NYC – Legends of Comic Books

Drew Friedman speaks with Danny Fingeroth on Wednesday, April 24th, 2013 from 7:00 from 9:00 PM. Get tickets ($12) at the link!

Press Release:

The master cartoonist and satirist talks about his life and career, including previews of NEW, UNSEEN work, including his “Legends of Comic Books” series, in an interview and visual-presentation extravaganza.

DREW FRIEDMAN’s comics & drawings have appeared in Raw, Weirdo, Heavy Metal, National Lampoon, SPY, The New York Times, MAD, The New Yorker, BLAB!, The New York Observer, The Wall Street Journal, Rolling Stone, Field & Stream, TIME, The Village Voice, etc. His comics and illustrations have been collected in 5 anthologies, the latest, “TOO SOON?”. “Drew Friedman’s Sideshow Freaks” was published by Blast books in 2011. Steven Heller in The New York Times wrote of his three volumes of portraits of “Old Jewish Comedians”: “A festival of drawing virtuosity and fabulous craggy faces. Friedman might very well be the Vermeer of the Borscht Belt.”

Danny Fingeroth and the Soho Gallery for Digital Art are pleased to announce THE COMIC BOOK ROUND TABLE, a series of five exciting comics-related events on five consecutive WEDNESDAY NIGHTS, APRIL 10-MAY 8.

Running for five consecutive WEDNESDAYS, starting APRIL 10, the CBRT will feature guests such as AL JAFFEE, DREW FRIEDMAN, DEAN HASPIEL, PETER KUPER, R. SIKORYAK, DAVID GERROLD, JOE ILLIDGE, PAUL KUPPERBERG, and moderator/organizer DANNY FINGEROTH, taking on topics of interest to pop culture lovers in general, and comics devotees in particular.

The Soho Gallery for Digital Art
138 Sullivan Street, New York, NY 10014

NYC – Celebrating Kurtzman Panel

Legendary artists Drew Friedman, Robert Grossman, Al Jaffee, and Arnold Roth will discuss the life and works of Harvey Kurtzman with a panel moderated by Peter Kuper on March 19, 2013  6:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m. at the Society of Illustrators.   

Tickets

$15 non-members, $10 members, $7 students/seniors

Click here to purchase

ABOUT THE ARTISTS 

Drew Friedman is an award-winning illustrator whose work regularly appears in dozens of major publications.  For years he was renowned for his “stippling” style of caricature, employing thousands of pen-marks to achieve photographic verisimilitude, but in recent years Friedman has switched to painting.  His painstaking attention to detail and parodies of Hollywood icons is widely admired.  Friedman’s work has appeared in Entertainment Weekly, Newsweek, Time, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The New Yorker, The New Republic, The New York Observer, Esquire, RAW, Rolling Stone, and MAD Magazine.  He is a graduate of SVA and studied under such legendary masters as Will Eisner, Ed Sorel, Stan Mack, Arnold Roth, and Harvey Kurtzman.

Robert Grossman is a New York artist whose work has appeared in The New York Times, The Nation, The New Yorker, The New York Observer, Rolling Stone and many other publications.  Grossman also works as a sculptor, filmmaker, and author and has published numerous titles including ZooNooz and O-MANLAND, an online compilation of strips focusing on the 2008 presidential race.

Al Jaffee is best known for his satirical work in MAD Magazine, and today remains a regular contributor having only ever missed one issue of MAD in the last 57 years. Jaffee’s trademark feature, the Mad Fold-in, was created in 1964 and a four-volume boxed set of hardcovers,The Mad Fold-In Collection: 1964-2010, was published by Chronicle Books in September 2011.  In 2008 Jaffee was honored by the Reuben Awards as Cartoonist of the Year. He has also received the National Cartoonists Society Advertising and Illustration Award in 1972, its Special Features Award in 1971 and 1975, and its Humor Comic Book Award in 1979.

Arnold Roth has been a humorous illustrator and cartoonist all his life and, for most of that time, has freelanced, snatching a living by hustling one assignment after another in a highly competitive market.  Roth’s big breakthrough came in 1957 when he started working on Trump, Playboy’s satiric magazine, and on Humbug, a more penurious production, both the inventions of Harvey Kurtzman.  His work has appeared regularly in major magazines including Sports Illustrated, Esquire, Holiday, Time, The New York Times, The New Yorker and countless others.  In 1983, Roth was elected president of the National Cartoonists Society and the next year received the NCS Reuben Award as Cartoonist of the Year.

Peter Kuper’s illustrations and comics appear regularly in Time, Newsweek, The New York Times, and MAD, where he illustrates SPY vs. SPY every month.  He has written and illustrated many books including Comics Trips, a journal of an eight-month trip through Africa and Southeast Asia.  In 1979 he co-founded the political comix magazine World War 3 Illustrated.

Society of Illustrators
128 East 63rd Street, New York, NY 10065

CA – Any Similarity Signing

Drew Friedman speaks in conversation with Leonard Maltin at Book Soup on Saturday May 19, 2012 at 4:00pm.

