Tag Archives: suicide

08/03/2015 · 7:52 pm

That ’90s Comic Book

No, not Peter Bagge’s HATE. I mean that ’90s comic book you’ve never heard of.

A short-lived little funnybook called DROP DEAD, which any fool could see was inspired by Bagge’s neat stuff. Some kid who called himself Matty Boy Anderson was barely out of high school when he started cranking out copies, and timidly mailing them to review periodicals like Factsheet Five, and cartoonists he admired, such as Bagge, Roy (Trailer Trash) Tompkins, and Evan Dorkin.

It began in 1993, when self-publishing meant a trip to Kinko’s. The black & white interior was cheap to print (and fun to huff), but full-color covers were expensive. So typically an office color-copier was secretly abused for free, someplace prior. With a book stapler, you were all set to collate and fold your comix. This is the way it was done. Plus, not sinking your life savings into a print run left you more open to trading, which is also the way it was done. When you submitted your publication to Factsheet Five, you indicated whether trades were welcome. If you did, you found yourself with quite a “zine” collection, very rapidly.

It was actually pretty grand. Continue reading →

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Filed under Bad Influences, Comix Classic & Current, Late To The Party, Magazine Rack

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07/25/2015 · 7:19 pm

10 Reasons Why I Love Gummo

If you’ve never seen Harmony Korine’s 1997 meisterwerk Gummo, you are doing yourself a great disservice. Rarely do I recommend a film so unabashedly, or so often. It has been my favorite movie for almost a decade, regardless of mood. I’ve seen it a hundred times, easily, and it continues to amaze me in new ways. And yes, it shocks, in a manner I draw great inspiration from. But beyond its often hilarious jolts, Gummo is the most explicitly human and raw film I’ve ever seen. The believability of the scenes- some scripted, some improvised- is so overwhelming and authentic, it pulls you into their world with all the force of the tornadoes that set the film’s events in motion. And you may find yourself every bit as devastated in their wake.

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Gummo loosely tells the story of the residents of Xenia, Ohio, a quasi-fictional town that was savaged by tornadoes at an indistinct point in the past, and never fully recovered. The film centers primarily on a small group of children, but as we explore their ruined world, we meet a larger cast of characters, almost all portrayed by “non-actors”. Some are legitimately mentally retarded. It all gels amazingly well, providing a heretofore unseen view of what liberal assholes call “white trash”. I love it so dearly that I could go on endlessly about it, so I’ve decided to instead whittle my thoughts down to my ten favorite (more or less) things about my favorite movie. Here we go! Don’t forget to put out the cat! For god’s sakes! Continue reading →

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Filed under Bad Influences, Faint Signals, Saturday Movie Matinee, Unfairly Maligned

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07/19/2015 · 5:53 pm

Madness

BIUL_Madness

There’s an episode of The Young Ones where they go to a pub, and Madness is performing (“House of Fun”, what else). Rik Mayall asks if the band knows a Cliff Richard song, and Suggs replies “YOU UMMIT, an I’ll smashyafacein.” It’s so horribly delivered, it only makes Rik look like more of a pussy when he backs down.

“Night Boat To Cairo” is probably Madness’s best. The bridge from “Bed & Breakfast Man” was used in bumpers for the ancient “Comedy Channel” show, Stand Up Stand Up.

That story in the second panel is true. It happened in the square behind Oglethorpe House in downtown Savannah. It wasn’t a friendly suggestion, either, it was without a doubt an instance of “haw haw let’s fuck with the weird kid”, delivered after the screeching wail of truck tires braking suddenly.

I’ve been living in Georgia for 25 years. When people from outside the South tell you about Confederate flags, the Civil War, rednecks, racism, and soul food, let me assure you of one thing. They don’t know jack shit about any of it.

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10/20/2014 · 2:40 pm

Bauhaus

In honor of the birth of the great Bela Lugosi.

BIUL_BauhausNote: the girl in the middle in panel 2 is making the “obfuscate” gesture that pretend vampires make when they want me to sucker punch them.

 

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08/12/2014 · 6:22 pm

Come In, Orson

mork

Folks, this may surprise you, but I can feel your pain. I may play the angry cartoonist on TV, so to speak, but sometimes a hurt is so great that I feel it’s a better thing to reach out to you now.

First let me say that it’s wonderful that you’re taking the suicide of Robin Williams as an inspiration to learn more about depression, or as an opportunity to reach out to people. What could be more tragic than a man who almost literally spent every waking moment trying to make people laugh, taking his own life? The mind won’t accept it. It’s too harsh. It’s the story of Pagliacci, writ large before our eyes.

I’m telling you it’s going to be okay. It will. Continue reading →

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Filed under Faint Signals, Nostalgic Obsessions

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