Fantagraphics Blog

Jason reports on his blog that he is finishing up the lettering on "Tom Waits on the Moon," the last story to be completed for his next book Athos in America. "No, there is no Tom Waits and no moon in the story. Possibly there is a guy called Tom," he says. Dang. In an earlier post he says he's bringing the pages to Paris tomorrow for scanning — then Hubert colors them, Jason draws the cover, and that's a wrap for the art on the book!

Johnny Ryan gives us a look inside the offices of Vice magazine on the occasion of their 100th issue.

Curator Robert Boyd gives you a guided video walk-through of Walpurgis Afternoon: The Art of Jim Woodring & Marc Bell at Lawndale Art Center in Houston. Man I wish I could see this in person. The exibit runs through June 4.

Captain Easy, Soldier of Fortune: The Complete Sunday Newspaper Strips Vol. 2 (1936-1937) by Roy Crane 144-page full-color 10.5" x 14.75" hardcover • $39.99ISBN: 978-1-60699-391-0 Ships in: June 2011 (subject to change) — Pre-Order Now This second of four volumes reprints in full color the rare Captain Easy Sunday pages from the 1930s. Roy Crane’s Soldier of Fortune, Captain Easy, fights for gold in the frozen north, is mistaken for a bandit, protects a formula for artificial diamonds, is stranded on a desert island, visits the tiny Balkan country of Kleptomania, and faces a firing squad. Captain Easy hobnobs with…

Our weekly strips from Kupperman & Weissman, plus links to other strips from around the web: — Up All Night by Michael Kupperman (view at original size): Barack Hussein Obama by Steven Weissman (view at original size): And elsewhere: Amazing Facts… and Beyond! with Leon Beyond by Kevin Huizenga: Belligerent Piano by Tim Lane: Ectiopiary by Hans Rickheit: Maakies by Tony Millionaire: Mugwhump the Great by Roger Langridge (at Act-i-vate): Smashing Crayons by Steve Brodner at SlateV:

Today's Online Commentary & Diversions: • Review: "21: The Story of Roberto Clemente brings together comics and baseball, two of America's most popular conveyers of epic mythology. Author Wilfred Santiago also incorporates elements of classical and avant-garde jazz in his sinuously illustrated narrative of Clemente's life. It takes an imagination as rich as Mr. Santiago's to tap into various mythological languages to tell the Pittsburgh Pirate's iconic story… Instead of dwelling on sources of obvious resentment, Mr. Santiago defaults to illustrating Clemente's humanity. We're treated to close-ups of his most noble and ignoble moments. The artist refuses to treat him…

It's been a while since we featured a fan tattoo here, and here's a good one: a somewhat-faded old-school Lloyd Llewellyn, surrounded by a more recent banner that reads "Commemorating 15 Years Of This Tattoo." That may be the first meta-tattoo I've ever seen. Thanks to Joe Garden, who works behind the scenes at The Onion, for sending this in.

Today's Online Commentary & Diversions: • Plug: "Drawn in expressionistic black, white, and Pirates gold, this biography of the slugger and humanitarian [21: The Story of Roberto Clemente]… drives home the impact he had on fans and friends." – Dan Kois, Vulture — New York • Commentary: At his Sekvenskonst blog, Joakim Gunnarsson examines Buz Sawyer Vol. 1: The War in the Pacific by Roy Crane from a production & restoration standpoint, and the book's editor Rick Norwood provides some explanation and context in the comments section