Saturday night was hopping at our flagship store in Seattle as fans turned out in droves to see Gahan Wilson with his exhibit & book of Playboy cartoon art and Michael Leavitt with his sculpture of R. Crumb. Below, a few select photos; for many more, including closeups of the original art, head to our Flickr set.

Friday nite webcomics party... new weekly strips for you...

Back to the bar in this week's The House of No by Derek Van Gieson...

...eye boogers gone bad in this week's Blecky Yuckerella strip by Johnny Ryan....

...and for your Presidents Day weekend, some questionable parenting from Barack Hussein Obama by Steven Weissman.

Behold:

• 3 images from one of Ben Catmull's current projects

• Two spot illos for the Feb. issue of Linus by Sergio Ponchione

• The ASIFA-Hollywood Animation Archive Project Blog shares some Valentine's Day advice from Jack Cole & Shel Silverstein

• Groovy poster design by Jim Blanchard for his Missus's band The DTs' gig tomorrow night (head there after seeing Gahan Wilson at our store)

• Johnny Ryan's contribution to The Sinstones, an anthology minicomic of Flintstone gags

• An animated editorial cartoon by Steve Brodner (there's a cute dog)

• Dangit Laura Park, yer makin' me hungry with your noodle doodles

Today's Online Commentary & Diversions:

• Review: "Anderson’s King is most definitely NOT your feel-good, sanctifying version of King’s life that most readers are probably used to. ...[T]he MLK presented here is a multi-dimensional, gifted man … but still very much a man, nevertheless, filled with doubt, frustration, anger, arrogance, and even deceit. ... While Anderson starkly presents King’s less-than-saintly episodes... the final reaction is a fuller understanding of a great man, with inspiring ideals, and an unshakeable dedication to equality through nonviolent, loving means. ... MLK’s legacy undeniably lives on in Anderson’s King." – Terry Hong, Bookdragon (Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Program)

• Review: "Dash Shaw was praised to the skies for his hefty 2008 graphic novel Bottomless Belly Button, but the 26-year-old cartoonist’s real strength so far in his career has been his short strips, which have displayed a diversity of subject matter and style that make each piece feel like something wholly new. The Unclothed Man in the 35th Century A.D.... does reveal a future master in his formative stages, working to find a balance between his interest in subtle adult relationships—teacher/pupil, flirter/flirtee, etc.—and his yen to try out new approaches to drawing and coloring. Shaw may be the cartoonist of the rising generation most capable of delivering a long-form work with the formal daring and humanity of a David Mazzucchelli or an Art Spiegelman. Consider The Unclothed Man a document of his baby steps… B+" – The A.V. Club

• Plug: "The Complete Peanuts 1975-1976 comes out in March, meaning we'll be halfway through this amazing, historical publication. I can't say enough about these collections. It's not only remarkable in its simple, truthful capturing of the human condition, but a beautiful historical document of the second half of the 20th Century." – Rob Kozlowski

• Interview: On the Inkstuds radio programme, Jordan Crane and Sammy Harkham have a feisty conversation with host Robin McConnell about their webcomics concern, What Things Do

• Commentary: NPR 's Glen Weldon, surveying some of the connections between comics and pop music, says "Love and Rockets, by Los Bros Hernandez, wasn't just about a punk band, it was a book steeped in an anarchic punk sensibility that even today, 30 years later, still seems bracing and unapologetic."

• Academia: Prof. Zak Sally presents his classroom curriculum

• Aha: So that's where the Snoopy-in-a-cast storyline in the upcoming 13th volume of The Complete Peanuts came from (via Spurge)

We have the great privilege of hosting Gahan Wilson here in our offices today. Mr. Wilson's radio interview on KUOW this morning is already archived and available for streaming or direct MP3 download for those who weren't able to tune in live.

A shorty today — click on through the links for sources & infos:

• A cut (maybe) scene from Derek Van Gieson's ongoing Mome story Devil Doll

• Two versions of this week's "I, Anonymous" spot by Steven Weissman

Panties-to-the-floor, Twilight-referencing Online Commentary & Diversions:

• List: Rob Clough's Top 100 Comics of the '00s Part Two (of Two) at The Comics Journal is chock full o' Fantagraphics

• Review: "Fantagraphics' panties-to-the-floor handsome English-language version [of Ici Même], You Are There , may blow its own share of minds some three decades after the work's initial publication. Most modern comics readers are not used to material that functions and frustrates this way. It's great work, though, well worth any effort extended in its direction. I think the key is to take the book for what it is: the kind of general satire where the beauty isn't in watching one specific thing dissected but rather several ideas and concepts collide into another in a way that makes for loud noises and then a satisfying pile of rubble. It's a lost episode of Ripping Yarns in comics form by two in-their-prime masters, the French turned up to dix." – Tom Spurgeon, The Comics Reporter

• Review: "...[A]t some point in the years between the release of Schizo #3 and #4, Brunetti matured into one of our best living cartoonists, an artist with an absolutely impeccable understanding of the craft and construction of comic strips. His timing is perfect; his lines are perfect; it doesn't feel stifling or over-thought or too precious. His strips breathe and choke and swoon in all the right places." – Tim O'Neil, "The Ten Best Comics of the Aughts," The Hurting

• Plug: Jill Pantozzi of SF Weekly's Heartless Doll blog recommends Castle Waiting Vol. 1 to Twilight fans: "Anyone who thinks damsels are meant to be in distress hasn't visited the right castle. Bella and Edward may live happily ever after, staring into each other's eyes for all eternity, but what happens to everyone else in the story once theirs ends? Castle Waiting is a look at all the minor players in the tale of Sleeping Beauty and some you've probably never heard of (the bearded nun, perhaps?) following her exit with Prince Charming. It's a smart, humorous story about strong women helping others and daily life at a castle that was meant for more than just love stories." (via Robot 6)

• Plug: PopCultureShock's Glyphs blog declares King: The Special Edition by Ho Che Anderson the Book of the Week

• Contributor notes: Newave! cartoonist T. Motley talks about his inclusion in the book

Steven generously let us paw all over his incredible sketchbook when he was in town for his Chocolate Cheeks book signing at Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery last Saturday. Check out our Flickr photoset for a few more views of the event; we should have more photos to share as soon as Jacob gets 'em to me.

Seattle Public Library has posted an MP3 (64.2 MB) of Peter Bagge's Jan. 30 talk at the Central Library. Synch it up with the photo slideshow (which autoplays, but you can pause and navigate manually — skip ahead to the third image to start) and it's almost like you were there!

Here's your first glimpse at the final cover art for the new collection of Dame Darcy's Meatcake, coming 'round about May or so. Stay tuned for more details.