Finally back in print, Any Similarity is a collection of Drew Friedman’s earliest comic strips and illustrations, featuring his most obsessively stippled black-and-white panels and his most hilarious wise-guy takes on the stars and demi-stars and never-quite-stars of that swamp we like to call showbiz.

In these strips, many of them written by his brother Josh Alan Friedman (both are sons of the legendary Bruce Jay Friedman: humor genes will tell!), the artist works out his obsession with such celebrities as Jim Nabors, Frank Sinatra Jr., Joe Franklin, Bob Hope, Andy Griffith, and Ed Wood, Jr. film star Tor Johnson, whom Friedman actually catapulted back into some sort of semi-fame when these strips were first published in the 1980s.

Friedman is the kind of pop-culture aficionado whose Three Stooges worship is focused not on Moe, Larry or Curly but on Shemp (whose unmistakable mug graces the new cover of this edition), and whose teasing adoration can often be mistaken for mockery or contempt. But who but a worshipful fan would lavish quite so many dots on the loving delineation of these greats’ every pimple and wrinkle?

About the Author
Drew Friedman’s work has appeared in Raw, Weirdo, SPY, The New York Times, MAD, The New Yorker, BLAB!, The New York Observer, Rolling Stone, Field & Stream, appears regularly in Entertainment Weekly and many other magazines. His collection of portraits Drew Friedman’s Sideshow Freaks was published by Blast books in 2011. He resides in Pennsylvania with his wife and collaborator, Kathy Bidus and their two beagles.

Book Soup
8818 Sunset Blvd, W. Hollywood, CA 90069

MoCCA Fest 2012 Programming Schedule

Press Release:

MoCCA Fest Programming!
We’re pleased to announce final times, guests, and agendas for our panels and programs at MoCCA Fest this year. We have two buzzing floors of activity, that include downstairs panel discussions as well as our main exhibitor floor upstairs. Whether you’re perusing the show floor for your favorite finds, catching up on the latest with Gary Panter, or learning to make your very own accordion book, there’s something for everyone.

-And Families!
Don’t forget about our Kids Programming on Sunday morning; four devoted programs in a row, designed to be entertaining and fun for the whole family.
-Sunday April 29th, Kids Programs start at 9:30am. Families arriving to the Fest at 9:30am get a special price; $5 for children 6-12 (under 6 free, over 12 normal) with a paying adult.

PRE-SALE TICKETS ARE ONLINE UNTIL APRIL 26!

Look below for a complete run of MoCCA Fest programming. Also, be sure to check out moccafest.org for news!

ROOM A
SATURDAY

11:15 Kids Comics Sarah Couri (NYPL), Jorge Aguirre, P. Craig Russell, Matt Forsythe,
Colleen AF Venable
You know that old cliche about comics not being just for kids anymore? Well, thankfully some of them still are. The New York Public Library’s Sarah Couri talks to cartoonists who have ventured into world of kids comics and books.

12:15 A History of Comics Censorship
Alex Cox (CBLDF)
The Comic Book Legal Defense Fund’s Alex Cox takes you on guided tour of censorship in comics, from Frederic Wertham to Friendly Franks.

1:15 The State of Small Publishing
Heidi MacDonald (The Comics Beat), Box Brown, Craig Yoe, Barry Matthews
What’s it like running a small publishing company in 2012? The Beat’s Heidi MacDonald talks to an array of publishers about the state of print.

2:15 Klein Award
Gary P anter, Bill Kartalopoulos
Gary Panter receives the 2012 Klein Award.

3:15 A Nordic Roundtable
Fredrik Strömberg (SE), Peter Madsen (DK), Kaisa Leka (FI), Bendik Kaltenborn (NO) and Mattias Elftorp (SE)
The comics culture of northern Europe is brimming with energy, talent and innovation, among other things visible in the new anthology Kolor Klimax from Fantagraphics. Come and meet some of the Nordic artists present at MoCCA.

4:15 Harvey Pekar’s Final Projects
Jeff Newelt, Joy ce Brabner, Joseph Remnant , Rick Parker , Sean Pryor, Dean Haspiel, JD Waldman
Celebrating the life and work of comics pioneer Harvey Pekar with his widow, and writer in her own right, Joyce Brabner, joins a group of his artist collaborators.

5:15 Carousel
R. Sikoryak with Michael Kupperman, Domitille Collardey, Shannon Wheeler, Leslie Stein, and Lauren Weinstein. With voices by Julie Klausner, Dave Hill, Scott Adsit.
Live comics brought to life by cartoonists and a team of talented voice actors.

ROOM A
SUNDAY

11:15 Graphic Novels for Young Adults
Betsy Bird (NYPL), Raina Telgemeier, Kevin Pyle, MK Reed, Derek Kirk Kim
The New York Public Library’s Betsy Bird talks to some of the brightest talents in one of comics’ fastest growing demographics.

12:15 To Run a Comic Stop
Alex Cox (Rocket Ship), Tucker Stone (Bergen Street Comics), Thor Parker (Midtown Comics), Gabe Fowler (Desert Island)
Representatives from some of the area’s top comic stores discuss the trials and tribulations of running your own shop.

