Steve Willis Archives v. 2

1st edition, March 1991. Chico, California : Onward Comics. 50 copies. Blue cover, regular digest size.

This one contains a couple pieces new to this blog.

"The Day I Wore Bruce Chrislip's Tie" was originally published in John E.'s Mumbles # 4, I think. Rather fitting this is being scanned and posted on the eve of Bruce and Joan hosting my visit to SPACE later this month. As time has passed I have come to regard this story to be every bit as pretentious and overly dramatic as the art gallery types I make fun of. The term "cringe-worthy" comes to mind when I read it today-- obviously created at a time when I would occasionally lapse into Drama Boy mode. But I do like the panel of Bruce holding his clip-on tie.

Second, the little ad for The Tragedy of Morty, Prince of Denmarke was a bit of self-promotion that had escaped my memory.

Phone photo 309

Hettie and Buster, 10-year old sibs, warily regard the camera

Steve Willis Archives v. 1

1st edition, March 1991. Chico, California : Onward Comics. 50 copies. Blue cover, regular digest size.

Jeff Nicholson expanded the Stevetreads idea in this series. But unlike the former title, all four volumes in this were published at the same time.

Volume 1 was basically an enlarged version of Stevetreads # 1, a consistent pattern throughout the Archives.

The image in this work that captures my attention the most is the ad for One Normal Guy Talking With a Nut, which I don't believe has been posted on this blog before.

Phone photo 308

White Buffalo Gazette news

A year ago Michael Dowers revived interest in Newave comix with the compilation Newave! The Undergound Mini Comix of the 1980s.

And now in 2011 Butler, Pennsylvania artist Maximum Traffic/Buzz Buzzizyk/Borpo Deets has produced 100 copies of a collection that will revive interest in the post-Newave comix of the 1990s, a genre known by many of us as Obscuro comix. Although most of the art in this book appears to be from the Century 21, many of the artists come from the Newave/Obscuro era.

It is an impressive and beautiful work. Over 160 pages in enlarged digest format. In fact, this is the very same kind of size and binding I'm thinking of for my own compilations, giving the graphics room to breathe. A very good choice in delivering the artistic goods.

Bravo Max! I admire the way you give life to your creative visions.

Phone photo 307

Stevetreads # 4

1st edition, 1988. Chico, California : Jeff Nicholson. White cover, regular digest size.

Jeff's final issue of this series. But, as we shall see soon, Stevetreads was sort of a draft for a bigger project he published a little later.

The jam with Seattle author Edd Vick, I think, is the only artwork here that has not previously been posted on this blog. We drew it during one of his visits to McCleary and he later published it in his Fantoons. Edd is a thoughtful and gentle person, and a wonderful conversationalist as both guest and host.

Phone film 5

My office in the morning

Phone photo 306

Stevetreads # 3

1st edition, 1987. Chico, California : Jeff Nicholson. White cover, regular digest size.

The number of copies for the 3rd and 4th issues of this series isn't recorded in my list, but I would assume the count is low since the first two issues had a grand total of 3 copies per issue.

The name Stevetreads was a play on my Retreads title, a series devoted to reprinting items printed hither and yon into one collection (I smile as I recall Ted Bolman wanted to start yet another play on this called ReTeds, which I hope he did). Several of the pieces Jeff reprinted were actually reprints of reprints. But in this issue there was something different. Half the book was filled with new work.

Jeff had acquired several pages of unpublished jam comix between Dale Luciano and myself. This was the in-print debut for the cover art and all work from the "Memories" page to the end. These were later reprinted in 1994 in Dada Gumbo Morty.

Phone film 4

Car Wash

Phone photo 305