FLOG! Entries tagged 'Mario Hernandez'

First Look: The Love and Rockets Companion

mike

Here's your first sneak peek of an advance copy of The Love and Rockets Companion, edited by Marc Sobel & Kristy Valenti and coming in July. This book fits nicely on your shelf with the Love and Rockets Library volumes and serves as your guide to the L&R universe, with 3 major interviews with the Hernandez brothers, character guides, previously unpublished artwork, Locas and Palomar timelines, a complete bibliography, and letter column excerpts. All this wrapped in a fold-out jacket with a poster on one side and character family trees on the other! We'll show you that in action along with more views of the book soon.

Our free 32-page preview assembles short excerpts from each of the major sections; read it here, where you can also place your pre-order. And you can pre-order a set of the Companion, Covers, and Reader books at a nice discount here.

Cover Uncovered: Love and Rockets: The Covers

mike

Whoa! Did you see that? Click here to see it again if you missed it!

We're pleased to unveil the final cover art for the eagerly anticipated Hernandez Bros. art book Love and Rockets: The Covers, off to the printer now! The black art on the cover will be printed on a transparent acetate overlay. Devilishly clever designer Jacob Covey explains: "It's essentially identical to how these old covers were proofed — with a hand-colored background and a black line art overlay. The case will be printed with a reproduction of the color art from a 1994 proof we had at the office. Only with the jacket in place will the art and title appear. Cool? Cool." Cool!

The book will include the front and back cover art by Gilbert, Jaime and Mario (without logos, prices or other distractions) from all 50 issues of the original series and the 15 original trade collections, plus some scans of original art and other surprises, all meticulously restored from the best available source material (remember folks, this stuff predates digital) and faithfully recolored.

Fans have been clamoring for a book like this for years, and now it's finally almost here! Pre-order today!

This Week in Fantagraphics Events: 3/4-3/11

janice

Monday, March 4th

• Gainesville, Florida: Hopefully you're all signed up to take Ron Regé, Jr.'s week-long workshop at SAW, the Sequential Artists Workshop! I am very jealous of all of you! (more info)

Thursday, March 7th

• San Francisco, CA: The mighty Mario Hernandez will be discussing his contributions to the groundbreaking Love and Rockets series at the Cartoon Art Museum from 7:00 to 9:00 PM! (more info)

Friday, March 8th

• New York City, NY: The Art of Harvey Kurtzman, a comprehensive retrospective of MAD creator Harvey Kurtzman, opens at the Society of Illustrators! (more info)

• Minneapolis, MN: Dash Shaw will be a special guest at the Minneapolis College of Art and Design! This lecture is open to the public. (more info)

Saturday, March 9th

• Seattle, WA: Join us at the Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery for a book signing for Geneviève Castrée's Susceptible, along with a presentation and art exhibit of originals from her graphic novel debut! Ashley Eriksson of LAKE will perform music. (more info)

Sunday, March 10th

• San Francisco, CA: It's your last chance to see the Love and Rockets 30th Anniversary Celebration exhibit at the Cartoon Art Museum! Of course, you've already been! Go again! (more info)

An Evening with Mario Hernandez at the Cartoon Art Museum!

janice

The Cartoon Art Museum in San Francisco, CA has proudly hosted the exhibit Love and Rockets: A 30th Anniversary Celebration since last October. Sadly, all good things must come to an end, and they're saying good-bye with the legendary Mario Hernandez himself!

Join Mario on Thursday, March 7th from 7:00-9:00 PM as he discusses his contributions to the groundbreaking comic book series. Learn about the formative years of Los Bros Hernandez as Mario goes behind the scenes of Love and Rockets, one of the most beloved and critically acclaimed indie comics of all time.

This event is free and open to the public. Guests who donate $10 or more to the Cartoon Art Museum will receive an exclusive Love and Rockets 30th anniversary print. The Cartoon Art Museum is located at 655 Mission Street.

Love and Rockets: A 30th Anniversary Celebration in San Francisco!

janice

During APE weekend, the Cartoon Art Museum in San Francisco, CA launched the exhibit: Love and Rockets: A 30th Anniversary Celebration. This career-spanning retrospective features more than 50 pieces of original artwork from the groundbreaking comic.

People teased me & Mike about how excited we were to see the exhibit ("Don't you see their originals all the time at the office?"), but it really did give me goosebumps to see these 30-year-old pages in person. When Mike & I got back to the hotel, he tweeted this:

Yup, pretty much.

The opening reception was packed from the beginning of the event to the very end! It was hard to keep track of Jaime, Gilbert and Mario as everyone wanted a chance to talk with them!

Speaking of Mario, this show gave me a whole new appreciation for his work! I mean, just check out that groovy Jim Flora-esque portrait of the Bros he drew in 1997! So great! I wanna see more of Mario's artwork!!

The exhibit runs through March 10th, 2013, so if you live in the San Francisco area, or will be visiting, I cannot urge you enough to drop by the Cartoon Art Museum at 655 Mission Street. Not only will you get to see this jaw-dropping exhibit, but the whole museum itself is an absolute treasure. I wish we could've spent more time there!

For those who can't see it in person, Mike & I have some more low-lit camera-phone photos at the Fantagraphics Flickr page. Thank you to the Cartoon Art Museum for hosting this wonderful retrospective, and of course, thank you, as always, to the Hernandez Brothers!

Daily OCD 10/25/12

TheJenVaughn

The kissiest babyface on a campaign of Online Commentaries & Diversions:

• Review: The Las Vegas Weekly breaks out their ballots and their copies of Barack Hussein Obama by Steven Weissman. J. Calob Mozzococco says, "Weissman’s delicate line work and fine-art design style further remove the narrative from the caricature-style visuals usually associated with comics about politicians, and is perfectly suited to the meandering, poetic, almost meditative comic."

•Interview (audio): Steven Weissman talks about comics, math and trying to identify with such public, political characters on the Inkstuds podcast with Robin McConnell. Weissman talks about the impotes impotus for Barack Hussein Obama. "Initially, it was just his name and. . . the dreams his followers had for him. . . I started to treat Hillary Clinton as a Lucy van Pelt character."

• Interview: On the quest to The Cartoon Utopia, Ron Regé Jr. is interviewed by Ryan Ingram on Comic Book Resources. Regé states,"Similar to Lynda Barry's "What It Is," [The Cartoon Utopia] should be approached slowly, as a textbook would. It might also be useful when read via bibliomancy, opening the book to a random page to access the information in a magical way."