1:15 Digital Distribution and the Future of Comics
David Steinberger (Comixology), Evan Dahm, Leigh Walton, Brian Heater
A frank discussion about sequential art’s move into the digital age.

2:15 Memoir
Calvin Reid, Derf, Peter Kuper, Jennifer Hayden, Mike Dawson
Maker s of autobio comics discuss filter their lives through sequential art.

3:15 Daniel Johnston in Conversation
Daniel Johnston, Brian Heater
Join the idiosyncratic singer-songwriter for a discussion about his art, including his debut graphic novel, Space Ducks.

4:15 An Interview with Gary Hallgren
Gary Hallgren, Danny Fingeroth
Gary Hallgen, interviewed by Danny Fingeroth, discusses his career from his days as one of the creators of the notorious Air Pirates, through his illustration work for a zillion publications, from the NY Times and MAD through You: The Owners Manual.

5:15 Animation from Augenblick Studios and Ugly Americans
Aaron Augenblick, Devin Clark, R. Sikoryak
Aaron Augenblick (founder of Augenblick St udios), Devin Clark (creator of “Ugly Americans”), and more show animated clips and shorts from their television, film, and independent projects.

ROOM B
SATURDAY

12:15 With Nicolas Mahler and Tom Gauld
Nicolas Mahler, Tom Gauld, Brian Heater
Brian Heater interviews two artists; Tom Gauld of Scotland, and Nicolas Mahler of Austria.

1:15 Checklist for a New Comic: A Guide to Getting Started
Jess Abel, Matt Madden
In this brief seminar, Jessica Abel and Matt Madden will walk you through the many considerations you should keep in mind when you embark on a new comic of any kind. Abel and Madden will help you strategize and come up with a working plan for your next project, and will cover: creative block and coming up with ideas; choosing a format and platform that makes sense; setting goals and scheduling your time so that you can reach them; finding an audience and looking for collaborators and/or publishers. So bring some paper and be ready to take notes on your next big (or small) project!

3:15 Hans Rickheit in Conversation
Hans Rickheit, Brian Heater
Brian Heater takes on Hans Rickheit–musician, performance artist, cartoonist.

4:15 Big City Dare2Draw
Hosted by TJ Glenn & Charles D Chenet
Featuring dynamic figure drawing, with action poses, using props and, then, the signature “Quick Draw” Contests, with all art done on Blue Line Pro boards, for charity. Prizes provided by our sponsors. Dare2Draw is a non-profit, platform organization for artists, providing mentoring, networking and resources for artistic development, while encouraging goo d health and business practices for cartoonists and providing the opportunity to connect with each other, face-to-face.

ROOM B
SUNDAY

9:30 Kids Program: Comics Are Awesome!
John Green (Teen Boat!)
Learn how an idea in your head becomes a comic on a page. John Green and Colleen AF Venable will take you on a collaborative journey through the process of creating characters and stories for comics.

10:15 Kids Workshop: From Concept to Comic
John Green (Teen Boat!, Phineas and Ferb), Colleen AF Venable (Guinea Pig Pet Shop Private Eye, First Second Books)
Kids Program continues!

11:15 Workshop: Drawing with Rick Parker
Rick Parker (Beavis & Butthead, and Papercutz)
Join cartoonist Rick Parker for an insightful, funny and hands-on workshop in cartooning! This workshop is great for cartoonists of all ages.

12:30 CCS Presents: The Expanding Comic Workshop
Robyn Chapman (Center for Cartoon Studies)
If you think that a comic book is just a bunch of pages between two covers, think again!  There is a wide variety of book making techniques that allow you to fold, flip, and turn your comics in unusual ways. Jon Chad, author of Leo Geo and His Miraculous Journey Through the Center of the Earth, will team up with comics educator Robyn Chapman to introduce three unique book forms. Then the workshop participants will construct and illustrate their own expanding comic books!

2:00 A Discussion with Josh Neufeld and Shannon Wheeler
Josh Neufeld (A.D.: New Orleans After the Deluge), Shannon Wheeler (Oil and Water, Too Much Coffee Man)
These two creators interview one another about their work in comics, especially as it relates to their approaches documenting tragedy on the Gulf Coast.

4:00 Coming to America
Emma Hayley (Publishing Director, SelfMadeHero)
Reporting on the flourishing UK and European comics scenes and the launch of a new graphic novel imprint in the US.

4:45 Euro comics: Kiki de Montparnasse and the French Comics Scene
Doug Wallace, Jose-Louis Bocquet
Jose-Louis Bocquet (Senior Editor, Dupuis – France / Author, Kiki de Monparnasse) and Doug Wallace (Marketing Director, SelfMadeHero)
discuss the European comics scene and Catel & Jose-Louis Bocquet’s first US graphic novel Kiki de Montparnasse.

NYC – My Way Art Show

Drew Friedman opens an exhibition at the Scott Eder Gallery on April 27, 2012 from 6-9pm.

Scott Eder Gallery
18 Bridge St, Suite 2-i, Brooklyn, NY 11201