Mini-Comics Day in McCleary, pt. 6

Although he unfortunately no longer resides in Washington State, our old pal Bruce Chrislip in McCleary's sister-city of goetta-rich Cincinnati (Henry McCleary was from Ohio, so it isn't so far fetched. Plus, I have actually met and shook hands with the mayors of both cities. Who else can say that?) participated in McCleary Mini-Comics Day from afar! We love you Bruce!

Mini-Comics Day in McCleary, Pt. 1

Yesterday I hosted the McCleary site for National Mini-Comics Day at our local Community Center. During the first hour, from 9-10, I was totally alone, listening to whatever creature it was that was living in the wall or ceiling of the building. Knowing my time might be crunched as the day went on, I used the opportunity to put together my minicomic for the day.

There should be a name for those strands of paper that are a byproduct of trimming newly printed minicomix. When I mentioned this later, I think Jim Gill suggested "mippitts."

So, this is is one the fastest minicomix I have ever produced, exactly 44 minutes from conception to the finished 10 copies. It is untitled.

The greeting table, including promo material for the Olympia Comics Festival, to take place June 2!

The first contingent arrived at about 10 from Seattle! Paul Tumey and his son Reid, Frank Young, and Jim Gill. I was thrilled to finally meet all of them in person and grateful they made the long trek to the hills for this.

All three of the cartoonists above have known each for a long time since they first met in their native Southeast U.S. I loved the way they fit together when they talked. It was like listening to well practiced tag-team comedy with a real mutual respect and affection.

Paul Tumey and I first corresponded back in 1990. Paul can be counted among one of the more thoughtful cartoonists I've known, like Joe Zabel, Scott McCloud, Hank Arakelian, and several others. He has several websites, my favorite being Screwball Comics.

Frank Young is a very funny fellow with a thousand voices. Also, he is a former editor of the Comics Journal and is juggling enough blogs to qualify him as a circus act.

Jim Gill and I have been corresponding since 1996. He was the first person to ever post a Morty Comix on Internet. Plus, and I cannot say this about anyone else I know, he actually knew someone who was eaten by an alligator!

Frank and Jim have a website called The Jim and Frank Podcast, and if you think radio comedy is dead, you need to visit this site first.

As the day progressed more people trickled in. I think we had a grand total of a dozen people in the six hours of the event. In the background of this shot you can see Bothell, Washington cartoonist/filmmaker Ron Austin and his partner Louise setting up as part of a project they have in mind. I met Ron last week at Evergroove's 40th Anniversary.

Bryan and Amy collate and staple a minicomic that was really wonderful. Part of the whole idea of this event was to attract non-comix artists to the art form, and these two created a very nice work entitled This is the Story of Ludwig. My brother's modesty prevents him from giving me permission to post it, but maybe one day he'll relent. I'm serious, I think these two put together an elegant little 8-pager. At least WSU will get it, so it won't be entirely lost.

Hey, if I can sing "I haven't seen my underpants in weeks" in public, which I did in Elma after this event (as Jim Gill can bear witness), certainly this mini can be shared with the world. But, I'll respect Bryan's wishes.

Figuring out the logistics of printing back-to-back pages on my copier can be maddening. I loved how Frank lapsed into one of his comic radio voices while figuring it out.

Jim posted a nice short bit on YouTube where I talk to three brothers about how to construct a minicomic.

On some levels this event was a success since we had a lot of energy from creative artists who also happened to be nice people. Sarah popped in (and traded stories with Jim about being former residents of  Port Townsend), but apart from the two of us, no one else from McCleary showed up. And I have to admit I was disappointed none of the locals bothered to come. But, this is far from the first time I have felt like a literal voice in the wilderness out here, so I can roll with it.

There was some talk as we wrapped up that maybe next year in the 2013 Third Annual National Mini-Comics Day, a happening might take place in Seattle and I could go up there. I would love that! But at least in 2012 the tiny hamlet of McCleary can now officially take a place in the history of Mini-Comics Day!

I'll be posting the comic art results of our creative efforts in the next chapters. Plus, there will be a surprise participant from McCleary's sister city in Ohio-- Cincinnati, home of goetta!

Bruce Chrislip's SPACE Report

My old friend Bruce Chrislip filed his report on the 2011 SPACE experience in today's Midnight Fiction website.

In what must sound like an oxymoron, that was a short long weekend for me. It all went by so fast and furious. At least Bruce's report proves it wasn't a wild dream.

Also, I want to start a magazine for those us non-Buckeyes who are overly fascinated by a certain Cincinnati sausage and call it Goetta Life.

Above: Bruce and Joan, my wonderful hosts, presiding over the Cincinnati version of the Bottled City of Kandor. Shortly after this photo was taken I was introduced to Cincinnati Mayor Mark Mallory-- and I had only been in town for an hour or so!

SPACE 2011 Report, pt. 16

The rest of Sunday was a long goodbye with some winding down.

Above: Hillary with her Dad, Buzz Buzzizyk. This is my favorite photo taken at SPACE. By this time they were both so tired it was hard to tell who was guiding who. We'll meet again, hopefully here in the Pacific Northwest.