• Review (audio): Comic Books are Burning in Hell talks about Johnny Ryan and Prison Pit 4 with all the usual suspects: Joe McCullough, Matt Seneca, Chris Mautner and Tucker Stone. "While visually Prison Pit is very clean, composed and controlled, plotwise, I think, its the ultimate noise comic. Its fucking total destruction and nothing else. And I value the hell outta that."

• Review: Grovel enjoys the comics, yes literary but still comics of Lorenzo Mattotti and Jorge Zentner in The Crackle of the Frost. Andy Shaw states, "It’s a wilfully arty book – more of an essay in mood that just happens to have a plot, than a traditional story – but the writing is interesting and the artwork is stunning. . . so is one for the literary, rather than the mainstream comics enthusiast."

• Interview: Comic Book Resources coverage on the APE panel featuring all three Hernandez Brothers. Steven Sautter writes,"There was no set plan in those early days, no grand storyline or over-arcing plot; the Hernandez brothers simply told the stories they felt like telling, none of them counting on the eventual longevity of "Love and Rockets."

• Plug: Liv Suddall of It's Nice That thoroughly enjoys the content and design of Is That All There Is? by Joost Swarte. "With a more-than-just-a-nod nod to Tintin creator Hergé, this surprisingly raunchy book is a big slice of aesthetic pleasure from start to finish and should probably be on everyone’s wish list this Christmas."

Daily OCD 10/18/2012

TheJenVaughn

The blackest ink in the pot of Online Commentaries & Diversions:

• Review: AV Club shows presidential love for Barack Hussein Obama and The Hypo. Noel Murray on Steven Weissman's book: "For the most part Barack Hussein Obama is just wild fun, built around the notion that a president can be easily reduced to his public image—and that we, the people, have the right to manipulate that image for our own delight." And Murray on The Hypo: "[Noah Van Sciver renders] an American icon as a lumpen everyman, fighting through the same fog that many people find themselves in—even if few of those ordinary folks wind up in the Oval Office."

• Review: Publishers Weekly picks The Hypo by Noah Van Sciver as one of the best new books of the month. "Van Sciver’s psychologically astute examination of what might be termed Abraham Lincoln’s “lost years” (1837–1842) is as gripping and persuasive as the best historical fiction. . . .A thoroughly engaging graphic novel that seamlessly balances investigation and imagination."

• Review: Paste Magazine reviews Steven Weissman's newest book and Hillary Brown gives it a 8.1 (outta 10). "With its gold foil stamp and red, white and blue partial jacket, Barack Hussein Obama could well be a semi-official graphic rendering of a presidency. . . If this book is a portrait of anything, it shows the grind and the way that hope and idealism erodes when faced with the everyday, and that is valuable"

•Review: La Tempestad on Barack Hussein Obama by Steven Weissman. Rough translation states "Through these pages, Weissman satirizes and creates a parallel reality of based on the stewards of American power."

• Review: MetroPulse enjoys reading Ralph Azham Vol. 1 "Why Would You Do That To Someone You Love " by Lewis Trondheim. Matthew Everett states "There’s action, drama, pratfalls, bad-ass mercenaries, and a last-panel surprise that promises future volumes will head off in entirely unexpected directions. . . Ralph Azham is off to a near-perfect start. It’s a quietly marvelous addition to the English-language catalog of a working world master. Get it while you can."

• Review: The Quietus peeks at Dal Tokyo by Gary Panter. Mat Colegate can barely contain himself: "Panter is probably one of the single most influential underground American cartoonists of all time, a kind of Ramones to Robert Crumb’s Jefferson Airplane, which makes his relative unknown status a bit baffling. A cartoonists’ cartoonist, maybe?. . . The man’s inks are practically sentient, devouring white space like it was candy floss as his crude likenesses become imbued with a very deliberate purpose, that of guiding the reader through Panter’s personal inferno: the urban Twentieth Century."

• Review: The Quietus continues comic coverage on Joe Daly's Dungeon Quest: Book Three. Mat Colgate states,"Dear J.R.R. certainly never had one of his characters wank off a gnome, did he? Indeed Dungeon Quest’s good natured, silly humour gives it much of its character and combines with Daly’s beautiful Charles Burns-esque artwork to make the book much more than the sum of its parts. It feels like a real labour of love and when you read it you’ll see why. Nerdgasm guaranteed. I’m in love with this comic."

• Review: Unshelved looked at Dungeon Quest: Book Three by Joe Daly. Gene Ambaum writes "I never know where this weird, Dungeons & Dragons-ish adventure will take me next. . . Every dungeon should have a vending machine [a la Dungeon Quest]! Makes more sense than turning a corner and finding an elf with a fully-stocked shop where there’s little to no foot traffic."

• Review: The Quietus focuses New York Mon Amour by Jacques Tardi. Mat Colgate states"Using only black, white and red, Tardi illustrates a seedy, roach-infested New York that’s utterly plausible. You can practically smell the trash on the sidewalks as you follow the hapless narrator’s spiral into madness and murder. . . .if you know anyone looking to take the plunge into comics, someone who’s interested in what the medium can do and the fascinating ways it can do it, then point them in this books’ direction."

• Review: BUTT Magazine sinks its teeth into No Straight Lines, edited by Justin Hall. "Justin’s 328-page anthology is a very thorough introduction to the world of GLBT comics. His knowledge on the subject is pretty extensive, probably because he’s been a fan of the medium since he was a kid. Justin tells me that’s how he learned to read. . . In fact, the entire collection features a healthy dose of realism from a genre usually characterized by fantasy."

• Interview: Brandon Soderberg of The Comics Journal interviews the elusive Josh Simmons on The Furry Trap and his recent short film, The Leader, plus horror in all aspects: "Often, the best horror is about losing. And maybe struggling to keep a shred of dignity while you do. But often, you don’t even get that. Sometimes, you get your throat cut while a clown is pulling your pants down. It’s not enough that you’re getting murdered, you’re being humiliated at the same time!" Simmons eloquently states.

• Review: Los Angeles Review of Books ponders Listen, Whitey! The Sights and Sounds of Black Power by Pat Thomas. Rickey Vincent says,"The book is meticulously detailed, reflecting Thomas’s skills as a researcher (and record producer), yet conversational in tone, balancing the voice of a rock critic with the heft of a historian. . .The book remains consistent with its vision, and Thomas delivers black power with authority."

