Modernman # 3 ; Maximum Traffic # 210

If you agree with the popular notion the 20th century ended on Dec. 31, 1999 rather than Dec. 31, 2000 (and I'm with the pops) then Modernman # 3 ; Maximum Traffic # 210 was my last published work of the 20th century.

To call this a real jam might be wrong since there was some planning and coordination behind it by that crazy man named Tom in Butler, Pennsylvania who used to call himself Maximum Traffic but has since been known by a few other monikers (my favorite being "Borpo Deets"). He was this project's originator, editor, publisher, and all-around ringmaster.

Nothing was drawn before we had script cranked out by Max, myself, and the great Mike (Worker Poet/Modernman) Hill. Mike, also a Pennsylvanian, once paid me a visit here in McCleary, when he dropped in one day when Lynn Hansen happened to be here. I used to have a photo of that event, and it is possible it is still around in this house.

Anyway, Max wanted me to do all the lettering to give the comic a more consistent look. Contributions were also made by the always amazing Hilary Barta, and a few other artists got their 2 cents in one way or another: Ted Bolman, Mark Campos, Jeff Zenick, and Sean Bieri.

The comic was published in December 1999 and the spine measures 28 cm. I'm also including a scan of the Draft edition, from October 1999, of which only 4 copies exist and is regular digest size.

The Jasper the Pleasant Ghost toy story is actually based on a toy my brother once had and is essentially true. Well, partly true. OK, a little bit true. I've retold this tale in different forms in 3 or 4 comix. It's called recycling. One of the benefits of posting all this old stuff is that I am starting to see where I repeat myself a lot like some old coot blathering away in the corner of the bus station. Hopefully when I put together my next work I'll do something different.

Curve-Vision Man came from a conversation with one of my cousins in the early 1970s. We were talking about useless superpowers, and he mentioned this particular talent, which has stuck in my head ever since.

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Who Buried Paul McCartney?

This one drifts pretty far from comic art, but there is a connection. And hey, how often does a guy get to say he shows up in the film credits? Although in reality it shouldn't have been my name, it should've been Lynn Hansen's.

This documentary was originally broadcast on Dutch television in 2005. Wouter Van Opdorp, the director, heard about Number Nine, Lynn Hansen's book presenting his theory on the "Paul is dead" hoax. Wouter contacted me, I sent him a copy, and apparently they used some of the info.

Although if they did use any of Lynn's book, I'm not sure where it shows up in the film. Several researchers have looked into this hoax as a detective or journalist would by interviewing people and doing lots of field work. That's the case with this highly entertaining documentary. But Lynn was more of an armchair theorizer (at least on this topic) and had a completely different take on the whole affair.

The piece was released on European DVD, which means I can only play it on my computer. It is, however, currently available on YouTube in 3 parts.

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Morty the Dog # 1

Do not be misled by the numbering. This is actually the second of a three issue run.

The first issue was Morty the Dog # nothing, released in an odd oblong minicomic format.

Issue # 1 was printed in April, 1987 and consists of reprints from Natural Functions, Tales From the Timewalker, Starhead # 9, and Shin Kage.

This was one of my few nationally distributed comix. I think Michael intended it to be a quarterly. It is now a fairly common visitor on eBay. Notice Michael's recognition of the famous black and white glut of the mid-late 1980s in his intro.

I notice that on the inside back cover advertisement, I'm the only artist listed who is still above ground today. Little shudders like that creep into my cranium on a more frequent basis these days as I reacquaint myself with these old comix. I never knew Sloan, sad to say, but Big Daddy Roth and I had sort of an interesting connection. I covered it in a minicomic called Musical Chairs.

Nils Osmar, who has an ad on the back cover, is a Seattle artist, writer and nice guy I met a few times at those comix get-togethers Bruce Chrislip used to host up there before he skeedaddled back to Ohio. Nils is apparently still active in Seattle and has a webpage worth visiting.

The panel in the first story where the scientist shows Morty the Starhead Comix on display under museum glass was sort of how I felt seeing the Tragedy of Morty on display in Maryhill Museum last October!

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