Fantagraphics Blog

School is back in session! And this Thursday, September 15th, EMP curator/editor Jacob McMurray will "school" you all on the Seattle music scene, as documented in Taking Punk to the Masses: From Nowhere to Nevermind! Join Jacob at the University Book Store in Seattle at 7:00 PM, as he discusses the "grunge" phenomenon… on the very street where a lot of those unwashed musicians first bumped into each other, perhaps reaching for a Mudhoney 7" at Cellophane Square at the exact same time? Sub Pop poster, from the pages of Taking Punk to the Masses, featuring artwork by Peter Bagge…

The Extraordinary Adventures of Adèle Blanc-Sec Vol. 2: The Mad Scientist and Mummies on Parade by Jacques Tardi 96 page full-color 9" x 11.75" hardcover • $24.99ISBN: 978-1-60699-493-1 Ships in: October 2011 (subject to change) — Pre-Order Now After establishing the world of the prickly heroine with the first two episodes of this classic series (combined in Fantagraphics’ The Extraordinary Adventures of Adèle Blanc-Sec Volume 1), Jacques Tardi plunges us back into Belle-Époque Paris for another double dosage of heroic derring-do, evil and crazy malefactors, mad actresses (yes, "Clara Benhardt" makes a return appearance) and monsters! In “The Mad Scientist”…

Today's Online Commentary & Diversions: • Review: "Alex Toth worked in a multitude of genres while at Standard (crime, romance, and horror among them) and they are, to the last one, collected here. Also, Toth’s Standard work has been reprinted somewhere between infrequently and not at all, and to have it all collected (and collected beautifully; the digital restoration keeps the original look perfectly) in this work fills in a sizable gap in comics history. Bravo for Fantagraphics…. If you’ve ever wanted to see what the 'big deal' is with Alex Toth, I can think of absolutely no better place…

DRAWING POWER: Curator Warren Bernard discusses the history of cartoon advertising at Fantagraphics Bookstore on September 24. Special guest artist Tom Neely presents The Wolf. Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery welcomes two diverse professionals in the field of comix for an extraordinary event on Saturday, September 24 from 6:00 to 8:00 PM. Editor and curator Warren Bernard will discuss cartoons in the service of commerce in connection with his new book and exhibition Drawing Power: A Compendium of Cartoon Advertising. He'll be joined by provocative contemporary cartoonist and visual artist Tom Neely presenting his new graphic novel The Wolf. Drawing Power…

The great Spanish cartoonist Max contacted us to let us know he has a new blog, El Hombre Duerme, el Fantasma No, where he's posting his illustrations and designs as well as updates on his upcoming graphic novel Vapor, which we will be publishing in Spring 2012. There's a pretty decent amount of stuff up already, so check it out and we'll be keeping an eye on future updates!

I was pretty excited to get to the Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery this past Sunday and see the exhibit is now up for Drawing Power: An Exhibition of Cartoon Advertising! Where the heck did editor Warren Bernard get all this cool stuff?! Well, we can ask him in person when he makes a special Seattle appearance on Saturday, September 24th at the Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery! Make plans now to join us from 6:00 to 8:00 pm. Warren will be giving a slideshow presentation and talk.  And as an extra bonus, we'll be joined by artist Tom Neely, currently on…

• Convention sketches inspired by song lyrics is a pretty great idea, and an Atlanta comic fan named Erich collects them and posts them on his blog. Above: Lisa Leavenworth + Mudhoney by Peter Bagge (hat tip: CBR) • Noah Van Sciver illustrates the Denver Westword's "hipster's guide to sports" • More Jack Davis fun from Will Pfeifer's Today's Inspiration blog, as Pfeifer presents a bunch of Davis-illustrated "Funny Valentines" Topps cards (hat tip: The Comics Reporter) • Victor Kerlow draws Julie Hagerty and Albert Books in Lost in America for The New Yorker • Eleanor Davis presents a preview…

As we pointed out a week or 2 ago, Jason has been posting some rough sketches and handwritten dialogue, along with brief comments on background and storytelling technique, for each of the stories in his upcoming book Athos in America on his Cats Without Dogs blog. Here's the complete set: "So Long, Mary Ann," "The Brain That Wouldn't Virginia Woolf," "Tom Waits on the Moon," "A Cat from Heaven," "The Smiling Horse" and the title story "Athos in America."

A double dose of Online Commentary & Diversions: • Review: "Walt Disney's Mickey Mouse: Race To Death Valley by Floyd Gottfredson will be warmly received by comics aficionados but should also intrigue Disney animation buffs who aren't necessarily plugged into comic strip history. Editors David Gerstein and Gary Groth have not only scoured the planet for the best surviving artwork on Gottfredson's first epic continuity, which ran in newspapers from April to September of 1930; they've provided background essays (by a raft of experts), vintage press materials and artwork to put it into the context of Walt Disney's burgeoning career,…