Guess what, L.A. -- horror won't be ending on Halloween night. The terror actually begins on Friday, November 2nd as Johnny Ryan unleashes the beast that is Prison Pit 4! 

Be one of the first to wrap your slorge around the highly-anticipated latest volume in Ryan's sci-fi-prison-planet-gore-fest-slugfest-a-thon serial at Meltdown Comics.

And yes, it's true: Cannibal Fuckface goes to Hollywood.

Ajax Wood IS Cannibal Fuckface // Photo credit: the amazing Jonas Seaman

We're sealing up his crate, plastering those "Caution: Dangerous Animal" stickers on the outside, and sending Cannibal Fuckface to the signing. God forgive us. Chances are, you've heard legends of his performances in Seattle, Portland, and, most certainly, San Diego. Trust us, you do not want to miss what's sure to be another incredible (and dangerous) performance.

Meltdown Comics is located at 7522 Sunset Blvd. Wear a raincoat, and thank us later.

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!

In addition to a free concert by Berlin-based recording artist Molly Nilsson, visitors to the opening of "The Horror: Selections from the EC Comics Library" next Saturday, October 13 at Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery will be treated to a short slide presentation by series assistant editor J. Michael Catron. Expect some wondrous EC insights from this veteran comics professsional. The splash page above is from our Jack Davis EC sampler Tales From the Crypt, which will be distributed free at the event while supplies last.

Check out Chris Ware's monumental new work Building Stories, now available at Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery. And don't miss his joint appearance with Northwest legend Charles Burns on Monday, October 22 at 7:30 PM at Town Hall in Seattle. Be sure to "Like" Fantagraphics Bookstore on Facebook to keep up on all the comix action.

Limber up those drawin' fingers, Chicago! October is the time of The Big Draw, a festival of informal drawing programs, all across the city, all dang month long!

And on Thursday, October 18th, the beloved cartoonist and comics scholar Ivan Brunetti will lead a FREE creative salon! Join Ivan from 4:00 to 6:00 PM as he discusses his work, both in and out of the classroom, followed by a Q&A, at EnergyBBDO offices [ 410 North Michigan Avenue ].  

Stop by after work, grab some snacks and a beer, and listen to and learn from this renowned Chicago artist. An opportunity not to be missed!

There really is a Great Pumpkin! He's bringing Charles Burns, Gabrielle Bell, and Tom Kaczynski to Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery on Saturday, October 20 at 6:00 PM. This event coincides with Elysian Brewing's Great Pumpkin Brew Festival - (just up the street at their Georgetown bottling facility) - featuring dozens of seasonal pumpkin beers from regional boutique breweries. The bookstore will be serving complimentary samples of Blight Pumpkin Ale from Elysian's Black Hole-inspired 12 Beers of the Apocalypse series. Our EC Comics Library exhibition, "The Horror," provides the perfect atmosphere for this festive pre-Halloween function. Don't miss it!

What happens when you take two guys from Chicago and shove 'em in front of an audience? Well, find out for yourself on Tuesday, October 9th when Daniel Clowes and Dave Eggers take the stage at Litquake, San Francisco's annual literary festival!

Between Dan and Dave, they have earned the titles of publisher, editor, journalist, cartoonist, philanthropist, educator, illustrator, author, screenwriter, and graphic novelist, as well as former resident of Chicago, The Windy City. The two will discuss the vagaries of the creative process, their favorite comics, books, and movies, and anything else that might come up.

The event starts at 8:00 PM, and will be held at Z Space [ 450 Florida Street ]. Tickets are $15 and are available online here.  Come find out which Chicago hot dog is better: Vienna Beef or Red Hot Chicago. 

The Last Vispo comes first this month at the Pacific Northwest College of Art in Portland, OR!

Pages from The Last Vispo Anthology: Visual Poetry 1998-2008 will be on display at Gallery 214 on campus starting Thursday, October 4th through Friday, October 26th.

And then on Tuesday, October 9th at 6:30 PM, Dr. David Seaman will deliver the lecture "From the First Vis Po Anthology (BC—Before Christ) to the Last Vis Po Anthology (AA—After Apple)".

This discussion is aimed at situating visual poetry in a tradition that counters the conventional oral tradition of literature. From Meleager's Greek Anthology to this current exhibition, poets in opposition to the mainstream have chosen to express themselves in ways that cannot be rendered simply with the spoken word. This lecture/discussion will illustrate past examples and evoke the present poetic reality, with insider insights into the visual poetry scene in the U.S., France, Germany and Italy.
 
Also, on Tuesday, October 23rd, our editors Nico Vassilakis & Crag Hill will be joined by contributor James Yeary to perform a collage of excerpts of essays from the anthology at 6:30 PM!

