R.C. Harvey
Reviews
A Cockeyed Menagerie: The Drawings of T. S. Sullivant
Fantagraphics
Articles
Shoes & John Q. Public
Bob is calling class to order, and this time, he’s looking back at Vaughn Shoemaker, the question of who invented the “Q” in John Q. Public, how the Gospels made it past the editing stage, and supplying some professional anecdotes of the way things used to be, professionally..
Thomas Inge, 1936 – 2021: Pioneering Founder Of Comics Scholarship Dies
Bob looks back at the life and career of M. Thomas Inge, his friend, editor, and collaborator, and reflects on the groundbreaking work that Inge did in the world of comics scholarship.
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!”
Frank Thorne, Red Sonja, Ghita—Gone, But Never Forgotten
“To foster acceptance of any aspect of the human condition, to nurture enjoyment of it, and to vanquish meaningless guilt seem to me to be acts of high morality: such acts elevate the human spirit. If this be pornography, we need more of it.”
’Way Out West in the Golden Age
Bob goes back to the Golden Age of Western Comics in his latest column, which he was inspired to write after he read a book, aptly titled “Golden Age Western Comics”. History and snark abound!
More Anniversaries: JumpStart and Herb and Jamaal Both Hit (and Pass Through) 30
By way of helping to celebrate Black History Month, we take a look at a couple of 30th year anniversaries. Robb Armstrong, it sez here in this promotional blurb, is the first Black cartoonist to have a comic strip with Black characters to run for 30 consecutive years. To honor the 30th anniversary of his… Read more »
“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.
A Great Work Of Imagination: But All The Facts Are There, Too
Bob is here, with a look at Derf Backderf’s Kent State comic from earlier this year for the latest installment of Hare Tonic!
When You’re Lonely, You Contemplate Yourself
Bob takes a look at Tomine’s latest, and proposes an alternate title.
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.
Henry Boltinoff: 1914-2001
His signature was everywhere—magazines, comic books, comic strips. R.C. Harvey sat down with back in 2001 to find out what was behind it all.
Cecil Jensen, Elmo, and Colonel M’Cosmic: An Editoonist Who Also Drew a Comic Strip
It’s time to talk about Cecil Jensen. And there’s only one place with the guts to provide that kind of coverage: Hare Tonic!
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?
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!
The Mort Walker Interview
In this in-depth interview, Mort Walker talks about growing up during the Great Depression, serving in the military, developing risque versions of his characters for overseas publishers, founding a comics art museum housed in a concrete castle, raising 10 kids, and much more.
“Everything Was in Season”: Fantagraphics from 1978–1984
An excerpt from We Told You So: Comics as Art, the long-awaited and exhaustive oral history of Fantagraphics Books. This chapter’s topics include the wisdom of Gil Kane and Art Spiegelman and the growth of the Fantagraphics publishing family: Amazing Heroes, Nemo and … comic books