• Commentary: SFWeekly talks about Love and Rockets' art show at the Cartoon Art Museum, Chris Hall explains "If Love and Rockets brought one innovation to the comics field, it could be its lack of misogyny. . . Love and Rockets has, from the beginning, been praised for consistently depicting strong, complex women characters."

• Commentary: Jordan Hurder posted some APE coverage on the Hernandez Brothers and our company: "Fantagraphics crushed this show. It helps that they had Los Bros celebrating 30 years of Love and Rockets and Jim Woodring was already there as a special guest, but there was a consistent buzz around their table, and there were lines for pretty much every signing they had."

• Commentary: Jaime, Gilbert and Mario Hernandez appeared at APE much to JK Parkin of Robot 6 's delight. "All three Hernandez Brothers were at the show, and when they hit the Fantagraphics table the crowds surrounded them."

• Interview: The Comics Reporter links to some great vids from SPX interviews with Jaime Hernandez, Gilbert Hernandez and Daniel Clowes.

• Review: Simcoe looks at Walt Disney's Uncle Scrooge: Only a Poor Old Man by Carl Barks. Glenn Perrett says, "The stories are entertaining and the illustrations are excellent with a wonderful use of colour. . . Walt Disney's Uncle Scrooge: Only a Poor Old Man will appeal to young and old."

• Review: Pat Afforo looks at Stigmata by Lorenzo Mattotti and Claudio Piersanti. "If anyone has not read it you are definitely in for a ride and it is not a smooth one at the very least. This book covers a lot of different topics: religion, redemption, reincarnation, sin, good vs. evil, and above all love."

• Review: AV Club has high hopes for Rich Tommaso and his future books starring The Cavalier Mr. Thompson. Noel Murray posits,"Tommaso’s talented enough that The Cavalier Mr. Thompson might one day be seen as the lurching beginning to something truly great. . ."

•Interview: The Guardian asks Chris Ware some questions. In answer to Rosanna Greenstreet's question 'Which living person do you most admire and why?' Ware answers,"For intellect: Art Spiegelman. For art: Robert Crumb. For poetry and vision: Gary Panter. For decency: Barack Obama. For genuine goodness: Charles Burns. For genius: Charlie Kaufman. For soulfulness and love: Lynda Barry. For words: Zadie Smith. For unique life's work and superhuman effort expended: Ira Glass, Dave Eggers."

All the Monkey Business from APE 2012!

janice

Thank you to everyone who came by our booth this past weekend at APE: the Alternative Press Expo in San Francisco, CA! Look at how happy you made our Marketing Director, Mike Baehr! We hope we were able to make you guys happy, too, with all our amazing debuts and wonderful guests.

Our good pal Daniel Clowes made an unofficial appearance, and braved the crowds for a visit with The Hernandez Bros! I think that lady to the right just realized who cut in front of her in line...

Jim Woodring delighted fans with sketches of his iconic characters, and he somehow did it with just a cheapie ballpoint pen! (His usual drawing pen decided to give up the ghost right before signings began.)

The great Mark Kalesniko was all-smiles as he signed copies of his books for fans! Mark also brought both an electronic slideshow and some originals, which was a wonderful lesson in cartooning for everyone who stopped by.

photo credit: Ted Abenheim from Prism Comics!

It's the unstoppable Justin Hall, moderating the Queer Cartoonists Panel before his No Straight Lines signing with us! That man is a trooper, I'm tellin' ya.

And we were lucky to steal the always-busy Shannon Wheeler away from his own booth for a couple of signings of Oil & Water!

Our all-star line-up kept us hoppin', but I did manage to sneak away a few times for some shoppin' and some photos of our Fantagraphics friends!

It's an annual tradition to sit side-by-side with our good buddies (and fellow Northwesterners) Jim Blanchard & J.R. Williams!

Wake up, Gabrielle!!! Oh, well, I'll let her rest up for her signing with Tom Kaczynski (and Charles Burns, not at APE) this coming Saturday, October 20th at the Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery...

Here's Mome-veteran Jon Vermilyea, with his incredible prints and zines. He told us he was planning to hit the Brooklyn Comics and Graphics Festival, so make sure to visit his table, New Yorkers!

Here's fellow Mome-vet Malachi Ward in a rare quiet moment at his booth -- we were excited to get the latest volume of Expansions from him!

We had a quick visit with No Straight Lines-contributor Ed Luce, merchandising mad genius!

We didn't manage to snap a pic of the elusive Tim Hensley, but he was at APE, debuting his Ticket Stub collection with Rina Ayuyang's Yam Books! And, good lord, can I tell you people, it is a thing of freakin' beauty. Get one, seriously.

Speaking of elusive, the rumors were true: Zak Sally did make an unexpected secret appearance at the show! He snuck away before I could take a photo, though!

While I visited with Fanta-friends Tom Neely and Emily Nilsson of Sparkplug Comics, Mike had to contend with that line you see in the upper-righthand corner of this pic for the Love and Rockets signing! Yikes, sorry, Mike!

A quick run back to our own booth, and I was able to catch the adorable Brett Warnock of Top Shelf kanoodling with Rich Koslowski across the aisle!!!

Going through our photos, I was surprised that neither Mike nor I snapped any pictures of my birthday-buddy Tom Devlin of Drawn & Quarterly. (We both turned a year older on Saturday of the show.) But his v-neck sweater really did look great with the collared-shirt. Happy birthday, dear Tom!

Yay, that was fun! Let's do it again next year, San Francisco!

Fantagraphics at the 2012 Alternative Press Expo!

janice

We're going ape-shit for APE: the Alternative Press Expo! Join us this Saturday, October 13th and Sunday, October 14th at the Concourse Exhibition Center in San Francisco, CA!

As we reported back in February, we're bringing special guests Jaime, Gilbert and Mario Hernandez, continuing their Love and Rockets 30th Anniversary Tour, and the one and only Jim Woodring!

Well, we're also excited to announce that we'll be joined by Mark Kalesniko, Justin Hall, and Shannon Wheeler! Come meet these fine gentlemen of cartooning!

