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Monday, April 6, 2015

DAD

My dad, Charles Porcellino. March 16, 1941 - April 6, 2005. I miss him every day.

Tuesday, February 24, 2015

(Some of my) FAVORITE COMICS OF 2014

It was a long year for me, that 2014, spent mostly drawing and prepping my own book The Hospital Suite (D+Q), and then travelling around the country promoting it. By the time I got home it was December, and I had a lot of catching up to do.

I barely managed to do any comics reading last year, though that didn't stop the weekly onslaught of great, interesting, beautiful books. So there's a lot of stuff that no doubt would have made this list had I had a chance to sit down and read it. Well, that's what 2015 is for. Meanwhile, here's a small and by no means comprehensive list of some of my favorite comics of 2014:

Black Light: The Art of L.B. Cole (Fantagraphics)

I waited for what seemed like forever for this wonderful collection of LB Cole's eye-splitting, weird and wonderful artwork: Proto-psychedelic covers for pulps and comics, pin-ups, men's magazines and more, all printed on deliciously oversized pages.

Dessins by Pascal Girard (Editions Pow Pow)

A collection of Pascal's sketchbook pages, this book is everything I love about small press comics.

Chronologie by Dominique Goblet and Nikita Fossoul (Fremok)

I heard about this book years ago when it first came out, but at $50 plus a hefty international shipping charge, I held off. Then in 2013 at the Pierre Feuille Ciseaux retreat, I saw a copy of the book in the flesh. This only hurt more as it was even better in person than I'd imagined. When I saw that author Dominique Goblet was coming to SPX 2014, I hurriedly wrote her an email asking if there was any way she could stow a copy in her luggage for me.

At SPX I immediately went up to her table and introduced myself. She turned and pulled the book out of her suitcase. VOILÀ!

Chronologie is a series of daily portraits she did every morning with her daughter Nikita, where she drew Nikita and vice versa. The drawings are in a variety of media, from simple pencil studies to lush painted portraits, and move through ten years, so, in effect, we see Dominique's daughter grow up before her mother's own eyes. A remarkable book, and one I'm very glad to have on my bookshelf!

Powdered Milk (series) by Keiler Roberts (Self-published)

Keiler continued her charming series of domestic comics, focusing on her everyday interactions with her daughter Xia, husband Scott, and their dog Crooky. On their own, these comics are beautiful slice of life stories, told with sharp but deadpan humor. But underneath runs a darker current of melancholy, which draws Powdered Milk into the realm of real, powerfully human art.

What Nerve! ed. by Dan Nadel (DAP)

I grew up in love with the "Hairy Who": the group of Chicago artists known also as the Imagists, who made their deepest mark on the culture from the late sixties through the eighties. Thankfully, their remarkably diverse and challenging, yet down to earth and funny work has seen something of a reassessment in recent times, both with the release of the Hairy Who documentary, and this great show curated by Dan Nadel, which combines the work of the Imagists with other outsiders like the Cailfornia Funk Artists, HC Westermann, Jack Kirby, Destroy All Monsters and the Fort Thunder crew. I was lucky enough to see the the exhibit in Providence when on tour last fall. The show was overwhelming to me, and I was happy that the accompanying catalog was as good as it was, allowing me to take the exhibit home to peruse for years to come.

Heroical # 1 and 2 by David Plunkert (Spur Design)

I saw these at Jim Rugg's house and had to have them. (They're available online.) Plunkert's designerly but raw and charming comics and art harken back to the glory days of RAW, when weirdness and smart production skills combined to form the first real Objets d'art of the comics world. Full of robots, Lucha Libre, cut and paste, and action lines, these comics are a breath of fresh air-- fun, funky, unpretentious and amazingly well-done.

Facility Integrity by Nick Maandag (Pigeon Press)

It's been to my delight and relief that finally some cartoonists out there (like Dash Shaw) have begun to confront the Death Spiral of Late Capital in smart, funny, and brutally honest ways. This new, viciously funny satire of the stupidity of corporate control describes a boss determined to increase productivity through manipulating his employees' bathroom habits. Maandag's Streakers from 2011 was my book of the year, and somehow Facility Integrity takes the absurdist but pitch perfect satire of Streakers and improves on it. BOOK OF THE YEAR!

