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JHU Comic Books
Zach is on Staten Island today, grilling the owners of a longtime New York retail chain about taking over and staying alive.
Laughing Ogre Comics
We catch up with Gib Bickel, manager of the Eisner-winning Columbus, OH comic shop Laughing Ogre Comics, about decades of history, the love of a good story, and the Ogre’s perspective on today’s distribution-related challenges.
Dialogue Balloons: Biking and Philosophy
Jason Novak speaks with Gary Sullivan about making comics with an eye towards collage and memories of defunct message boards, and then Eleanor Davis reveals some of the work method behind her excellent memoir, You & a Bike & a Road.
These fragments I have shored against my ruins
Matt Seneca read so many comics that a capsule column was demanded. After all, if you can’t put wordless NYRC books next to Ben Grimm, where will your Yokoyama references find a home?
Black Cat Comics
It’s off to Salt Lake City to speak with Greg Gage about back issues, what it’s really like to deal with all those new distributors, and how companies like Marvel & DC might get things back on track: the answer probably isn’t in a movie theater!
Dialogue Balloons: Consumption and Transformation
Exhaustion. Translation. Breakfast. Smoking. Jason’s ready to talk to cartoonists about these subjects, and more, in this month’s Dialogue Balloons.
The Importance of June 16th to James Joyce, And a New Graphic Biography of the Famously Obtuse Writer
Bob has always liked his James Joyce biographies, when they’ve shown up in prose. He also, as you well know, likes his comics. So is a comic biography of Joyce, like the one by Alfonso Zapico, going to be the peanut butter to his chocolate? Let’s put it this way: the word “best” is about to get a bit of a workout.
Bob Montana’s Archie Newspaper Comic Strip…And Who, Actually, Invented Archie
Is there a secret history to the beginnings of Archie and his fellow Riverdalians? Bob’s been doing some reading and researching, and is ready to deliver his hot take, that take being: “Maybe!”
“Naked” Is Dutch for “Nude”: The Early History of the Dutch Treaters
Bob’s here with a brief history of the Dutch Treat Club, their notebook of nudes, and their old President, James Montgomery Flagg.
American Daredevil: Comics, Communism, and the Battles of Lev Gleason
Bob takes a look at the story behind the making (and breaking) of a Golden Age publisher, as told in a recent book on Lev Gleason.
Morrill Goddard: Godfather Of The “Comics”
Morrill Goddard is nearly unknown because the man had a passion for anonymity. All that we know about him is divulged herewith—in connection with what we have been calling “comics” for generations.
Six Will Get You Ditko, Miller & Byrne
Sobel’s back-issue trip to the Koch Warehouse in Brooklyn results in a trip to the Frank Miller advocacy court, questions about the Phantom Stranger, and more footnotes than I have memories of my father saying he loved me!
Lambiek
Nicholas Burman visits Amsterdam’s legendary comic shop Lambiek for a bit of their history, as well as their prescription for handling their COVID-19 influenced present.
Doomsday Clock: What’s It All Mean?
R.C. Harvey isn’t going to let Geoff Johns get away with spending a huge amount of time messing around with old Watchmen comics and thousands of alternate DC universes without giving the end result the old once over. Can Bob resist the bombast?
Return To The Book Nook
Marc Sobel’s archaeological finds include The Miracle Squad, Steve Bissette classics, R.L. Stine (huh?) and a comic that was actually published in 2019: you read that right. Go ahead and open your presents early!
The Shame of Shazam: Its Present Debacle and Abuse
Shazam hasn’t had the easiest run of things for a good long while–don’t let the box office receipts fool you! R.C. Harvey is here with the latest installment of Hare Tonic, focusing on the Big Red Cheese!
A Visit Down South
Marc Sobel’s travels took him down South, to the legendary Book Nook, where TCJ’s editor once bought a bootleg version of “Cop Killer”, as sung by Soundgarden. Today, Marc is just talking comics.
Comics in Drawers
You really can find comics just about anywhere, although most people would have left the comics in this column behind. Thankfully, Marc Sobel has a different plan in mind.
Ellen Lindner: Day Five
Perfection cannot remain ignored for long, even if it’s just eyebrows we’re talking about. Friday is here, and so is Ellen Lindner!
Ellen Lindner: Day Three
Opera, books, listening, Instagram. It couldn’t get more slice of life than it’s getting this Wednesday. A birthday approaches!
Ellen Lindner: Day Two
We all have our various ways to kill cubicle time when the work is slow to come. For example: Tea. On a Tuesday?
Ellen Lindner: Day One
Ellen faces the withdraw that follows binge-watching, grapples with…what is that, Hale & Hearty? No matter. A new Diary begins!
Welcome to the Strip Mine
One of the great joys of comic book collecting is longbox surfing. You know what I mean, standing for hours sifting through filthy, disorganized boxes, carefully un-taping bags of one cheap floppy after another, scanning the credits, flipping the pages, gauging the condition, and, best of all, chatting with other geeks who actually get it.… Read more »
