City Limits Gazette # 8080642 (July 1991)

Jerry Riddle on comix definitions, Bil Keane bibliography on a WLN printout, bad cover versions of Hard Day's Night, Hello Goodbye.

City Limits Gazette # 5 zillion and six (May 1991)

Logo by Mark Campos. Dennis Pimple on defining underground comix, Lynn Hansen reviews, Wayno on minicomix, bad cover versions of Day in the Life, Day Tripper, Dear Prudence, Dig It, Do You Want to Know a Secret, Don't Bother Me, Don't Let me Down.

The Minicomic Experience

For more than a month I've been scanning and posting a ton of work in the minicomic format. All of my solo minis, so far as I know, have been included. Almost all the jams have been in here as well.

Finding all the Raining Quills artists will continue to be a challenge, but I have managed to post two issues here. Hank Arakelian, if you're reading this, drop me a line.

One artist I have yet to track down is Marc Myers, one of the more gifted Newave artists. In 1986 he visited Pullman and stayed with us for a few days. During that time Marc and I produced a mini called Little Snowjob. I would love to post it here, but I need his permission. Marc, wherever you are, please contact me.

There are many other minis where I contributed a page or two, or an essay. Brad Foster's Stuff series was one of my favorite places to be a guest. And I haven't even mentioned Outside In yet (Illustration above is Morty and I, from Outside In #2, in 1983). But all will be revealed over time.

I like the mini format, and especially used it in Century 21 as age shortened my attention span and energy level. Right now I'm working on a full length story, but find myself not really driven. So I might return to minis as the venue of choice.

Sasquatch Comix #1

My first solo minicomic, if I'm not mistaken, first published early 1983 in Olympia, Washington, 67 copies on green cardstock. There is no edition statement on the comic itself. The little 14 cm. minicomic form was not a medium I had considered until I was exposed to Clay Geerdes' Newave network in late 1981.

Some qualification here is needed. As a Newaver myself, the word "minicomic" has always meant the little guys, usually measuring 14 x 11 cm. Over the years I've noticed the term has been used to describe all photocopied, small press, independent type comix regardless of their dimensions. That's fine. But in this blog, I still speak in Newave. Perhaps a comix anthropologist should track us down and compile a Newave glossary.

Yes, I am a Newaver. I'll always be a Newaver, no matter how outdated the term becomes. I guess I'm now an Old Newaver, which sounds like a paradox. But as one who embraces paradox as a life philosophy, that suits me just fine.

So. Anyway. Back to the collector stuff. The 2nd ed., not on cardstock but still green, was published March 1983 in Olympia, 74 copies.

The 3rd. ed., physically like the 2nd., was published by Robert Stump in Hopewell, Virginia, in October 1983.

All five issues of Sasquatch Comix were collected under one cover and presented in digest form during my 1994 print-on-demand period.

In June 2005 five copies (4 green, 1 red) of the digest form were published as the 1st Danger Room Reprint Ed.

Sasquatch Comix #1 was posted on OlyBlog, Feb. 2006.

Somehow I have a nagging feeling I'm leaving out some other appearances of this comix, but if I did I'll update this post once it comes back to me.

This series came about from my desire to celebrate regional stories about this great corner of the world, where I was born and raised. Although the scientific discussion concerning our legendary creature is interesting, I was really more involved in what makes a good story.

Shortly after I published the 2nd ed., I moved across the state to Pullman, home of Washington State University. There I met Grover Krantz (speaking of anthrolopogists) , one of America's greatest Sasquatch scholars. Grover and this comic recently became the subject of my column, Bezango, which I occasionally write for the biweekly Olympia Power & Light. I've included a scan of the essay, it's from OP&L issue 15 (June 16-29, 2010).