Rudy by Mark Connery (2D Cloud)

Great to see a humble and truly underground comics talent get his due, in this career spanning collection edited by Marc Bell. Connery's Rudy the Magic Cat was a mainstay of the 90's underground zine scene, and here his absurd, lysergic stories and doodles have retained the freshness of their wild-eyed, thoroughly un-commercial origins. Printed in tiny quantities and usually given away or left in public places for passers-by, Rudy zines had a mystery and a charm to them that comes clearly across in this nicely produced collection.

Strange Growths #16 by Jenny Zervakis (Self-published)

One of the greatest, criminally unsung cartoonists of the 90's continues to produce her work in small batches, on her own schedule. This issue features comics about placemats, snow, dreams, and lost dogs, alongside short, weird illustrated stories. Jenny's poetic work is soft, but sad, and plain, but deeply rewarding.

I Don't Hate Your Guts by Noah Van Sciver (2D Cloud)

The prolific Van Sciver released a number of books in 2014, all of which could have and should have made this list, but I Don't Hate Your Guts, a scratchy, improvised, full color 30 day diary comic, sums up the confidence that Noah has developed through sheer hard work, exploring and refining his talent. Funny, tragic, real, and absurd in equal measures, no one's doing what Noah does.

Recidivist IV by Zak Sally (La Mano 21)

Harkening back to the fuck all days of alternative comics, when the integrity of one's personal expression was the all-consuming goal of our art, Recidivist IV is a deeply intense, dense, and difficult guide to one person's battle with his life and art. Reading the book requires that you sweat it out in the trenches with the author, and when you finally come out the other side you've had an undeniable taste of his struggle. A real achievement in a world where ho-hum is often the most one can expect from comics.

Art of the Simon and Kirby Studio (Abrams)

Edited by Mark Evanier, this oversized collection of original art scans tells the tale of the years Jack Kirby and his partner Joe Simon ran their own comics studio, producing gripping war stories, horror, crime, romance, and superhero comics for outside publishers. It's fascinating to see Kirby's iconic style refine itself through the years, but the real surprise for me were the examples of work by other talented members of the studio, like Mort Meskin, Al Williamson, and Bill Draut, whose rock solid crime and war stories contained herein are the definition of 50's Comics Art.

La Rêve Américain by Laurent Lolmède (Alain Beaulet)

One of my all-time favorites, Lolmède, visits America and fills his sketchbook with US scenes, all drawn in his wild, grotesque and expressive style. Ouais!

The Lonesome Go by Tim Lane (Fantagraphics)

One of the most original cartoonists working today, Tim Lane makes comics that, while drawing from a similar stylistic well as Charles Burns, John Hankiewicz, and the Beats, are thoroughly his own. The Lonesome Go mixes multiple episodic storylines into sketchbook musings, photographs, epigraphs and lyrics that dart at and subtly reveal aspects of his "Great American Mythological Drama": a surreal mélange of identity, darkness, love, loneliness and betrayal. In a comics scene rife with copycats and half-baked effort, this book successfully carves its own space, on its own terms. There's never been another one like it.

Monday, February 2, 2015

EVERY DAY IS GROUNDHOG DAY

Hal the Groundhog

So, if you've read King-Cat for awhile, you know that the Groundhog, AKA the North American Woodchuck (Marmota monax), is sort of my totem animal. I've been canoodling with them ever since my family moved out to the wilds of Hoffman Estates in 1979. And for all those years, I held within a deep wish-- to touch a groundhog.

Thoreau famously sat with one until it felt comfortable enough to let him touch it, but the closest I ever got to a groundhog in recent years was probably ten feet or so.

So it was much to my delight when Stephanie told me that the Big Run Wolf Ranch in Lockport, IL was holding an upcoming open house, at which their very own Hal the Groundhog was scheduled to make his first Winter Prognostication.

We drove in towards the city, picked up my pal Ray, and headed down to Scenic, Historic Lockport. (Lockport was headquarters to the Illinois and Michigan Canal, which I wrote about in King-Cat #60.) We pulled in at the Wolf Ranch and walked around, over the stream and past the weird ducks and chickens. We met Charlie the Cougar and Khan the Siberian Tiger, and a bunch of lovely wolves. Two delightful porcupines, and a skunk named Kirby (!).

The porcupine's nose was very charming.

Kirby the Skunk

He put his cheek against mine!

JP, Kirby, and Ray Rehayem; with volunteer.

Hal wasn't scheduled to make his appearance until 1 PM, so we got back in the car, drove downtown, and had a great lunch at the local raw, organic, gluten-free cafe (!!!). It was so good we had Key Lime Pie for dessert and had to hustle back to the Ranch for Hal's appearance.