Above: Josh Blair was able to give me an almost encyclopedic description of goetta. I was very impressed! Obviously he lives in the Cincinnati area.

Above: I watched Colin Upton's table for awhile, and while he was gone I pretended to be him and told everyone how that as a resident of British Columbia I was delighted to have Randy and Evi Quaid as neighbors! Actually, I think Colin was sort of weirded out about how many times I brought up the Quaids, since I'm very fascinated by their case. OK, I'm lying, I didn't pretend to be Colin, but I did watch his table for a brief time and got to meet the guy at the next table, Andrew Fraser. The production values on Andrew's books really knocked me out. The face of small press has really changed. Still, there is something about black and white photocopy that remains magic for me.

Above: I believe this is the first time in my long comic art life that I have had table space to sell comix.


Above: Colin came back with hot tea (hey, he really is Canadian!), and promptly scalded his hand for life after I bumped into him. Here he is recovering while talking with Michelangelo Cicerone. I had the pleasure of having dinner with Michelangelo and his wife Ryan the previous evening.

SPACE 2011 Report, pt. 1

Bruce and Joan Chrislip picked me up at Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport before the sun rose on Friday. Without wasting any time, we headed for downtown Cincinnati to fuel our bodies for the day of touring ahead.

And Bruce ordered something called "goetta."


Here you can see this concoction in the center of the plate. It's a sausage patty with oats and onion mixed in. That last ingredient prevented me from trying it, but it looked good.

What interested me about goetta (pronounced "getta") was how knowledge of this culinary delight was pretty limited to the Cincinnati area. Informal polling in Columbus revealed that this taste treat was an unknown to the rest of Ohio.


By the time breakfast was over the sun was rising and I got a good look at downtown Cincinnati. Somehow it felt like a much older version of Spokane.


Bruce gave us a tour of City Hall, a huge structure built before Washington became a state. Having worked there for a number of years, Bruce knew the place pretty well. Jerry Springer was once the Mayor of Cincinnati, and knowing I was walking in the very halls where he worked was oddly fun.



Among the things that impressed me about this place was the large display case of awards bestowed upon Cincinnati, especially the 2nd place plaque in the 1941 National Pedestrian Protection Contest. Also the Cincinnati in miniature display, which was gathering dust but did give me a sense of the layout of the city. Here we see Bruce and Joan next to the model, like benign gods hovering over their domain.

As we left City Hall, Bruce introduced me to Mayor Mallory, who asked me if I liked politics. As I replied I enjoyed presidential trivia my cartoonists eye could see the thought balloon above his head forming the woodscrew plus ball symbol.

But hey! I'm in Cincinnati for the first time in my life, and within 90 minutes I'm shaking hands with the Mayor. Is that neato or what?



We also visited the Union Terminal, an enormous example of art deco architecture now serving as a museum. One of the staff members proudly proclaimed the facility has the largest half-dome in the United States.


Bruce and Joan took me across the Ohio River into Kentucky where we walked through a riverside neighborhood where guys like Henry Clay used to hang out. First I walk in the footsteps of Jerry Springer, and now Henry Clay-- two showmen. Here's a nice shot of the Cincinnati skyline taken from Kentucky. The river was apparently subsiding from flood stage.

On the left you can the John A. Roebling Suspension Bridge, built in the 1860s.

Hobnobbing with mayors and haunting the trails of historical figures is OK, but the real thrill of the day was meeting Justin Green and Carol Tyler, two of Ohio's cartoon treasures. Justin was part of a small group underground cartoonists who created work that had a life-changing influence on my development as a comix artist. The fanboy within of 40 years ago kept trying to surface as I visited with Justin, but hopefully I didn't embarrass myself too much.


Bruce and I visited their studio/home and then went out for lunch. Pictured in this hazy shot are Justin, Carol, daughter Julia, and Bruce at a local cafe called, I think, Sugar and Spice. Prediction: Julia will be an artist to watch.


Bruce and I then spent the rest of the afternoon with David Chrislip. Bruce's brother was a subscriber to City Limits Gazette when I was editor, and at the time supplied me with some images of Bruce's early comic work when I interviewed him (that's what brothers are for). During this visit he produced a box of comix the four Chrislip brothers had drawn in the 1960s. They were the sort of homegrown superhero stories many of us created with ball point pen on typing paper or ledgers before the days of undergrounds and photocopiers as we taught ourselves how to draw comix. It was a fun trip back in time. Pictured: Denise, David, and Bruce.



Ohio has this restaurant chain called Bob Evans, or "Blob Evans" if you listen to Bruce. I remember these cafes from my last visit to Ohio in 1999. Bruce, Joan and I went to dinner at one and they adorned my burger with a flag! I brought the little flag home and now you can see it in this pop culture crammed display with Barney Rubble wearing a Starhead Comix pin in a Bonanza cup being serenaded by the Beatles with an alien and Santa looking on. I know, I know, it's a cliche, you've seen this a million times before, but I couldn't help it.


We wrapped up the day viewing some obscure animation and video, including a local television news bit originally aired in 1973 about a comic convention. One the interviewees included my host, Bruce!