IT LIVES!

Just got this photo from Julia Pohl-Miranda in San Diego:  The Hospital Suite exists!

SWEET HOME ELGIN

I'll be tabling at this event in Elgin Saturday, with loads of Kool Komix. Come on by and meet Clifford the Big Red Dog!

"Comic Book Mania Convention will be held on July 19 at Gail Borden Public Library, 270 N. Grove Avenue, Elgin, IL. Hours are 10am-5pm; admission is FREE! Meet in person the artists and writers of your favorite comics. Thousands of comics for sale. Free facepainting for the kids. Wear a costume and automatically win a prize! A Prize Drawing will be held on the hour; winners must be present to win.

At 11:00, writer Russell Lissau and artist Justin Castaneda will present "How to Make Comics". Learn all about the comics making process.

Also at 11:00, our Manga and Anime Club will be meeting. Both of these events will be on the second floor at the library.

Bring the kids to see our library-wide exhibit "Adventures with Clifford the Big Red Dog". If you are lucky, you may get to meet Clifford himself!

Bring your cameras and get your picture taken with your favorite super-heroes! Brought to you by We Are Cosplay!"

https://www.facebook.com/events/1443311332592471/

THE KING-CAT MOVIE

Hi everyone,

Here's the trailer for the upcoming King-Cat movie, directed by Kilgore Books' Dan Stafford:


The movie will debut at SPX in September, and then I'll be traveling around the country screening it.  Some of the tour dates have already been confirmed, and are listed here.  Otherwise, check back for more info as it becomes available!

Also, check Dan's Blog, where he posts updates, outtakes, and other fun stuff.

Thanks!
John P.

CAKE 2014

Tablemates Zak Sally and Noah Van Sciver

So, my last big show until the fall -- CAKE 2014.  In only its third year, CAKE feels like a well oiled and FUN comics festival.  So many people make the trip out, and Chicago itself has such a remarkable comics scene, that the whole thing feels like a family reunion.  Add to that the laid back Midwestern vibe and you've got a winner.

Saturday I spent a bunch of time wandering around and saying hi to people; Sunday I stayed at my table and when I was away I ran around quickly picking up great comics.

Noah with the illustrious Tony Millionaire

Victor "Bald Eagles" Cayro and Becca Kacanda

Millionaire, JP, and Mt. Baldy

When Tony stood up he kept going.  Dude's like eight feet tall.

View of downtown from the rooftop deck

Mssrs. Chris Cilla and Onsmith

Lizz Hickey and Bill Kartalopoulos

Nils Balls

Nicole J. Georges earns her Comic Book Merit Badge

The great Keiler Roberts

Just a friendly tap on the horn from Aaron "#4" Renier and Jeremy Tinder

JP, Jessica Campbell, and a smilier AR

Billy Ireland's Sooper Awesome Caitlin McGurk

CAKE organizer and all-around bon vivant Max Morris

Greg Means (R) reminds Alec Longstreth what it felt like when the Blazers made it past the first round

The always charming MariNaomi

Nicole models the new King-Cat brand Muumuu

And last but not least, my roommate Twiggy

BIRD CITY USA PLUS ROCKS

A few weekends ago, I finally finished the work for The Hospital Suite, so I had a chance to have some fun.  On Saturday Stephanie and I went to our first meeting as members of the Badger Lapidary and Geological Society, followed by a fossil-hunting trip out to a few quarries in the Monroe, Wisconsin vicinity.  We found a lot of old animals, including our first "Trilo-bits" (but no complete specimens).  I figured I knew a good bit about Animals and Vegetables already, so it was time to learn some about Minerals.  We've been going out and rockhounding for a few months, but this was my first time doing so with people who knew what they were doing, so it was plenty educational.

Your 'umble narrator.

When we started fossil-hunting a few months ago, it was very surprising to me that one could walk up to an average, ordinary rock outcropping and find old animals sitting there that are millions of years old.

Bivalve clam, found in chert

Clockwise from top: Some kind of gastropod (snail), snail, galena (silvery mineral), sphalerite (black mineral)

A nice big chunk of rock featuring some lovely "fossil hash" (what rockhounds call a hodgepodge mix of various fossils all grouped together).  If you zoom in on the cephalopod hole in the lower left, you'll see it's filled with pyrite and sphalerite crystals.  Pretty cool.

Gastropod in matrix

Fossil hash consisting mostly of brachiopods

Then, that Sunday we finally got to attend the Sand Bluff Bird Observatory's annual Bird Fest.  Usually we're out of town that weekend, or just plain forget about it, or hear about it too late.  This time we made it.  It was great getting to be around a bunch of like-minded people, and to see these reclusive and somewhat small birds up close was remarkable.  It almost gave me the shakes I was so excited.

 White-eyed Vireo

(Vireo griseus)

Gray Catbird

(Dumatella carolinensis)

Brown-headed Cowbird (Female)

(Molothrus ater)

 Common Yellowthroat

(Geothlypis trichas)

Nashville Warbler

(Vermivora ruficapilla)

Western Palm Warbler

(Setophaga palmarum palmarum)

So all in all, a pretty good weekend!

APPLESEED CON

US Route 30, between Valparaiso and Fort Wayne

So, last weekend I drove out to Fort Wayne, Indiana, to attend the 2014 Appleseed Comic Con.  My buddies Jim Rugg, Ed Piskor, and Tom Scioli were attending, plus who were the Special Guests? None other than both PETE BAGGE and JIM STERANKO!  So I'm there.

The trip wasn't too bad, once I got out of Chicago.  I made it to Ft. Wayne early enough Friday afternoon to quickly hit all the comics shops in town.  I managed to pick up like ten 1970's Marvel Horror Comics that were on my list, and I was ridin' high.

Checked in to the hotel, and stayed up way too late talking about comics with Jim, Ed, and Tom, three hardcore comics enthusiasts.

Beautiful downtown Fort Wayne

Next day I got up early to set up for the show.  The Con was held in a gorgeous new Events Center, right in the heart of downtown.  Day One went well, met some cool people, including, for the first time-- Pete Bagge.  Then I lurked around the Steranko table a bit checking out all his cool old memorabilia (old Marvel black light posters from 1973 etc).  When I tried to take his picture he said "No Pictures!" and held up his hand.  The guy has class.

Managed to rustle up six or seven more comics I was looking for, and had lunch at the King Gyros next door.

Spit and a Half table, Northeast Indiana Stylee

Saturday crowds

The Great and Honorable Peter Bagge

Ed Piskor and his Hip Hop Family Tree

Jim Rugg and fan

Cool old Steranko Star Trek poster

That night we all went to dinner downtown and sat at a long table-- Steranko held court at one end, and Bagge at the other.  Two generations of Classic American Cartoonistes, wow.  Got out of there and went back to the room where we stayed up too late talking about comics again.

Fort Wayne Skyline

In Search of: BREAKFAST

"This is the idea we could have rolled with from the beginning!"

Downtown Post Office

Grand Wayne Center, home of the Appleseed Con

Tom and Jim share a knowing glance, Day Two

Jim with just some of his amazing and prodigious output

(I bought a copy of the Black-Lite Barbarianess poster!)

Tom never stopped working, all weekend-long

Day Two was slower than Day One, but that only meant I got to shoot the breeze with cartoonists more, and dig through more longboxes.  Afterwards, we all met up for a final calzone-fueled goodbye.  The Con Fatigue miraculously wore off, and I realized how much fun it was just hanging out with these guys.

Then, the road home...