When we got there, Hal was in his Pet Carrier, and the volunteers were explaining the habits of this wily creature, including a brief history of the lore behind the only major* holiday named for a rodent. Finally they opened the cage, and coaxed Kirby out onto the tabletop... did he see his shadow? I don't know, but he did leap off the table and hustle across the yard, past the barbecue, and into the open garage. Presently they rounded him up again and brought him back out for all the kids to see.

Hal enjoying some string cheese.

He was just a little guy, about 10 months old, a Minnesotan by birth. He was very cute, and seemed nonplussed by all the goo-gooing children. After some time with the kids, he went back inside to relax, and then... the main attraction:

A month or so before out visit, Stephanie had gotten in touch with the Ranch Manager, Renee, and had arranged for me to have a bit of private time with Hal afterwards. We huddled in the cold garage while Renee went back and brought him out. He was adorable. We fed him some string cheese to calm him down a bit and Renee picked him up. I got to pet him a little, stroking his neck and ears. He was soft. I wasn't sure whether I'd be able to actually hold him, but she held him up for me and I picked him up.

He was lighter than I expected, and felt just like a big squirrel-- soft, loose fur, and a warm muscular body beneath. He trembled a bit like a squirrel. His nails felt long and quite sharp, as he held on to my jacket and squirmed. It was all happening so fast! Renee took him from me again to calm him down, and then I got to hold him one more time. This time he felt a little more settled and I got to look down at him and really try to remember the moment.

She took him from me once again and brought him back inside. He'd had a long day. And so had we...

We said our thank yous and got back in the car for the ride home. A dream of mine, come true.

*If I say it's major, it's major.

All photos by Stephanie Dorman
Special thanks to Stephanie, Hal, and Renee

Monday, January 12, 2015

AU REVOIR Part Two

I feel like something has snapped, and I really need to rethink the way I'm interacting with the internet, or the world, or comics, or something.

Friday, January 9, 2015

AU REVOIR

In honor of France’s national day of mourning, bye-bye. 24 hours away from the internet is the least I can do.

From Tom Spurgeon’s Comics Reporter:

"Taking someone’s life because they expressed an idea or were in proximity to the expression of an idea someone finds objectionable is an astonishing thing. Murder is an astonishing thing. As many friends that I have in the comics world that speak so eloquently on being affirmed in one’s identity or how one expresses oneself, let me suggest that murder is someone deciding the exact opposite of those things for you. Every possibility of you is now denied. When death comes upon you suddenly, my experience is you become acutely aware of what is being taken away. Seeing your dog? You don’t get to do that anymore. Making art? You’re done making art. That blissful five minutes just sitting on your couch getting your head together? Gone. Every possible thing you can express in term of wanting to do it, you don’t get to do now. Reading a big stack of comics from six months before you started reading those particular titles? Never again. Helping your Mom out with her computer even though it drives you nuts? She won’t be able to ask you to do that anymore and your absence will be a chasm in her heart. Loving and being loved in return? You’re separated from at least your earthly conception of it and in many world views that’s over, too. I felt this yesterday for the people where this decision was made for them and even in a different way for the one of those apparently three lost souls who lost his life acting out on principles and ideas and values that I don’t understand at all and wonder how he came to them. Murder deserves a period." — Tom Spurgeon

http://www.comicsreporter.com/index.php/a_few_notes_on_yesterdays_charlie_hebdo_coverage/

Drawing by the great Laurent Lolmède

Saturday, December 27, 2014

2015: YEAR IN PREVIEW

King Crayon! Photo by Olive Booger.

2014 was a long, busy year for ol' John P., and in 2015 I'm looking forward to hunkering down a bit more and getting a lot of drawing done.

First thing on my plate is King-Cat #75, the All-Maisie Issue, which I'm aiming to have out by TCAF or at least CAKE. It will be a double-sized issue.

Following that I plan on finally releasing South Beloit Journal, my daily diary comics from 2011. And working on the Strange Growths collection by Jenny Zervakis, which I hope to have out in 2016 -- the first non- John P. Spit and a Half release since 1997!

Travel-wise, I'm cutting way down, with my longest trip likely being TCAF in May, where I hope to table with Zak Sally and Noah Van Sciver. Otherwise I'm concentrating on more local, easy-to-get-to events, like CAKE, the various Midwestern zine fests, and Autoptic in Minneapolis.