Gallery 214 is located on the campus of the Pacific Northwest College of Art (PNCA) at 1241 NW Johnson in Portland OR.

The flagship Nordstrom store in downtown Seattle is currently hosting The Seattle Music Project, an exhibit of photos and ephemera commemorating five decades of Northwest music, curated by renowned local photographer Lance Mercer!

The exhibit is on display in the Mens Shop, downstairs...

... next to the rounder of plaid flannel shirts...

...and by the escalators, you'll find this photo by Cam Garrett of the legendary Fallout Skate Shop! Can you spot the employees of the Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery? Yup, that's our very own Larry Reid and Russ Batagglia above, circa 1985! Fashion icons! 

[ ETA: Eric informs me, "there's also two ex longtime-employees in that pic: Tom Price and Tim Hayes!" Nice! ]

"We love the grunge music..."

The Seattle Music Project exhibit will be on display at the downtown Seattle Nordstrom location [ 500 Pine Street ] through this Sunday, September 30th. 

For more excellent photos and stories of the grunge-era, get yr hands on a copy of Taking Punk to the Masses: From Nowhere to Nevermind! And stop by the Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery [ 1201 S. Vale Street ] to say hi to Larry and Russ!

Fantagraphics Bookstore Presents Contemporary Cartoonists Charles Burns, Chris Ware, Gabrielle Bell, Tom Kaczynski, and more! (Really.)

Fantagraphics Bookstore is pleased to present two of America’s most celebrated cartoonists, Charles Burns and Chris Ware, together with emerging artists Gabrielle Bell and Tom Kaczynski on October 20 – 22.  Burns, Bell and Kaczynski appear on Saturday, October 20 at Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery from 6:00 to 8:00 PM, followed by Burns and Ware at Town Hall on Monday, October 22 at 7:30 PM.

Seattle native Charles Burns will appear at Fantagraphics Bookstore to sign his new book, The Hive, the much-anticipated follow-up to 2010’s sensational dreamscape, X’ed Out. Burns’ gripping graphic novel, Black Hole, is set in Seattle’s Ravenna neighborhood and was serialized by Fantagraphics Books. It is widely regarded as one of the masterpieces of the alternative comix movement. Black Hole inspired Seattle-based Elysian Brewing Company’s monthly "12 Beers of the Apocalypse" series — the latest being "Blight Pumpkin Ale." This event coincides with Elysian’s popular Great Pumpkin Brew Festival at their nearby Georgetown bottling plant, featuring dozens of seasonal pumpkin beers from regional boutique breweries. (Burns will attend the tapping party for the new "Omen" flavor of the "12 Beers of the Apocalypse" at the Elysian Brewing Company’s Capitol Hill location on Sunday, October 21 from noon to 3:00 PM.)

Burns will be joined at the bookstore on Saturday, October 20 by talented young artist Gabrielle Bell presenting her new work The Voyeurs, published on cartoonist Tom Kaczynski’s Uncivilized Books imprint. Kaczynski will also be present with a preview of his dystopian graphic novel Beta Testing the Apocalypse, coming soon from Fantagraphics Books. These two emerging artists will also have an array of small press publications and prints available.

On Monday, October 22 Fantagraphics Bookstore is pleased to co-present "Building Comix with Charles Burns and Chris Ware" at Town Hall. Based in Chicago, Ware is among the most influential cartoonists of his generation. His graphic novel Jimmy Corrigan, the Smartest Kid on Earth was serialized by Fantagraphics Books in Acme Novelty Library and brought Ware international acclaim. His complex design sensibilities set new standards for the medium. His latest book is the monumental box set Building Stories, containing 14 diverse works. Together, they demonstrate the artist’s affinity for existential narratives driven by architecture in meticulous, multi-dimensional compositions. Charles Burns and Chris Ware promise to provide an entertaining and enlightening evening. The modest $5.00 admission fee can be redeemed on the purchase of any book at the signing following the presentation. (Due to a scheduling conflict, a previously announced appearance by book designer Chip Kidd had to be cancelled.)

Listing information:

Charles Burns, Gabrielle Bell, and Tom Kaczynski book signing and reception.
Saturday, October 20, 6:00 to 8:00 PM.
Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery.
1201 S. Vale Street. Seattle.
206.658.0110
www.fantagraphics.com

12 Beers of the Apocalypse tapping party with Charles Burns.
Sunday, October 21, noon to 3:00 PM.
Elysian Brewing Company.
1221 E. Pike Street. Seattle.
206.860.1920
www.elysianbrewing.com

Building Comix with Charles Burns and Chris Ware presentation and book signing.
Monday, October 22, 7:30 PM.
Town Hall.
1119 8th Avenue. Seattle.
206.652.4255
www.townhallseattle.org