 2: Trapped on Treasure Island (also available in the Vols. 1-2 Box…

Today's Online Commentary & Diversions — now up to date! • Review: "The Locas grow up. Collecting material from Love and Rockets‘ second volume (previously found in Ghost of Hoppers and The Education of Hopey Glass), the latest in Fantagraphics’ perfectly executed series of L&R digests [Esperanza] finds Maggie, Hopey, Izzy, and Ray D. coming to terms with no longer being the life of the party and the heart of their scene — at least not without exhausting effort…. But if there’s one thing Jaime’s Locas stories in general, and this volume in particular, tell us, it’s that sometimes you…

Jack Kirby is among the most influential American artists of the last century, but a substantial body of Kirby’s work has been largely overlooked until recently. In the post-war years, with the popularity of superhero comic books fading, Kirby teamed with writer Joe Simon to create the new genre of romance comics. Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery celebrates these forgotten works with “Young Romance: The Best of Simon & Kirby’s Romance Comics.” The interpretive exhibition opens on Saturday, April 14 from 6:00 to 9:00 PM with a discussion by Michel Gagné, author of a recent collection of the same title from…

Oh, this is so delightful I can barely stand it! A young reader of 21: The Story of Roberto Clemente by Wilfred Santiago sent this illustrated thank-you note to Wilfred's partner & editor Sanlida Cheng, who shares it via the 21 Facebook page.

At HiLobrow, Significant Objects co-editor Joshua Glenn gives you your first glimpses of the interiors of the book, presenting three two-page spreads as designed by good ol' Jacob Covey and giving a few more details about the book along the way. The excitement is building!

Editor/curator Pat Thomas is on tour with Listen, Whitey! The Sights and Sounds of Black Power 1965-1975, and it could not be more perfect that his next stop is at Hollywood's Amoeba Records!  This enormous store occupies an entire city block, and Pat will be guest DJ'ing! You'll be sure to hear some picks from the companion CD of the same title from Seattle-based Light in the Attic Records.  Stop by Amoeba on Thursday, April 5th at 7:00 PM to hear what else he might spin, and to get your copy of Listen, Whitey! signed by Pat! Amoeba Records is…