I also hope to spend less time online in the coming months, which paradoxically means (I hope) I can keep this blog updated more regularly with full-length entries. I have a lot of stuff backed up that I just haven't had the time to post, including bird-banding adventures, two (TWO!) trips to Okefenokee Swamp, the Pierre Feuille Ciseaux event, and a travel diary from my recently completed 25th Anniversary Tour. So.

Thanks everyone for all your support in 2014 and beyond! It was wonderful getting out and meeting so many people, both new friends and old. My best to you-- see you soon!

John P.

Monday, December 8, 2014

RAPPORT DE BELOIT

Santoro rocks the mike, Cleveland: 11/30/14

Hey dudes and dudettes,

I'm back at last from tour-- 31 dates in 74 days. Now I'm home for good through the long cold winter. I'll be drawing King-Cat #75 (in hopes of an April/May release), revamping my distro site, and otherwise cuddling with a variety of mammals.

Look for my tour diary to appear here sometime in the next week week or two, and then lots of pictures of birds and alligators.

ALSO, King-Cat tee-shirts, books, and zines make GREAT GIFTS™.

Thanks everyone!
John P.

Sunday, November 9, 2014

WEST COAST OR BUST

So, I'm heading out to the west coast in a few days, for the third and final leg of my Hospital Suite/Root Hog or Die/25th Anniversary Tour. I'll be traveling via Minneapolis, and, apparently, about 9"-13" worth of snowstorm, so wish me luck.

I don't want to sound alarmist, but if you're on the West Coast and want to see me, have me sign books etc (and you don't make it out to the Midwest or Northeast often), please come out and say hello on this tour. I really don't know when or if I'll be making it out to the Pacific Coast again anytime soon. It's just too much travel, and I'm getting old.

Meanwhile, here are my tour dates; PORTLANDERS please note that the venue for my event has recently been changed from the Hollywood Theatre to the Q Center (event time stays the same):

TUES 11/11: MINNEAPOLIS, MN, Boneshaker Books* – 7 PM

SAT 11/15: SEATTLE, WA, Short Run Festival – 11 AM -6 PM

SUN 11/16: SEATTLE, WA, Short Run @ Central Cinema* - NOON

M 11/17: PORTLAND: Reading Frenzy @ Q Center* - 7 PM SHARP

W 11/19 SAN FRANCISCO: Cartoon Art Museum* - 6 PM

TH 11/20: LOS ANGELES, CA, Giant Robot* – 7:30 PM

SUN 11/23: DENVER, CO, Cowtown Comix Fest - 11 AM -5 PM
SUN 11/23: DENVER, CO, Wax Trax/Kilgore Books* - 6:30 PM

M 11/24: LAWRENCE, KS: Wonder Fair* - 6 PM

T 11/25: ST. LOUIS, MO, Enamel Gallery* - 7 PM
SAT 11/29: CLEVELAND OH, Mahall's 20 Lanes* - 7 PM

SUN 11/30: CLEVELAND OH, Genghis Con - 2-7 PM

*Includes screening of Root Hog or Die, the King-Cat documentary

Thanks everyone! See you on the road...

John P.

Wednesday, October 15, 2014

THE KINKS' MUSWELL HILLBILLIES ALBUM

The famously clichéd answer to the question "Beatles or Stones?" is "The Kinks," right? It's one of those clichés that's really kinda true. The Kinks had both the songwriting chops of the Beatles and the ragged edge of the Stones, and created a body of work that stood on its own, transcending the limitations of those other two groups. I started listening to the Kinks when my pal Mr. Mike played their entire Singles A+B collection on the newfangled CD jukebox at a tiki bar in San Francisco once, on a west coast road trip. Of course I'd heard "You Really Got Me" and "All Day and All of the Night" on oldies radio, but hearing all their early 45's, in order, was an ear-opening experience. Brilliant slashes of melodic, smart rock and roll.

Sometime later I heard the Kinks Kronikles record and was stunned by the breadth and depth of the songwriting on display. Not just the songwriting, but the shambling attitude they took with their music, and the brilliant, sometimes viciously applied humor. This was something that the Beatles and Stones lacked. Ray Davies wasn't joking around in his music, but used sarcasm and wit to lash out at a world gone evil and stupid, and I could relate.