Saturday, October 13th
12:00-1:30 PM     Mark Kalesniko
12:00 - 1:00 PM   Shannon Wheeler
1:30 - 3:30 PM    Jim Woodring
3:30 - 5:30 PM    Gilbert Hernandez // Jaime Hernandez // Mario Hernandez
5:30 - 6:30 PM    Justin Hall // Mark Kalesniko

Sunday, October 14th
12:00-1:00 PM    Justin Hall // Mark Kalesniko
1:00 - 2:30 PM    Gilbert Hernandez // Jaime Hernandez // Mario Hernandez
2:30 - 3:30 PM    Jim Woodring // Shannon Wheeler
4:00 - 5:00 PM    Gilbert Hernandez // Jaime Hernandez // Mario Hernandez
5:00 - 6:00 PM    Jim Woodring // Mark Kalesniko

We'll also be carrying the following fine debuts:

• The Lost Art of Ah Pook Is Here: Images from the Graphic Novel by Malcolm McNeill
• Observed While Falling: Bill Burroughs, Ah Pook, and Me by Malcolm McNeill
• Barack Hussein Obama by Steven Weissman

• The Cartoon Utopia by Ron Rege, Jr.
• The Hypo by Noah Van Sciver
• Is That All There Is? by Joost Swarte [softcover & hardcover 2nd edition debut]
• Love and Rockets: New Stories #5 by Gilbert & Jaime Hernandez

• Ralph Azham Vol. 1: Why Would You Lie to Someone You Love? by Lewis Trondheim
• Tales Designed to Thrizzle #8 by Michael Kupperman
• Walt Disney's Mickey Mouse Vol. 4: House of the Seven Haunts by Floyd Gottfredson
• You'll Never Know Book 3: Soldier's Heart by C. Tyler
• Your Vigor for Life Appalls Me: Robert Crumb Letters 1958-1977 by Robert Crumb; edited by Ilse Thompson

And don't miss these excellent panels, featuring our great Fantagraphics artists:

Saturday, October 13th

• 2:45 PM // Queer Cartoonists Panel: LGBT comics, with a storied history of over four decades, have never been more vibrant. A true renaissance of queer stories is taking place, as they begin to take their rightful place in the comics world and fans increasingly demand more material that speaks to them and represents the genuine diversity in which we all live. It's all happening at the ninth annual APE Queer Cartoonists Panel, with talented, fabulous, and uppity panelists Tara Madison Avery (Dirtheads, Gooch), Tony Breed (Finn and Charlie Are Hitched), Dylan Edwards (Transposes), Steve MacIsaac (Shirtlifter), and Leia Weathington (The Legend of Bold Riley), with moderator Justin Hall (No Straight Lines, Glamazonia). On top of all that, at the end of the panel the recipient of the Prism Comics Queer Press Grant 2012 will be announced.

• 4:45 PM // Using Childhood Experiences to Create Adult Stories: The experiences from our youth are often those that have the biggest impact on the adults we grow up to be, but how do we share those stories with others? Miriam Libicki (jobnik!), Jim Woodring (Jim, Weathercraft), Kraig Rasmussen (monkeygong.com), and Derek Kirk Kim (Tune, Same Difference) explain how they molded their childhood memories into stories aimed at adults. Moderated by the Cartoon Art Museum's Andrew Farago.

• 5:45 PM // Spotlight on the Hernandez Brothers: 30 Years of Love and Rockets: The creators of the acclaimed Love and Rockets discuss the trials, tribulations, and joy that go into writing and drawing a series for over 30 years! Jaime, Gilbert and Mario Hernandez, talk to Andrew Farago (Cartoon Art Museum) about their three decades on one of comics' most popular and acclaimed indie series.

Sunday, October 14th

• 2:30 PM // "Gigantes" Walk Among Us!: Almost 100 years of cartooning takes the stage as APE special guests Jaime, Gilbert and Mario Hernandez of Love and Rockets fame join legendary MAD cartoonist Sergio Aragonés to discuss how their Latino/Hispanic experiences contributed to their amazing comic art. Join moderator Ricardo Padilla (Latino Comics Expo) as we celebrate these unique creators of this American artform.

• 3:45 PM // Spotlight on Jim Woodring: APE special guest Jim Woodring, the creator of the wordless Frank comics, waxes eloquent about his influences, motivations, and career experiences in "Please Stand By," a 45-minute narrated slide and video presentation followed by a 15-minute Q&A session. Topics include Woodring's animation studio work with Jack Kirby and Gil Kane, and the cartoon that irreversibly changed his life. If you have ever wondered what drives his enigmatic work, this is your chance to get the inside dope.

Marketing Director Mike Baehr and I can't wait to see you! Just swing by our usual spot at APE, tables 112-115! (Right by our good friends Jim Blanchard and J.R. Williams at table 116!)

Love and Rockets: A 30th Anniversary Celebration in San Francisco This Saturday!

janice

The Bros, circa 1982! // photo credit: Carol Kovinick Hernandez

Thirty years ago, those three badasses you see above created the most influential comic of the alternative age. This Saturday, October 13th, we raise a toast to the Hernandez Brothers!

Join us for the opening reception of Love and Rockets: A 30th Anniversary Celebration at the Cartoon Art Museum in San Francisco, CA! This career-spanning retrospective exhibition will include more than 50 pieces of original artwork from their groundbreaking comic.

From 8:00 to 11:00 PM, there will be food and drink from local vendors, live drawing events, and, of course, Jaime, Gilbert and Mario Hernandez, in person!

Tickets On Sale Now!

Admission for the event is on a sliding scale, from $5 to $50, with guests encouraged to donate whatever they can to support the Cartoon Art Museum. Guests who donate $20 or more will receive an exclusive 30th anniversary print!

All proceeds from this reception will benefit The Cartoon Art Museum, a non-profit educational museum dedicated to the collection, preservation and display of original cartoon art in all its forms.

The Cartoon Art Museum is located at 655 Mission Street in San Francisco. Don't miss this very special event!

Jen's 2012 Comic-Con Photo-Diary

TheJenVaughn

My very first Comic-Con International at San Diego was rather fan-freakin'-tastic. It is easier than people make it out to be but I imagine that if it started on TUESDAY night instead of Wednesday, we all would have died. This pictures are my con pictures so if that are mostly different than our previous CCI photo diaries. The caveat train is pulling away from the station!

