Underground Comix Scholar, Patrick Rosenkranz  will be teaching an 8 week History of Comics program at the Pacific Northwest College of Art. Rosenkranz's contribution to the medium of comics is monumental and his class is sure to bring it. There's a lot of comics noise down in Portland, so if you're reading this and live in The City of Roses then you need to start smelling the roses and listen up! If you happen to pay sales tax and pump yer own gas then I implore you to check out the brand new The Artist Himself: A Rand Holmes Retrospective  as well as You Call This Art?! A Greg Irons Retrospective  (only a couple of copies left!) and the indispensable   Rebel Visions: The Underground Comix Revolution 1963-1975 .

Patrick Rosenkranz (L) & Peter Bagge  (R) 

This Saturday at 12:00PM I'm honored to be interviewing one of my favorite cartoonists, Seattle's Peter Bagge, for the 2010 Comic-Con International (Room 3). If you happen to be a recipient of a golden ticket and are braving this year's premier comic book convention then I urge you to attend as we'll be wholesaling a satori experience in the guise of humor and loathing for all humankind! The following topics will be discussed: Delusion, Consequence, Death, Study of History, Crosshatching, Super Wackiness, Grim Mundane Reality, and more! 

Screen Thrills Illustrated to...

Dan Clowes to...

Frank Miller to...

Is Denis Kitchen legendary because he's no longer relevant? or because he wrote the ad copy?

 Worst Comics Industry Crime of  2009

Today, I'd like for you to join me in wishing musician (Lubricated Goat, Bloodloss, Monkeywrench) and Fantagraphics staffer MARTIN BLAND a happy birthday (pictured all the way to the right). I've learned much from Martin's fine example and he deserves all the cosmic happiness headed his way because he's a fucking nice guy.

 Martin also blogs HERE .

photo courtesy sub pop.

As a Comic Book Salesman at this year's Comic-Con it was impossible not to feel the crushing presence of the latest and greatest bullshit Hollywood and beyond had to offer and I'm not sure why.  Why did this year feel any different from last year, or the year before?  Maybe I've gone to one-too-many Comic-Cons thus forcing me into a downward spiral of delusion and dread?  Or maybe the mainstream acceptance sought by the comics industry at large is really a Trojan Horse?  Regardless the cause, there were far too many injustices committed at this year's Comic-Con and yes I will be pressing charges in future Flog posts.

On the other hand, as a Long Box Cretin this year's Comic-Con was unquestionably winsome!  Thanks to the lack of Back Issue Fiends I had plenty of elbow room to find great deals (Herbie #12 for $2 are you crazy!?!) and the lack of competition for elusive issues of weird olde comics was a very welcomed change.

 Sigh... music to my ears.

From ARCADE #4 , winter 1975, edited Al Floogleman & Griffy

"Your violent thrashings stir me.  From where are you people pulling the energy?  It's a great trick, awareness and buoyancy.  Yours is still the art 'that knows not its name,' down and dangerous, some of the only art around still life-impelled beyond its theory (that's decadence).  There's a lot of dada ghosts riding their hopes on you; stay as unregenerate as you are."

 - Ken Jacobs 

Six years ago I believed the above quote was just as relevant in 2003 as it probably was in 1975 to what was once commonly refered to as "Underground Comix" and then later commonly referred to as "Alternative Comics." 

He endures...

If you happen to be in Los Angeles this Friday, April 3rd I highly recommend you run on over to Katie Vonderheide and Christopher Gere's SYNCHRONICITY SPACE  for a spiritual experience!