Our weekly strips from Kupperman & Weissman, plus links to other strips from around the web:

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Up All Night by Michael Kupperman (view at original size ):

Barack Hussein Obama by Steven Weissman (view at original size):

And elsewhere:

The All-New Cartoon Boy Adventure Hour by John Kerschbaum at ACT-I-VATE:

Belligerent Piano by Tim Lane:

Forming by Jesse Moynihan:

Humblug by Arnold Roth (3 new strips this week):

Maakies by Tony Millionaire:

Les Petits Riens by Lewis Trondheim (scroll down at the link for a couple more updates):

Truth Serum by Jon Adams:

What's in the Backpack by Victor Kerlow:

Kevin Avery, author of Everything Is an Afterthought: The Life and Writings of Paul Nelson, will be Dave Marsh’s guest on the second hour of his radio show, Kick Out the Jams, Sunday Nov. 6 at 11 AM (EST). The show runs from 10 till noon. Kick Out the Jams plays on The Loft (Channel 30). They’ll be spinning some of Paul Nelson’s favorite tunes and talking about all things Paul (and plugging their upcoming appearance at the Strand, of course). Tune in!

The Minneapolis Indie Xpo takes place this Saturday and Sunday at The Soap Factory, 514 2nd St. SE in (duh) Minneapolis! I don't think you need us to tell you this is a must-go. Appearing will be Kevin Huizenga, Tom Kaczynski (whose art adorns the poster above), Anders Nilsen, Jim Rugg, Zak Sally, Noah Van Sciver, and lots more of our friends and colleagues! Say hi to 'em for us.

Today's Online Commentary & Diversions:

• Review: "A powerful eco-report, Oil and Water also manages to be a report on the gap between classes that isn’t about who has what, but rather about what 'having' means to different groups of Americans.... The large black-and-white images are realistic and create individual characteristics for the cast; its smudged texture is an excellent vehicle for the intrusion of oil on beaches, birds, livelihoods, and prospects for the future. Quick to read, but of lasting weight for readers from either side of the divide." – Francisca Goldsmith, School Library Journal

• Review: "...Nelson wrote like Fitzgerald or O’Connor, his prose full of god and anxiety... Paul Nelson knew you were that kid that needed a noir detective to crack the case for you, to demystify the rock god world while not for a second taking the romance and realness out of it. He signed on for a pittance and wrote elegantly and truthfully about an industry that was usually nothing but awkward boasts and queasy lies.... I’m not kidding when I say that you need to get on [Everything Is an Afterthought] ASAP if you do any music writing at all. It’s the Scribes Sounding Off book of the year, in a pretty great year of them..." – Chris Estey, The KEXP Blog

• Interview: Comic Book Resources' Chris Mautner has a fascinating and playfully cantankerous Q&A with Kevin Huizenga about the new issue of Ganges: "I totally would rather work on a minicomic more than working on a 'real' project. Working on something where other people are involved really screws me up. It's some kind of disorder. I assume they're going to be disappointed, and I resent them for that in advance, and then I start to hate the work and half-ass the project. I'd much rather work on something that no one wants, that no one has asked for. This has not helped my career."

• Commentary: Eddie Campbell, still on his romance comics kick, writes about Bill Everett's work in the genre

• Travelogue: The wonderful Jean Schulz writes about her recent trip to Portugal for Lisbon's Amadora International Comics Festival

Can you think of a funny caption for this Gahan Wilson cartoon? Enter this week's New Yorker Cartoon Caption Contest!

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There’s an update to this amazing bit of Tony Millionaire lore.

Walt Disney's Donald Duck: Lost in the Andes
by Carl Barks

240-page full-color 7.5" x 10.25" hardcover • $24.99
ISBN: 978-1-60699-474-0

Ships in: November 2011 (subject to change) — Pre-Order Now

Carl Barks's Donald Duck and Uncle Scrooge comics are considered among the greatest artistic and storytelling achievements in the history of the medium.

After serving a stint at the Walt Disney studios as an in-betweener and a gag-man, Barks began drawing the comic book adventures of Donald Duck in 1942. He quickly mastered every aspect of cartooning and over the next nearly 30 years created some of the most memorable comics ever drawn — as well as some of the most memorable characters: Barks introduced Uncle Scrooge, the charmed and insufferable Gladstone Gander, the daffy inventor Gyro Gearloose, the bumbling and heedless Beagle Boys, the Junior Woodchucks, and many others.

Barks alternated between longish, sprawling 20- or 30-page adventure yarns filled with the romance of danger, courage, and derring-do, whose exotic locales spanned the globe, and shorter stories that usually revolved around crazily ingenious domestic squabbles between Donald and various members of the Duckburg cast. Barks’s duck stories, famously enjoyed equally by both children and adults, are both evanescent celebrations of courage and perseverance and depictions of less commendable traits — greed, resentment, and one-upmanship.

Our initial volume begins when Barks had reached his peak — 1948-1950. Highlights include:

• The title story, “Lost in the Andes” (Barks’s own favorite). Donald and the nephews embark on an expedition to Peru to find where square eggs come from only to meet danger in a mysterious valley whose inhabitants all speak with a southern drawl, and where Huey, Dewey, and Louie save Unca’ Donald’s life by learning how to blow square bubbles!