Wednesday: I showed up the morning times with PR Director Jacq Cohen and our co-workers, Mike Baehr and Janice Headley had the table set UP! Aside from our many new releases we were thrilled to have new Love and Rockets shirts available. Here is the Fanta-crew dressed in all but that one with all those dirty words on it. Soak it in, that's the one time you'll ever see Gary Groth with his shirt untucked.

Oni Press and SCAD teacher Chris Schweizer immediately came over to look at his favorite cartoonist, Jason. Everyone will be sportin' a Schweizer nose-tupee next year, just you watch.

Writer Nolan Jones and Comics Alliance's Dylan Todd showed me their favorite books!

Since the hall was a bit quiet, Jacq and I ran around taking pictures with our favorite non-Fantagraphics thangs (sssh!).

Thursday: The Hernandez Brothers (Gilbert and Jaime here) had TWO signings a day, some three. Comics are hard work. Gilbert's daughter knows, she's onto her third zine.

One of my favorite writers and comic critics, Chris Sims, of the Comics Alliance came to ooh and ahh over our Carl Barks books.

The indelible Eddie Campbell found the most perfect copies (who could blame him?) of our Captain Easy Vols. 1 and 2 for his reading delight back home.

Then we caught Eddie Campbell reading our Prince Valiant while at the Top Shelf booth but once again, who could blame him?!

Speaking of Top Shelf, we spent most of the week occasionally locking gazes these lovely gents. Director of Digital, Chris Ross, and cartoonist of Cleveland, Joseph Remnant.

That night, Comics Reporter Tom Spurgeon, CBR's Kiel Phegley, International Freelancer Douglas Wolk and Fantagraphics' Jacq Cohen and I posed for a bunch of photos and examined gorgeous work at the CBLDF fundraiser.

. . . Until the BOSS showed up. Then we took Gary Groth and heir-to-the-throne Conrad to the Tri!ckster spot on J avenue to browse their books (our own event to happen on Friday night)

Friday: Two of the funniest men in comics, Steven Weissman and Johnny Ryan (creators of Chocolate Cheeks and Prison Pit respectively) chat up Jacq and Janice.

Gary Panter's Dal Tokyo finally came out for this show. Jon Chad's Leo Geo from Roaring Brook is a similar trim shape. They are perfect for the collector of art objects with really, really deep bookshelves. Trim de jour!

Finally, finally, finally met Phil McAndrew despite many late night Tweets. We're all guilty of that. He is currently loving Michael Kupperman's Tales Designed to Thrizzle.

This photo COMPLETELY encapsulates the family aspect of not only Fantagraphics but most comic companies. Gary Groth watches, eats and even signs some of Gilbert Shelton's Fabulous Furry Freak books.

The Hernandez Brothers continued to work hard interviewed by MTV (below), Entertainment Weekly, MultiShow Brazil and many other news outlets.

For the Tr!ckster event parties, we co-sponsored a queer-themed drink and draw party to coincide with our new queer comics anthology called No Straight Lines. Check out this big sexy bear!

Drag Queens Dolly Disco and Grace Towers posed in the best Michael Jackson-Circus of the Damned leotards and put all us ladies to shame.

Jacq and I ran as fast as our heels could take us to the Eisners, saw Mickey Mouse Vol. 1 and 2 be awarded for Best Archival Collection/Print in comic strips! Eddie Campbell and Andrew Aydin tried to steal me away but no siren song is as sweet as Fantagraphics.

Saturday: No worse for the wear, Jacq Cohen and I adhered to my STRICT 5-2-1 rule. 5 hours of sleep, 2 meals a day and 1 shower to maintain humanity at cons. Jacq added 2 sets of clothes and I admit, it pays off. (And you like that OLD SCHOOL equipment? I'm trying to refit the credit card slider into a denim fanny pack . . . maybe for SPX)

Meanwhile, Drawn and Quarterly upped their dress game with full-on bow ties for Tom Devlin from Beguiling owner Peter Birkemoe. We were a bit jealous.

The Hernandez Brothers continued their BREAKNECK pace of signing books and getting visits from artists like Joe Keatinge, Matt Fraction and Bongo Comics' editor Chris Duffy!

Matt Fraction's gravity-defying hair walked away with a Gilbert Hernandez sketch plus Love and Rockets and Jacques Tardi books.

While it may seem like you have seen a hundred Hopeys at comic cons (or dated a hundred Hopeys -- Jacq Cohen), this is the first cosplay the Hernandez Brothers have seen in thirty years of comics. Thank you, Dawn, for your Boot Angel get-up!

We continued to get cozy with our neighbors at Comic-Con. Associate Publisher Eric Reynolds showed Vertical's Ed Chavez Love and Rockets: New Stories #5.

Young Romance editor Michel Gagné (who has worked on many animated films from An American Tale to Brave) signed his books and L-O-V-E-D his fans.

Sunday: Cosplaying Abraham Lincoln wanted to buy Noah Van Sciver's The Hypo but worry not, it'll be available at SPX, Mr. President!

Chip Mosher from comiXology came by to show us the Guided View version of Love and Rockets: New Stories #1 on his iPhone. It is pretty killer, guys, none of that one panel at a time nonsense.

Jaime Hernandez and cartoonist Ed Piskor talked shop.

Almost had a heart attack when we saw this. I'm not ruining anyone's day by saying over 50% of our books are not for kids so it is sometimes surprising to see them pouring over Peanuts or Uncle Scrooge Comics (especially when The Furry Trap is TEN feet away)

BOOM! designer and fellow Center for Cartoon Studies alum, Carol Thomspon, laid her hands on our sweet trans-manga Wandering Son and couldn't let go.

So that's the whole she-bang! Thank you to the CCI organizers and all the people who helped out, bought comics, asked questions and brought me coffee. See you next year!

Love and Rockets Coverage

TheJenVaughn

Given the 30 Anniversary celebration of Love and Rockets this week, our article and fact-making robot decided we should have a separate post on all the goings-on. If we missed your 30th Anniversary coverage, please let us know. Commentaries and fun memories below:

•Interview: Heidi MacDonald interviews Associate Publisher Eric Reynolds on going digital with comiXology starting with Love and Rockets: New Stories. On THE BEAT Reynolds notes, "When the notion of 'digital comics' first became a reality, I’ll admit that many of our authors and many of us in the office actively resisted the idea and pretended to tell ourselves we’d never embrace it. But I think we’re all pragmatic enough to understand the realities of where the future is headed."

