Fantagraphics Blog

Don't miss the Hazard Factory's fantastic Power Tool Races this Saturday, June 26 -part of the fabulous Artopia arts extravaganza and Georgetown Music Festival from 2:00 to 10:00 PM. Fantagraphics Bookstore curator Larry Reid created a demonic chainsaw-powered racer fashioned from an autographed 1991 Daniel Clowes-designed Corey O'Brian Santa Cruz skateboard. Come cheer for our racer (just don't get too close), see dozens of bands (featuring Fantagraphics favorites the Tom Price Desert Classic right outside our space), art exhibitions (including Megan Kelso's wonderful new work inside our store), carnival games, aerial acts, food, drinks, and a special appearance by demented…

Online Commentary & Diversions, back after a short respite: • Review: "Almost to a story, the bits and pieces of Mome [Vol. 18] just suck the careful reader in. Indeed, almost every contribution practically begs for critical examination, not to mention a different frame of mind. … Some of the individual stories are just stunning. … This is great art, good comics, and, in my opinion, odd when taken as a collection." – Jeremy Nisen, Under the Radar • Review: "Right up front let’s admit this: Wally Gropius is a terrifying comic book and everyone reading this should buy it…

iBerkshires.com reports that Comic and Cartoon Art Comes Alive: The Art of Mark Martin will be on view July 31 – August 29, 2010 at the Storefront Artist Project in Pittsfield MA, and "As a precursor to the exhibit, the Storefront Artist Project will be hosting a special United States Postal Service stamp cancellation ceremony… The cancel was created by Martin with his own characters and will be used by the USPS on July 16, 2010 as part of the 'Sunday Funnies' 2010 Stamp Program. A series of related workshops and programs will also be offered to the community in…

It just came to my attention that the silkscreen poster for Grandma Zapp's Rolling Thunderheart Mountain Variety Show, featuring Artichoke Tales artwork by Megan Kelso and lettering by Raleigh Briggs, is still available to order online! 100% of the proceeds go to benefit ZAPP.

This week's strips, normally posted on Fridays (we'll hopefully be back on schedule this week): It's the greatest new character ever in this week's Blecky Yuckerella strip by Johnny Ryan… …and those are some crazy contact lenses [correction: they're marbles] in this week's Barack Hussein Obama by Steven Weissman.

The latest release from the Drew Friedman Fine Art concern is this limited-edition archival print of Drew's portrait of "legendary jive hepcat" Lord Buckley. Ordering details and much more info about the print and the Lord can be found here.

We're celebrating Father's Day with a one-week-only, first-time-ever sale on our collections of classic comic strips! Save at least 20% on volumes of The Complete Peanuts, Dennis the Menace, Krazy & Ignatz, Popeye, Prince Valiant, and much more, including one-off collections of rarities like Betsy and Me, The Brinkley Girls, Red Barry, Sam's Strip and more. The sale even includes the brand-new Captain Easy Vol. 1! Browse all sale items here. Order online now or by phone Monday-Friday 9 AM – 6 PM at 800-657-1100 (206-524-1967 outside the U.S.). Sale prices not effective at Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery. Sale runs…

We're very pleased to present this interview with Cathy Malkasian conducted by contributing Mome cartoonist Robert Goodin. We typically have Fantagraphics staff members conduct these “Diaflogue” interviews, but when assigning an interviewer to talk to Cathy, I couldn't think of anyone better than Rob, who has known Cathy for years and published her first minicomics under his Robot Publishing banner. I was thrilled when Rob and Cathy agreed to have this conversation. Robert Goodin: I think you had a bit of an unusual path to comics.  Why don't you tell us about your background like education and your main profession. …

Online Commentary & Diversions: • Review: "So Fantagraphics recently released The Search for Smilin' Ed, which was serialized a while back but also contains a brand-new story as well. …Deitch really puts a lot on the page. And, for the most part, it's pretty fascinating. But I was struck by something in the book, and I must ask: Is this comic racist? … Deitch has a grand time twisting the way reality presents itself, bringing together his entire career in cartooning so that it all exists in the same odd universe. Deitch's intricate artwork completes this surreal adventure — it's…