Photo credit: Jonas Seaman

Get ready! This weekend, Friday, March 4th - Sunday, March 6th, Fantagraphics will be taking the 9th Annual Emerald City Comicon by storm!

And slashing things open on Friday, March 4th will be Jacques Boyreau, editor and cultural historian of the book Portable Grindhouse: The Lost Art of the VHS Box, a celebration of some of the most louche, decadent, minimo-pervo artwork to ever grace a VHS box.

Join Jacques at the Fantagraphics booth at space #808! He'll be signing copies of Portable Grindhouse, and showing film footage, on Friday, March 4th from 4:00 to 6:00 pm. 

[Jacques will also be joining our friends at the Northwest Film Forum on Friday, March 4th for the opening night of Metalhaus: 1977-1995, a series of heavy metal concert footage, curated by Jacques and Darren Aboulafia! Badass! ]

And yes, the rumors are true! Tickets for the Emerald City Comic-Con are still available at the Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery in Georgetown.  See you there!

Portland emporium Guapo Comics & Coffee kicks off National Women's History Month with an all-women show, featuring our own Andrice Arp alongside a bunch of other great ladies.

Opening reception is Saturday, February 26th at 7:00 pm.

Guapo Comics and Coffee
6350 SE Foster Road
Portland, Oregon 97206
503-772-3638

Irwin at the Jim Flora exhibit opening, Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery, 9/22/07

Our friends at WFMU are kicking off their 2011 Marathon on February 28th, but you can get a jump-start with a pledge now, and like last year, perhaps walk away the owner of Irwin Chusid, editor of our fabulous Jim Flora collections. More details await you here!

I am reeling with jealousy at everyone who lives in Orange County right now, because this Thursday you have a chance to see Jaime Hernandez speak (for FREE!) at the Fullerton Public Library.

It's part of the "Gustavo's Awesome Lecture Series!" spearheaded by the awesome-indeed journalist Gustavo Arellano. Arellano is perhaps best known for his syndicated column "¡Ask a Mexican!" which appears in the OC Weekly.  He's even the recipient of the "Colbert Bump." And he was nice enough to chat with Fantagraphics about Jaime's work!

How did you first discover "Love & Rockets" and Jaime Hernandez?

I discovered Love & Rockets and Jaime's work like all Mexican nerds—in high school. My best friend was into graphic novels and comics, and one day, I noticed a section of his bookcase that had the only Hispanic surname in the bunch—"Hernandez." It was a collection of Love & Rockets—can't remember which one, but I began reading and haven't stopped since.

Which character do you relate the most to and why?

Maggie, of course. She reminds me of many of the Chicanas I've known—someone who was cute-as-fuck in her youth, but turned beautiful as she aged and grew bigger. Maggie might not be living the life she envisioned as a young punker working the prosolar circuit—might even feel sad at her status in life—but she nevertheless remains optimistic, and feels life will become better.

Do you have a particular favorite book or storyline of Jaime's?

Death of Speedy, for sure. I didn't grow up in an environment like Hoppers, but I knew many who did. The whole story arc, between defending turf and love and mistaken identity and pride, could've easily been told in a stereotypical fashion, as it almost always does. But Jaime's take is beyond humanistic—it's Joyceian in its dexterity of emotions and conflict.

Seriously, can you imagine how engaging this event is going to be? Well, if you live in the area, you don't have to imagine! The Fullerton Public Library is located at 353 W. Commonwealth Ave., Fullerton, CA (714) 738-6333. Jaime and Gustavo will begin their discussion at 6:30 p.m., so don't be late!

This series is sponsored by the Cal State Fullerton Department of Chicano and Chicana Studies, the Fullerton Public Library, and the Hibbleton Gallery. 

Get ready for some chat roulette with Ellen Forney, without all the penises! (Unless you wanna ask her about Lust, that is...)

Walmart (!!!) and the Free Library of Philadelphia host the first ever "One Book, One Philadelphia" online book chat today at 11:00 am PST/2:00 pm EST.  Just log on here and chat live with Ellen!

(Um, and since it's c0-hosted by Walmart, maybe keep it clean...)

Seattle's own alternative comics pioneers Fantagraphics are bringing their award-winning wares to the 9th Annual Emerald City Comic-Con, March 4th - 6th, 2011 at the Washington State Convention Center. Tickets for the Emerald City Comic-Con are available at the Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery in Georgetown.

Visit our table at space #808 and check out new titles, such as Twilight of the Assholes: Cartoons & Essays 2005-2009, FUC_ __U, _SS __LE: Blecky Yuckerella Vol. 4, The Strange Case of Edward Gorey, King of the Flies Vol. 2: The Origin of the World, Stigmata, Unexplored Worlds: The Steve Ditko Archives Vol. 2, Usagi Yojimbo: The Special Edition, Special Exits, Little Maakies on the Prairie, Prince Valiant Vol. 3 and Popeye Vol. 5.

Special guests include:

Peter Bagge, the funniest cartoonist of his generation. Bagge is probably best known for the 1990s comic book series Hate, which followed the exploits of the slacker ne'er-do-well Buddy Bradley. Bagge will be signing copies of the latest Hate Annual #8, and additional works, such as Everybody Is Stupid Except for Me and Other Astute Observations, on Saturday, March 5th from 10:00 am to Noon.

