The funding drive for Jim Woodring's Giant Steel Dip Pen project via United States Artists ends tomorrow and there's still a ways to go to meet the goal. If you have the cash to spare and you believe in supporting bona fide geniuses and helping make the world more interesting and good, please help out! You can get original Jim artwork as a pledge gift for Pete's sake.

Congratulations to T. Edward Bak for reaching his Kickstarter fundraising goal for his research trip to Alaska for his ongoing Mome serial and graphic novel in progress Wild Man. You can still donate through the end of the month and get yourself nifty pledge gifts like prints and original art, and maybe enable TEB to get some extra-nice expedition gear or something.

Once again we're teaming up with Things from Another World to participate in their second annual Autograph Card/Auction event to benefit the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund at Comic-Con International in San Diego. Fantagraphics artists will be contributing original sketches to the benefit auction, and each sketch is printed up as a free limited-edition autograph card that will be given away at our booth and at the TFAW booth. Our first participating artist to be announced is Peter Bagge — stay tuned for future announcements!

We've reported on T. Edward Bak's previous efforts to raise funds for his Alaska research expedition for his graphic novel Wild Man, currently serialized in Mome; he's now set up an account with Kickstarter to further assist with the project. Check out the video and the awesome pledge gifts and pledge pledge pledge!

Residents of California will soon be able to have a beagle doing a happy dance on their bumpers. The State of California, United Media, the Charles M. Schulz Museum and the California Association of Museums have teamed up to create this Snoopy license plate, with proceeds going toward supporting California museums. You can get more info, and California drivers can pre-register, at snoopyplate.com.

I made brief mention of this in yesterday's "Things to see" but it deserves better notice than that. Congratulations to Mome contributor T. Edward Bak on being awarded a residency in Alaska (our second artist headed up there this year, hot on the heels of Jim Woodring)! He needs your help in covering his expenses and is selling original pages (I've seen them and they're beautiful) to raise funds. Here's his plea in his own words:

"So, last week, I was awarded this artist residency in Talkeetna, Alaska, through Seattle's La Familia gallery. I'm planning on being up there through the month of July, and am currently raising funds through the sale of original drawings from the work to help cover supplies, travel expenses, and a field drawing expedition into the Bering Sea and the Aleutian Islands (Dutch Harbor, specifically). I have Paypal set up and details listed on my blog http://antizerogravity.blogspot.com. My deadline for raising $ is July 1. Thanks for your support!"

Two of Portland's most venerable comics-related institutions need your help:

First, the Independent Publishing Resource Center is having a Spring Membership Drive. They have various levels of membership — the Zine of the Month program sounds pretty awesome. Our pals at Sparkplug have posted an eloquent plea from IPRC member and Mome artist T. Edward Bak — please go check it out and then sign on up!

Also, Jason Levian of the paradisical Floating World Comics is raising funds via Kickstarter for printing costs of the next issue of Diamond Comics, the awesome broadsheet comics anthology he publishes and distributes for free. Find out a whole lot more here, and pledge away!