•Commentary: CNET noticed a lot of comiXology announcements at San Diego Comic Con International but put a spotlight on Love and Rockets: New Stories. Seth Rosenblatt continues, ". . . few people read the "Love and Rockets" comic when it was first published, but it inspired every single one of the people who did to make comics. Of course, that probably didn't happen on a one-to-one basis, but "Love and Rockets" is nevertheless a massively influential comic that probably has stronger sales now than it ever did when it first hit the stands."

•Commentary: Marc Frauenfelder of BoingBoing says little about Fantagraphics going digital but it packs a punch: "Fantagraphics, the world's greatest comic book publisher. . ."

•Commentary: Tom Spurgeon of the Comics Reporter made a call out for all press people to cover Love and Rockets' 30th Anniversary while at Comic Con, in addition to a digital comics distribution announcement. "I also think it's wholly appropriate that Fantagraphics is kicking this off with the Hernandez Brothers and Love And Rockets, certainly the first major project they published there at the company (although not the official first project they published) and obviously a mighty contribution to American popular art." This was followed by a con report stating, "My hunch from reading these things on the faces of people and talking to those around them is that Los Bros Hernandez had a very good show."

•Interview: Geoff Boucher from the LA Times asked Jaime Hernandez for his 30 best Comic-Con memories. "7. I remember when those “Turtle” guys started. . .20. I remember the days before comics were called “graphic novels."

Pam, one of the many fantastic Comic-Con International organizers

•Commentary: Sean T. Collins took a page from Tom Spurgeon's playbook and wrote a full week of Love and Rockets coverage as lines formed to meet the Hernandez Brothers. One small bit of the snippet of his lengthy coverage: "Gilbert and Jaime are both masters of the form of comics. . . Mario Hernandez is the great lost alternative cartoonist, the Lost Bro Hernandez. His interest in cosmopolitanism, leftist politics, the conflation of activism and terrorism by the authorities, the pas de deux between terrorism and authoritarianism, the revolutionary and counterrevolutionary power of art and pop culture, the Third World as a petri dish for first-world government’s reimportation of radicalism, all within the framework of vaguely science-fictional thrillers — he is in many ways the perfect comics-maker for our present moment."

•Commentary: Entertainment Weekly covered all aspects of the Hernandez Brothers panel. Jonathan W. Gray says, "Early artwork from the brothers, including the self-published first issue of Love and Rockets. Groth also showed a slide with Jaime’s rendering of a female Robin, an image that, according to Jaime, inspired the creation of Carrie Kelly in Dark Knight Returns" and overall, "The Hernandez brothers are legends who produced the most enduring indie comic series in history with Love and Rockets. It’s important that their sprawling oeuvre remain accessible for new fans, and their new agreement with Comixology to reprint their work digitally ensures that."

•Plug: Steve Appleford of the Pasadena Sun interviewed the Jaime Hernandez for the 30th Anniversary of Love and Rockets . "[My brothers and I] would go as often as we could to the shows. Whoever had the car, if we could afford gas."

•Commentary: Noel Murray of the A.V. Club spent a hell of a lot of time on the convention floor and covered the Hernandez Brothers panel: "Cartoonist Mike Allred stood up during the Q&A and gushed over the Hernandez brothers, saying that reading Love And Rockets as a young adult had rekindled his love of comics, not just because of Los Bros’ aesthetic and narrative sophistication, but because Jaime and Gilbert were able to put across what they loved: about Kirby, about punk rock, about wrestlers, and about women."

•Commentary: David Luna on Comic Book Resources covered the San Diego Comic-Con panel called 30th Anniversary of Love and Rockets featuring all three of the Hernandez Brothers and a packed room. Jaime Hernandez stated, "I got my cake and ate it too because I like drawing women and if I made them strong enough, not strong enough beating up people, but powerful just in their personalities and their lives and their brains, then I could draw them any way I wanted to."

•Plug: Mister Phil remembering and scanning ads from Love and Rockets back in the 80's is one of the greatest joys on the internet right now. See above.

•Commentary: UT San Diego.com and Peter Rowe touch on the Hernandez Brothers contribution to comics in their unique way. Gilbert Hernandez speaks, "[Characters who age and change] is a hallmark of great comic strips that inspired the [us], like 'Gasoline Alley.' Superhero comics are built on hype," he said. "But comic strips earn your respect over time."

•Plug: Love and Rockets get a con-based mention in Baldo comic by Hector D Cantu and Carlos Castellanos. See above (reformatted to fit our FLOG).

•Review: One of the original critics and reviews of Love and Rockets in the 80's, Brian Hayes writes a short 'n' sweet memory about the series, both old and new! On Hayfamzone: "Gary Groth and his associates have enriched the world of comics by publishing [Love and Rockets ] for all these years."

•Commentary: Sonia Harris spoke on a lifetime of love with the Hernandez Brothers' 30th Anniversary on Comic Book Resources. Harris exclaimed, "Gilbert Hernandez . . . told me that he remembered me from my first ever comic book convention in London, nearly 25 years ago. . . I explained to Jaime that after a misspent youth identifying with Hopey, then an awkward adolescence identifying with Maggie, I’ve now come to identify more with Izzy."

•Plug: Some very nice Brasilians made a Love and Rockets trailer called LÔCAS: MAGGIE, A MECÂNICA.

Pictures people drew of Love and Rockets

Fantagraphics at San Diego Comic-Con 2012: Saturday/Sunday spectacular

mike

Sights from the Comic-Con home stretch!

Starting the day with Gilbert & Jaime Hernandez (later joined by Natalia & Mario) — what could be better?

A couple of real horrorshow droogs checking out the merchandise. Careful with those codpieces, boys.

Eric & Jacq surround Ruben Bolling to cut off any possible escape.

Bob Burden gets his paws on some original Gilbert Hernandez art.

Johnny Ryan barely tolerates my picture-taking while Steven Weissman wheels & deals.

Diana Schutz of Dark Horse visits with Mario & Gilbert while Jaime keeps his nose to the grindstone. Citizen Rex sequel, anyone?

Steven Weissman & Jon Vermilyea compare notes on strap-fondling techniques. Hey, there's Zack Carlson partially visible over Steven's shoulder — a special shout-out to Zack for his good spirit and volunteerism this week. (Zack also made one of the most amazing Comic-Con purchases I've ever heard about: a 1964 Chevrolet Corvair.)

Young Romance is a real page-turner, as editor Michel Gagné demonstrates.

Eric and Tom Spurgeon yak it up while D&Q's Tom Devlin ponders the unspeakable and Janice looks on.

Scott McCloud looks happy to have found some (mc)clouds in Johnny Gruelle's Mr. Twee Deedle (shut up, I'm tired).

Comic-Con Sundays are always too hectic for much picture-taking:

Old friend Roger Langridge popped by and sketched the Great Gonzo for Clem Reynolds, to papa Eric's delight.

Gilbert & Jaime discuss their escape.

And it's over!!! Our leftovers (and some stuff making its way to Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery) donned their finest fetish wear for the trip back to Seattle.

Thanks to the thousands of folks who visited our booth this year (especially those who spent their money in it), Comic-Con staff & volunteers, our wonderful artists, our kick-ass staff, all of our pals & colleagues... another humdinger of a year! I'm off for a week of R&R so I'll catch you all next week.

Fantagraphics at San Diego Comic-Con 2012: This booth's a-rockin'�

mike

...so come on a-knockin'!

Our Comic-Con International booth (#1718), all set up and ready for the doors to open. Bursting with books! We had a brisk Preview Night and stuff is already disappearing into the hands of eager fans. The new Love and Rockets t-shirts are going like hotcakes, to the surprise of no one!

Mario & Gilbert Hernandez hung out for our first-ever Preview Night signing and much fun is being had by all.

Keeping it short for now but there's lots more to come! Keep it tuned here and especially to our Twitter feed!

Fantagraphics at San Diego Comic-Con 2012: Preview Night!

janice

Hello from San Diego! As you can see in the blurry camera-phone-pic of Marketing Mix Master Mike Baehr above, we're getting Booth #1718 all ready for you! Hopefully you're following us on Twitter to get all the up-to-the-minute (seconds, really!) photos and news from the scene!

Tonight is Preview Night, and we're so excited to offer our first-ever Preview Night signings! As we mentioned on the FLOG, we've met a lot of customers who were only able to score passes for tonight to the con, so this is a little bonus from us to you, in celebration of the Love & Rockets 30th Anniversary Celebration!

Wednesday, July 11th:
7:00 - 8:00 PM Gilbert + Natalia Hernandez / Mario Hernandez

So, come see us at Booth #1718! Uh, it's gonna look a lot better than it does in that picture above...

Celebrating 30 Years of Love and Rockets at Comic-Con International

TheJenVaughn

30 Years. Three. Zero. In 1982, Gilbert, Jaime and Mario Hernandez published their first comic with Fantagraphics, which debuted at that year’s Comic-Con International in San Diego. In 2012, Fantagraphics Books announces the best anniversary present you can give the comics making trio: a year of celebrating Love and Rockets.

Jaime Hernandez remembers his first Comic-Con well. “The first time we spotted Love and Rockets some guy was already selling it for half-off.” Fellow professionals took an interest in the Hernandez brothers’ creation. “Chris Claremont walked up and joked that all the women on the cover should have ‘X’es on their belts,” Jaime joked. “I brought along some pages from the next issue and Frank Miller looked through them ‘studying’ my inking style.”

Thirty years later, fans will line up around that same block to get books signed at this year’s Comic-Con International, where Gilbert and Jaime Hernandez are invited special guests of the show and will even have a special section devoted to their work in the official convention souvenir program. Look for a major Love and Rockets-related announcement to be made at the show as well during the Love and Rockets panel on Saturday (see below for more details).

Fantagraphics and the Hernandez Brothers will debut three new books at the show. First up is the newest work by Gilbert and Jaime, Love and Rockets: New Stories #5 , featuring Gilbert’s return to Palomar and Jaime’s much-anticipated follow up to “The Love Bunglers” (from #4). Also debuting is God and Science: Return of the Ti-Girls, Jaime’s superhero epic combining material from Love and Rockets: New Stories #1 and #2 plus 30 all-new pages by Jaime. Meanwhile, don’t forget the children: Comic-Con also hails the release of Gilbert's children-focused graphic novel, The Adventures of Venus.

Fantagraphics is also partnering with Graphitti Designs for the 30th Anniversary and debuting six new Love and Rockets t-shirts at the show. SDCC attendees might want to pack one shirt less for the show, instead picking up one of these colorful designs featuring their favorite Hernandez characters for a great price of $18.99 each, available at the Fantagraphics booth.

Panel by panel and page by page, Fantagraphics is proud to have a thirty year relationship with such prolific creators as the Hernandez Brothers and welcomes all SDCC attendees to come to the Fantagraphics Booth (1718-1722) and visit these special guests, who will be signing daily. Also, don’t miss the 30th Anniversary of Love and Rockets panel on Saturday at the con, from 1:30pm – 3:00pm in Room 24ABC. Fantagraphics publisher Gary Groth will moderate a lively trip down memory lane with all three Hernandez Brothers and make a major announcement regarding the future of the series.

For more information as it is released, check the Fantagraphics blog for announcements. Thirty years of the Love and Rockets is at your fingertips!

This Week in Fantagraphics Events: 4/30-5/7

janice

It's a quiet week for events. I think most of us are either recovering from Stumptown and MoCCA, or gearing up for TCAF!

Friday, May 4th

• Toronto, ON: It's the opening night of Gabriella Giandelli: A Toronto Retrospective at the Italian Cultural Institute! Over 80 original drawings will be on display. More information about this wonderful (and free!) event is coming to the FLOG later this week.

Saturday, May 5th

• San Francisco, CA: Mario Hernandez will be a special guest at the 2012 Latino Comics Expo! He'll be signing copies of Love & Rockets from 1:00 to 2:30 PM. (more info)

• Toronto, ON: Join Fantagraphics at the 2012 Toronto Comic Arts Festival, with special guests Jason, Gabriella Giandelli, and Olivier Schrauwen! (more info)

Sunday, May 6th

• San Francisco, CA: Mario Hernandez will continue to be at the 2012 Latino Comics Expo! From 1:15-2:00 PM, he'll be doing a very special reading from Love & Rockets, followed by a Q&A! (more info)

• Toronto, ON: It's your last day to visit Fantagraphics at the 2012 Toronto Comic Arts Festival, with special guests Jason, Gabriella Giandelli, and Olivier Schrauwen! (more info)

Monday, May 7th

• Toronto, ON: The Italian Cultural Institute hosts another wonderful event with Gabriella Giandelli and music composer Marco Cappelli. The two will engage in a conversation on their artist careers and the influence that music has on comics. More details are coming soon to the FLOG!

