For our hometown convention, Fantagraphics Books is showcasing our vibrant local comix scene at the 10th Annual Emerald City Comicon!
Visit us at Booth 704 from Friday, March 30th through Sunday, April 1st at the Washington State Convention Center. We're bringing a special collection of titles from seminal Seattle names like Peter Bagge, Megan Kelso, and Charles Burns. And joining us will be some of those brilliant talents from right here in the Northwest, from artists to editors! Special guests include:
Ellen Forney: Named "Best Local Cartoonist" last year by the Seattle Weekly! (top left / photo by Mike Urban)
Jim Woodring: Recipient of The Stranger Genius Award in Literature in 2010! (top right)
Bill Schelly: Comic book historian, and editor of our recent Joe Kubert collection, The Art of Joe Kubert. (bottom center)
Michel Gagné: Editor of Young Romance: The Best of Simon & Kirby's Romance Comics, our recent collection of romance comics from Joe Simon and Jack Kirby. (bottom right)
Jacques Boyreau: Editor and cultural historian of the book Portable Grindhouse: The Lost Art of the VHS Box, a celebration of some of the most louche, decadent, minimo-pervo artwork to ever grace a VHS box. (bottom left / photo by Jonas Seaman)
Friday, March 30th
5:00-6:00 PM Ellen Forney
7:00-8:00 PM Jim Woodring
Saturday, March 31st
11:00-1:00 PM Bill Schelly
2:00-4:00 PM Michel Gagné
Sunday, April 1st
2:00-3:30 PM Jacques Boyreau
On Friday, March 30th at 6:00 PM, Fantagraphics is proud to present the panel Northwest Noir: Seattle's Legacy of Counterculture Comix in room 3AB:
In the mid-seventies a trio of gifted cartoonists emerged from The Evergreen State College in Olympia: Seattle's Lynda Barry and Charles Burns, and Matt Groening from Portland. Their influence helped attract a new generation of cartoonists that fashioned a new comix movement. Among them; Jim Woodring, Joe Sacco, and Peter Bagge. Coupled with this new comix movement was the creation of prominent publisher Fantagraphics Books. The global popularity of the Grunge movement elevated alternative comix to unprecedented heights and firmly established the region as the center of this new form. By the dawn of the millennia, Seattle and Portland boasted no fewer than 6 alternative comix publishing houses. Learn more about the connection between the Northwest and "Alternative" comics in this lively panel Q&A. Panelist include cartoonists Jim Woodring and Ellen Forney, Real Comet Press publisher Cathy Hillenbrand, and Fantagraphics Books associate publisher Eric Reynolds. Moderated by Larry Reid of Fantagraphics Bookstore.
Booth 704 is located right in the frontline of the exhibitor floor, in the second row as you cross the Sky Bridge. Please note: this is a condensed version of the map. You can view the full map here.
Tickets for the Emerald City Comicon are available at the Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery in Georgetown.
The highlight of the evening will be a pinball competition with prizes galore, including the grand prize of a colorful Jim Woodring-designed back glass from the forthcoming Frank pinball machine (currently in development.) Other prizes include Jim Woodring hoodies and tee shirts from Americaware, signed copies of Woodring's graphic novels Weathercraft and Congress of the Animals (finalists in consecutive years for the Los Angeles Book Prize), coveted out-of-print issues of Jim and Frank comix, and other Woodring rarities.
In an effort to level the playing field -- so to speak -- pinball tournament contestants will be vying for the lowest score. That's right! Tank it without tilting; the worst games win the best prizes. It's harder than it sounds, but requires little in the way of actual pinball prowess.
Special guest artist Camille Rose Garcia will also appear following her signing down the street at Roq la Rue gallery. A signed copy of her wonderful Fantagraphics title, The Magic Bottle, will be awarded to the top -- (well, bottom) -- female contestant.
Shorty's is located at 2222 2nd Avenue in Seattle's lively Belltown neighborhood, just a few blocks northwest of the Washington State Convention Center, site of the Emerald City Comicon on March 30, 31 and April 1.
Visit the bookstore or Fantagraphics booth at the convention for more details on the Emerald City Pinball Party and other exciting events.