Jacques Boyreau, editor and cultural historian of the book Portable Grindhouse: The Lost Art of the VHS Box, a celebration of some of the most louche, decadent, minimo-pervo artwork to ever grace a VHS box. Boyreau will be signing, and showing footage from Portable Grindhouse films, at our table on Friday, March 4th from 4:00 to 6:00 pm.

Megan Kelso, Ignatz Award-winning artist who has returned to Seattle after a period in New York, where she published a weekly comic strip in The New York Times magazine. Kelso will be signing copies of her acclaimed novel Artichoke Tales, and other titles, on Sunday, March 6th from 2:00 to 4:00 pm.

Fantagraphics & Top Shelf Presents: Con Artists, the Emerald City Comic-Con After-Party

Fantagraphics Books Inc. teams up with fellow indie-comic publishers Top Shelf Productions for an Emerald City Comic-Con after-party on Saturday, March 5th at the Jewel Box Theater at the Rendezvous.

Performers include:
Can You Imagine?: featuring Peter Bagge, and legendary local producer/musician Steve Fisk
The Rheas: fronted by Eric Reynolds, Associate Publisher at Fantagraphics
Matthew Southworth: frontman for The Capillaries, and co-creator of the comic Stumptown

DJ'ing between sets will be DJ Janice, aka Janice Headley, Events Coordinator/Publicist for Fantagraphics (and Programming Assistant at Seattle radio station KEXP).

Con Artists: Emerald City Comic-Con Afterparty
Sponsored by Fantagraphics Books & Top Shelf Productions
Saturday, March 5th, 2011 at 9:00 pm
Jewel Box Theater at The Rendezvous
2322 2nd Avenue in Belltown
Admission $5 (General Public)
FREE with Emerald City Comic-Con badge
21 and over with ID

Emerald City Comic-Con
March 4th - 6th, 2011
Washington State Convention Center
http://www.emeraldcitycomicon.com/
Friday: 2:00pm - 8:00pm
Saturday: 10:00am - 7:00pm
Sunday: 10:00am - 5:00pm

• http://www.fantagraphics.com
• http://www.fantagraphics.com/peterbagge
• http://www.fantagraphics.com/megankelso
• http://www.fantagraphics.com/portablegrindhouse

* Other People's Publications
** Yeah, You Know Me. 

For this special Valentine's Day edition of "Down with OPP," I'm spotlighting one of the most romantic books we have in stock at the Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery:  Scenes from an Impending Marriage by Adrian Tomine (Drawn & Quarterly).

I had read an interview with Tomine in ReadyMade magazine a few years ago where he talked about how he'd made this mini-comic for wedding guests.  And since my invitation got lost in the mail... (cough, cough -- no, I'm just kidding), the publication of this book meant I could stop trolling eBay for disgruntled wedding guests unloading their copies. 

Tomine fans, be forewarned: this book is really, really sweet.  Even the artwork strays a bit from what we've come to know from him, with charming homages to Peanuts and The Family Circus both. If you prefer your Tomine tortured, it might be better to dig out your well-read copies of Summer Blonde instead.

But, if any of my friends were getting married, you can bet the bride would be getting a copy of this from me at her bridal shower.  From the neat, petite size to the Tiffany Blue cover, it really is tailor-made for gift-giving.

(Of course, the Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery has tons of other great gifts, too... cough.)

Scenes from an Impending Marriage, and more anguished Adrian Tomine titles, are currently in stock at the Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery, located at 1201 S. Vale Street in Seattle's Georgetown district. Open daily 11:30 to 8:00 PM, Sundays until 5:00 PM. Phone: (206) 658-0110.  See you soon! 

* Other People's Publications
** Yeah, You Know Me. 

If you've got a hankerin' for the finest in local independent comic books, then satisfy your appetite with one of these Combo #1's from Seattle artist collective, The Bureau of Drawers!

Each "happy meal" comes in a hand-screened take-out box, featuring artwork by Dalton Webb, and the prize inside is a countless abundance of lovingly-assembled mini-comics!  (Why "countless"? Uh... 'cause, I didn't wanna count 'em.)

Ingredients include a juicy reprint of Hotwire-contributor David Lasky's 1994 comic Portrait of Ella.  Marc Palm's psychedelic lyric-centric comic comes with a CD in the back.  Calamity Jon's An Hourly Comic is completely endearing and relatable, 'cause who doesn't dream about owning a fat bunny who likes to sit on your feet?  And for me, dessert was Nikki Burch's These Are My Jokes, which is gorgeously rendered, reminding both me and store impresario Larry Reid of the great Julie Doucet. 

And really, that's a mere taste of all the goodness you get in the Combo #1.  Why, just check out this commercial, provided by The Bureau of Drawers:

Just like the fabled McRib, the Combo #1 is limited edition, and we've only got a few of them in stock at the store. But, hey, why not pick yours up on Saturday, February 12th as the Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery presents the opening of "Lovesick," an exhibition of original art, books and prints by the master chefs behind the Bureau of Drawers themselves!  You can read more about the opening on the Fantagraphics FLOG here.