There's another thing the Beatles and Stones lacked -- a real sense of social justice. The Beatles were rich from the time they were young and never really dived into political, class-conscious critique; The Stones were too jaded to care, and songs like "Street Fighting Man," no matter how menacing, felt a bit phony. The Kinks, on the other hand, took pains to side with the working class, even going so far as to break with party lines in criticism of union bosses who lorded over the workers below them that they'd ostensibly sworn to serve. Songs like "Get Back in Line" broke through political gamesmanship to focus on the actual, living, breathing workers who were exploited on all sides from birth to death.

Somehow, I'd never heard the Kinks' Muswell Hillbillies album until a few months ago. Even Lola, its underappreciated predecessor, had the hit title track to guide listeners through its tales of hope and resignation. Muswell Hillbillies, though, never seemed to gain much traction, especially in the States, where its weird mix of British music hall tunes and American country must have sent a lot of people head scratching.

What Muswell is though, is the Kinks most distinctive and perfect record of their long career. On it, Ray Davies' disgust with the modern world, and its mistreatment of the "ordinary man" is grim, funny, dark, and powerful, and the nuance and misdirection is beautiful. In "Have a Cuppa Tea," a rollicking ode to the English Pastime, he cuts suddenly to the bone with the refrain, "For Christ's sake, have a cuppa tea." In that one line there lies all the hidden suffering and latent anger of the working class.

In "Uncle Son," he paints a portrait of a working man who's faced exploitation on all sides from day one-- Unionists, socialists, conservatives, and preachers have all had their way with him, using him for the symbolic power his authentic life stands for. When Davies sings "Bless you, Uncle Son-- They won't forget you when the revolution comes" you know damn well that this ordinary working stiff, who just strove to get by, will simply be dumped on the pile of those who came before him, who were used, abused, misled and wrung dry, for one selfish purpose or another.

The other songs on Muswell are equally fine. From start to finish it’s the Kinks' greatest accomplishment. Give it a listen, for old Uncle Son's sake, if nothing else.

--John Porcellino

Wednesday, September 10, 2014

ROOT HOG DVDs FOR SALE!

Hey everyone, the long-awaited King Cat documentary, ROOT HOG OR DIE, will debut at this weekend's SPX Festival in Bethesda, MD, where DVDs will also be available for purchase. After that I'm taking the show on the road with combo screenings of the movie and signings for my new D+Q book THE HOSPITAL SUITE. Tour dates are here. Can't make it out? ORDER the DVD now direct from ol' John P. or stream it online for only $5 at www.gumroad.com/kilgorebooks.

The DVD includes the entire full-length 100 minute documentary, plus outtakes, bloopers (!), and an all-new exclusive 8 page comic book!

Prices for mailorder (INCLUDING postage and packing) are as follows:

USA: $18.00 via cash/check/mo OR $18.82 via PayPal
CANADA: $24.19 USD via PayPal
REST OF WORLD: $26.22 USD via PayPal

Checks, cash, money order payable to:

John Porcellino
PO Box 142
South Beloit, IL 61080

OR PayPal to:

kingcat_paypal AT hotmail DOT com

Thanks!
John P.

Check out the cool ROOT HOG Tee Shirts too!

Friday, August 29, 2014

ROOT HOG TEE SHIRTS FOR SALE!

Hey Gang -- we're printing up these nifty tee shirts to sell on tour! If you're not going to be able to make it out to any of the tour stops, we're making them available for pre-order too -- order now and we'll ship them right to your door once they're available!

Shirts come in S, M, L, and XL and are two-color black and cream prints on 100% ORGANIC RED COTTON! Nice.

Prices (including shipping and handling charges) are as follows:

USA: $25.00 via cash/check/mo OR $26.00 via PayPal

CANADA: $29.00 USD via PayPal

REST OF WORLD: $33.00 USD via PayPal

Send well-concealed cash/check/mo payable to:

John Porcellino

PO Box 142

South Beloit, IL 61080

Or PayPal to kingcat_paypal AT hotmail DOT com

BE SURE TO SPECIFY WHICH SIZE YOU'D LIKE!

PLEASE NOTE: I'll be on tour until the end of September, so pre-ordered shirts will ship in OCTOBER. Rest assured we'll get them out to you as soon as possible!

Thank you! All proceeds go to the Gibby Dog Fund.

Monday, July 21, 2014

IT LIVES!

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

Thursday, July 17, 2014

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/

Tuesday, June 24, 2014

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.

Wednesday, June 11, 2014

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.