DC – The Silence of Our Friends Signing

This event has been canceled and will not be rescheduled.

Mark Long, Jim Demonakos, and Nate Powell sign at Politics and Prose on Saturday, February 25, 2012 at 1:00 pm.

In this remarkable confluence of talents, Powell’s graphic artistry joins Long’s true story and Demonakos’s narrative skills to depict an episode of the civil rights struggle. In 1967, five black college students in Texas were accused of killing a white policeman. A white family from a notoriously racist neighborhood not only spoke in their defense, but succeeded in getting the charges against them dropped.

Politics & Prose
5015 Connecticut Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20008

WA – Black History Month Signing

Fantagraphics Bookstore  kicks off Black History Month on  Saturday, February 4 with the debut of two diverse books. Seattle-based  music scholar Pat Thomas, author of Listen, Whitey!: The Sights and  Sounds of Black Power 1965 – 1975, will be joined by Seattle authors Mark Long and Jim Demonakos, who together with cartoonist Nate Powell  created the graphic novel The Silence of Our Friends.

While researching this book project in Oakland, archivist Pat Thomas  discovered rare recordings of speeches, interviews, and music by noted  activists Huey Newton, Bobby Seale, Elaine Brown, and others that form  the framework of this definitive retrospective. Listen, Whitey! also  chronicles the forgotten history of Motown Records’  Black Power  subsidiary label, Black Forum, which released politically charged albums  by Stokely Carmichael, Langston Hughes, Bill Cosby and Ossie Davis,  among others. Obscure records produced by African-American  sociopolitical organizations of the period are examined, along with the  Isley Brothers, Nina Simone, Art Ensemble of Chicago, Watts Prophets,  Roland Kirk, Horace Silver, Angela Davis, H. Rap Brown, Stanley Crouch,  and others that spoke out against oppression. Thomas will give a slide  and music presentation, and limited number of advance copies of the book  will be available to the public. Also making its debut is a companion  CD of the same title from Seattle-based Light in the Attic records. The  album features rare tracks from African-American activists like Dick  Gregory, Eldridge Cleaver, Last Poets, and others, with protest music by  Bob Dylan, John and Yoko Ono, Gil Scott-Heron, Roy Harper, and more.

The Silence of Our Friends is the semi-autobiographical tale of Mark  Long. Set in 1967 Texas against the backdrop of the civil rights  struggle, a white family from a notoriously racist suburb and a black  family from its poorest ward cross Houston’s color line, overcoming fear  and violence to win the freedom of five black college students unjustly  charged with the murder of a policeman. Co-authored by Jim Demonakos  (founder of Seattle’s Emerald City Comicon), and drawn by award-winning  cartoonist Nate Powell, The Silence of Our Friends is a new and  important entry in the body of civil rights literature.

Join these remarkable authors on Saturday, February 4 from 6:00 to 8:00  PM at Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery, located at 1201 S. Vale  St. (at Airport Way S.) in Seattle’s colorful Georgetown neighborhood.  Phone 206.658.0110.

TX – The Silence of Our Friends Signing

Mark Long, Jim Demonakos (Kirby Krackle), and Nate Powell (Swallow Me Whole) sign at Guzu Gallery on Sunday, February 19, 2012 from 1:00pm until 4:00pm.

All three of the creators will be here signing the new First Second graphic novel based on a little-known event from the civil rights movement in Houston, 1968.

We’re thrilled to have the guys in for a day of discussion, signing, and… why not?… free beer.  Don’t miss the first ever Guzu Gallery event!

About The Silence of Our Friends:
As the civil rights struggle heats up in Texas, two families-one white, one black-find common ground.

This semi-autobiographical tale is set in 1967 Texas, against the backdrop of the fight for civil rights. A white family from a notoriously racist neighborhood in the suburbs and a black family from its poorest ward cross Houston’s color line, overcoming humiliation, degradation, and violence to win the freedom of five black college students unjustly charged with the murder of a policeman.

The Silence of Our Friends follows events through the point of view of young Mark Long, whose father is a reporter covering the story. Semi-fictionalized, this story has its roots solidly in very real events. With art from the brilliant Nate Powell (Swallow Me Whole) bringing the tale to heart-wrenching life, The Silence of Our Friends is a new and important entry in the body of civil rights literature.

Sponsored by Austin Books & Comics

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Jo Chen Covers ECCC’s Monsters & Dames

Seattle, WA – January 26, 2010 – The Emerald City ComiCon (ECCC) is once again bringing back its popular MONSTERS & DAMES art book for 2010. It features almost fifty brand new pieces of art by some of the top illustrators in comics, as well as an amazing cover by Jo Chen (Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season 8).

“We sold out of our entire run of the 2009 Monsters & Dames art book,” said ECCC organizer Jim Demonakos. “Thanks to that, and overwhelming feedback from our attendees, we’ve created another fantastic collection of monsters, dames, lady monsters and everything in between!”

This full-color, 9″x12″, 48-page hardcover is limited to only 850 individually numbered copies and features contributions from artists such as Tim Sale, Mike Allred, Darick Robertson, Whilce Portacio, Eric Basaldua, Aaron Lopresti, Philip Tan, Michael Golden, Carlos D’Anda, Brian Churilla, Gabriel Hardman, Jamie McKelvie, Jim Rugg, Timothy Green, Steve Rolston, Jeff Lemire, Matt Kindt, Mark Texeira and dozens more!

Additionally, a portion of the proceeds from this book benefits the Seattle Children’s Hospital, a premier child health care and pediatric center and recognized as one of the leading US hospitals for children.

The Eighth Annual Emerald City ComiCon will be taking place March 13-14, 2010 at the Washington State Convention & Trade Center in beautiful downtown Seattle, WA.

www.emeraldcitycomicon.com