• Two stories co-starring the unbearably lucky Gladstone, including the epic “Race to the South Seas,” as Donald and Gladstone try to win Uncle Scrooge’s favor by being the first to rescue him from a desert island.

• Two Christmas stories, including “The Golden Christmas Tree,” one of Barks’s most fantastic stories that pits him and the nephews against a witch who wants to destroy all the Christmas trees in the world.

• In other stories, Donald plays a TV quiz show contestant and ends up encased in a giant barrel of Jell-O, a truant officer who matches wits with his nephews, and a ranch hand who outwits cattle rustlers.

Lost in the Andes also features an introduction by noted Barks scholar Donald Ault, and detailed commentary/annotations for each story at the end of the book, written by the foremost Barks authorities in the world.

These new editions feature meticulously restored and re-colored pages in a beautifully designed, affordable and accessible format. Discover the genius of Carl Barks!

Download and read a 17-page PDF excerpt (3.6 MB).

Video & Photo Slideshow Preview (view in new window):

Today's Online Commentary & Diversions:

• Review: "This slim volume is finely edited, and its narrative tone resides on the border between fairy stories and unbowdlerized folk tales. In other words, it is suffused with equal dismay and delight at the nature of the world. The drawings, printed in two crisp colors, would be worth the price of the book if it were stripped of words. Like Craig Thompson’s Habibi (which it precedes in its original publication date, pre-translation) and Umberto Eco’s Baudolino, it has a great deal of wonder in it, which it conveys in a surprisingly matter-of-fact way. Do note that the book is full of penises and violence (and I mean full), so you may not want to buy it for your ten-year-old niece, but if you are still under the spell of story, The Armed Garden will delight you." – Hillary Brown, Paste

• Review (Audio): On Albany NY public radio station WAMC, Jacqueline Kellachan of The Golden Notebook discusses Everything Is an Afterthought: The Life and Writings of Paul Nelson (at the 8:55 mark in the streaming audio — we'll have a transcription of some highlights soon)

• Reviews: Cosmic Treadmill begins their survey of the complete works of Jason with Hey, Wait... ("What starts out as a series of cute and fun moments of the protagonist’s childhood turns into one of the most memorable comic book moments I can think of.... This should be on everyone’s to-read list"), Sshhhh! ("utterly engrossing... another quite memorable book"), and The Iron Wagon ("Full of deceit, paranoia and some great characterisation, The Iron Wagon won’t soon be forgotten") — all of which are collected in What I Did

• Plug: "I loved [Mascots], and if you're the kind of person that this kind of thing might appeal to, I highly recommend it. It lands a tricky acrobatic mix of poetry, graphic design, painting, and general sketchbook goofballery." – Kevin Huizenga\

We got a couple of early advance copies of Wandering Son Vol. 2 by Shimura Takako here at the office a couple days ago — here's a couple of quickie snaps to tide you over until we get the full previews set up. This beautifully-told story has many eager and devoted fans and we're as excited to get it into their hands as they are to read it! Have you pre-ordered your copy yet?

Short Run exhibition at Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery features small press comics and art by emerging regional artists.

In this age of ubiquitous digital media and gadget fatigue, it's refreshing to find a community of artists working with their hands to produce tactile works of art on paper. Such is the case with the young cartoonists in the Short Run exhibition at Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery in Seattle. This art party on Saturday, November 12 from 6:00 to 9:00 PM follows the Short Run Small Press Fest at the Vera Project at the Seattle Center earlier that day.

The Short Run art show, curated by Kelly Froh, features original comix art, illustration and book works by Max Clotfelter, Patrick Keck, Martine Workman, Elaine Lin, Jason T. Miles, Chris Cilla, Andrice Arp, Tim Root, Billis Helg, Marc Palm, Eroyn Franklin, Tom Van Deusen, Tim Miller, Tory Franklin, Jesse Reklaw, Sean Christensen, and Erin Tanner. A selection of publications by these, and other local artists, will also be available. 

The public is invited to meet these remarkable artists at a festive reception on Saturday, November 12 at 6:00 PM. Entertainment will be provided by DJ/musician "Brainfruit." This event coincides with the colorful Georgetown Art Attack featuring visual and performing arts presentations throughout the historic arts community.

Listing Information

SHORT RUN: Small Press Fest After-Party & Art Show

Featuring artwork by Max Clotfelter, Patrick Keck, Martine Workman, Elaine Lin, Jason T. Miles, Chris Cilla, Andrice Arp, Tim Root, Billis Helg, Marc Palm, Eroyn Franklin, Tom Van Deusen, Tim Miller, Tory Franklin, Jesse Reklaw, Sean Christensen, and Erin Tanner. Curated by Kelly Froh

Saturday, November 12, 6:00 - 9:00 P M. Show continues through December 10, 2011

Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery. 1201 S. Vale Street (at Airport Way S.) Seattle. Phone 206.658.0110. Open daily 11:30 to 8:00 PM, Sundays until 5:00 PM