This Week in Fantagraphics Events: 3/26-4/2

janice

Monday, March 26th

• Columbus, OH: Paul Hornschemeier will be leading an adult writing workshop for the graphic novel at Thurber House. (more info)

• Tokyo, Japan: The group show Three Sides Chicago: Squares, Squirrels & Dots opens at the at Shibuya Parco B1F LIBRO, featuring the work of Archer Prewitt, alongside Sam Prekop and Eric Claridge. (more info)

• Northridge, CA: Gilbert, Jaime, & Mario Hernandez will be speaking to Professor Charles Hatfield's class on Monday, March 26th at the California State University, Northridge (in greater Los Angeles). This event is open to the public, not just students! (more info)

Tuesday, March 27th

• New York, NY: Get ready for another editior of The Crime Stoppers Club with Michael Kupperman and co-host Kate Beaton! This month, they welcome Dave Hill, Victor Vardnado, Domitille Collardey, Jim Torok, and Corey Pandolphfor a night of laughter and imagery. This free event starts at 7:00 PM at Luca Lounge. (more info)

Wednesday, March 28th

• Columbus, OH: Paul Hornschemeier will be leading a young writer's studio at Thurber House. (more info)

• San Francisco, CA: Daniel Clowes will be interviewed by Rene de Guzman, Senior Curator of Art at the Oakland Museum of California, at the Kadist Art Foundation! More details coming to the FLOG very soon!

Thursday, March 29th

• New York, NY: Kim Deitch will be on a panel discussing comic and graphic arts biographies for the 4th Annual Leon Levy Conference! (more info)

Friday, March 30th

• Seattle, WA: Fantagraphics kicks off the weekend at the 10th Annual Emerald City Comicon! Meet Ellen Forney at 5:00 PM and Jim Woodring at 7:00 PM. Both artists will be part of our 6:00 PM panel "Northwest Noir: Seattle's Legacy of Counterculture Comix," with Real Comet Press publisher Cathy Hillenbrand, and Fantagraphics Books associate publisher Eric Reynolds. Moderated by Larry Reid of Fantagraphics Bookstore. (more info)

Saturday, March 31st

• Seattle, WA: Fantagraphics continues our appearance at the Emerald City Comicon at Booth 704 with special guests: Bill Schelly (editor of The Art of Joe Kubert) at 11:00 AM, Michel Gagné (editor of Young Romance: The Best of Simon & Kirby's Romance Comics) at 2:00 PM, and Jim Woodring at 5:00 PM. (more info)

• Seattle, WA: Camille Rose Garcia will be signing her latest at Roq La Rue in the Belltown neighborhood. (more info)

• Seattle, WA: Join Fantagraphics for the Emerald City Comicon Pinball Party at Shorty's, with your host Jim Woodring! Free fun for all comix and pinball enthusiasts over the age of 21! (more info)

• Columbus, OH: Otterbein professor of philosophy Andrew Mills will speak about Paul Hornschemeier's work in a philosophical context at this free event at the Columbus Museum of Art. (more info)

Sunday, April 1st

• Seattle, WA: It's your last day to visit us at the Emerald City Comicon! Stop by our booth between 2:00 to 3:30 PM to meet Jacques Boyreau, editor of Portable Grindhouse: The Lost Art of the VHS Box! (more info)

Mario Hernandez at the Latino Comics Expo!

janice

Come say hola to Mario Hernandez, who will be a special guest at the 2012 Latino Comics Expo in San Francisco!

On Saturday, May 5th, Mario will be signing copies of Love & Rockets from 1:00 to 2:30 PM. And on Sunday, May 6th, from 1:15-2:00 PM, he'll be doing a very special reading from Love & Rockets, followed by a Q&A! Mario? Theatrical? Yes, it's true!

Mario (yes, Mario!), Gilbert, & Jaime at the San Diego Comic-Con 2011

The Cartoon Art Museum [ 655 Mission Street between New Montgomery and Third Streets ] is around the corner from the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art and a dozen other museums which comprise the Yerba Buena Gardens cultural district of San Francisco’s South of Market area.

This Week in Fantagraphics Events: 3/19-3/26

janice

Hoo boy, it's a busy week for Fantagraphics fans!

Tuesday, March 20th

• DeKalb, IL: The Northern Illinois Unversity Art Museum debuts the exhibition “Graphic Novel Realism: Backstage at the Comics,” curated by our own Eisner Award-winning graphic novelist, artist and editor, Paul Karasik, and featuring work from Joyce Farmer, Jaime Hernandez, Mark Newgarden and Megan Montague Cash, as well as Jason Lutes, Seth and James Sturm. (more info)

Friday, March 23rd

• Chicago, IL: Zak Sally will be at Quimby's signing copies of Sammy the Mouse Vol. 1, a self-published, self-printed collection of the first three issues of his Eisner-nominated Ignatz series. (more info)

Saturday, March 24th

• Seattle, WA: The idiosyncratic work of cartoonist Lynda Barry, a Seattle native, is the subject of a new book by Portland author Susan E. Kirtley. Lynda Barry: Girlhood Through the Looking Glass is the first comprehensive critique of this influential American artist. Kirtley will discuss her book with Real Comet Press publisher Cathy Hillenbrand, who published Barry’s first four books, at 6:00 PM at Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery. An informal reception and book signing will follow the discussion. (more info)

• Chicago, IL: Join Zak Sally, along with John Porcellino and Dale Flattum, at Johalla Projects for the opening reception of "Physical Evidence," a show of their comics, printmaking, zines and more. (more info)

• New York City, NY: Comic New York: A Symposium kicks off at Columbia University, with a wealth of panels, including one with our own Bill Griffith! Stay tuned to the FLOG for more information about this event, coming soon!

Sunday, March 25th

• New York City, NY: Comic New York: A Symposium wraps up at Columbia University, and among the busy schedule of panels today is one with both Al Jaffee and Miss Lasko-Gross! Stay tuned to the FLOG for more information about this event, coming soon!

Monday, March 26th