Wonder Twin powers, ACTIVATE! And yes, they're naked. Unfortunately, I can't find the flickr account I grabbed this from -- if you see this, let me know so I can link to your excellent pool of naked cyclist photos. 

I got this email from Eric Reynolds: "I love these pics so much, they're beautiful and heart-breaking at the same time. I sent these to Jeremy [Eaton] and he said, 'I could write a novel based on that photo of Captain America and the Hulk sitting in their respective apartments.'"

Everyone seems so lonely. So human. I could stare at the image above for days. Even the way Wonder Woman is lying in the middle of this house of men, possibly masturbating, is accidental art on the grandest scale. 

Thom Zahler was a lucky kid. 

Tyler Stout taught me how to silkscreen when we were in school together. I shoulda paid more attention to what he was doing instead of polishing up my latest  "design a menu for a fictional restaurant" assignment or whatever. Now he's doing some of the most mind-blowing poster work around. If you like the Flight of the Conchords or maybe just his crazy great illustrations for their latest album and tour, you may want to pick up this very limited edition glow-in-the-dark x-ray poster. DETAILS HERE.

And check out his film posters while you're there.

Dan Goodsell uploaded an old Howard Johnson's Kids Menu comic book to his Flickr page. If you've sat through 2001 you know that HoJo's really had their hand on the pulse of childhood fun with that one.

I got my sub copy of the new McSweeney's (#27) in the mail this week and it's a beautiful three-volume paperback boxed set. One of the books is a reproduction of a recent Art Spiegelman Moleskine sketchbook. I'm surprised I've heard nothing about this in advance... I've barely cracked the issue yet but am eager to dive in...

I couldn't help but think of Ghost World while reading this rather melancholy news bit out of England. 

I'm told this appears in a new Marvel comic called 1985, presumably set in more innocent times. Since I don't really know much more about this, I don't even have a comment except that I can't help but "hear" the dialogue in the voices of Comic Book Guy and Milhouse from the Simpsons. "Why, that is a rare photo of Sean Connery signed by Roger Moore."

Apologies to Kirby and Fairey. 

I picked this old dime novel up at a second-hand store years ago for the comics connection and excellent cover and back cover:

At the time, I didn't even look inside, but the book includes about two dozen strips near the end that help solve the book's mystery:

The book is written by Jack Iams, whom I know nothing about, and is from Dell Publishing in 1948. Iams acknowledges a few comics-related folk in his 'Author's Notes':

'Acknowledgments' sounds unduly pompous in front of a murder mystery, but I would like to give credit for several assists, as follows:

First and foremost, to Bill O'Brian, whose cartoons have enlivened any number of magazines and newspapers, for the series of comic strips that wind up the book;

To Roy Crane, creator of 'Buz Sawyer,' for his help in the basic concoction of the story;

To Ward Greene, of King Features Syndicate, slave-driver-in-waiting to the aforementioned Roy Crane, for checking the manuscript and technical assistance" 

I'm not familiar with O'Brian or Greene, either, so if anyone has any info on them, post a comment! O'Brian's not a bad cartoonist, I can see a bit of a Gene Deitch influence in the Harold Gray-meets-Chester Gould storyline: 

UPDATE, courtesy my pal Paul Slade: Turns out Jack Iams was a pretty prominent journalist on both sides of the Atlantic, wrote for Newsweek, the New York Herald Tribune, the London Daily Mail and was, for his work as a novelist, once compared to Evelyn Waugh (!). He produced not only Death Draws the Line, but also The Countess to Boot (1941), Prematurely Gay (1948) and (my favourite) Do Not Murder Before Christmas (1949). You'll find more details of his life and work here and here. 

Thanks, Paul! Paul asked if I would post an example of Iams' prose, so here's a scan of page 1: